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DWCS winner says he saw Charlie Cleveland knockout coming

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DWCS winner says he saw Charlie Cleveland knockout coming
Gabriel
Lourenco claims he was confident about a knockout win after
studying tape on his
Dana White's Contender Series opponent.

Lourenco (8-1) took on Charlie
Cleveland (6-2) in a heavyweight matchup on
Week 4 of DWCS 2026. Lourenco took hardly over two minutes to
drop his opponent with a right hand before dropping vicious
hammer-fists to secure a stoppage win. The 26-year-old earned an

Ultimate Fighting Championship contract for his first-round
knockout.

Gabriel Lourenco explains the flaw he spotted before his
first-round knockout

Lourenco had predicted a first-round knockout victory ahead of his
DWCS appearance. “Black Mamba†credits his
Chute Boxe coach, Luciano
Ferreira, also known as “Mutante,†for his opponent analysis.
Lourenco had observed that Cleveland never tucked his chin, making
a knockout inevitable at some point.

“We had been studying him throughout,†Lourenco said in his
post-fight interview. “Coach Luciano ‘Mutante' is right here… We
always knew his head was held high; we knew that at one point [my
right hand] was gonna go in… Representing Luciano, representing
Chute Boxe will be honor. I want more knockouts like this.â€

Lourenco ultimately won a contract for his knockout win.

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Dan Hooker says he’d fight Francis Ngannou for the right price

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Dan Hooker says he’d fight Francis Ngannou for the right price
Dan
Hooker doesn't mind welcoming newcomers to the
Ultimate Fighting Championship if he's compensated
accordingly.

Hooker (24-14) enters enemy territory to take on promotional
debutant Salahdine
Parnasse (23-2) at
UFC Paris on Sept. 5. “The Hangman†recently revealed that his
fight purse for his upcoming bout against the French star is the
“biggest payday†of his career so far.

Dan Hooker discusses his career-high payday for Salahdine
Parnasse at UFC Paris

The Kiwi is no stranger to accepting matchups others usually avoid,
be it short-notice bouts or welcoming fighters into the UFC, as he
did with Michael
Chandler. Hooker jokes that he would even fight former UFC
heavyweight champion Francis
Ngannou for the right purse.

“I'd fight Francis Ngannou for the amount of money they are
paying,†Hooker told RMC Sport Combat. “So, they give me this kind
of stepper on the scale with the same weight as me… Biggest payday
of my career for sure.â€

Notably, in a previous interview, Hooker claimed that he's also
open to welcoming Usman
Nurmagomedov, currently the most sought-after free agent in
mixed martial arts, to the UFC.

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DWCS Season 10, Week 4 results: 5 UFC contracts handed out after night of finishes

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DWCS Season 10, Week 4 results: 5 UFC contracts handed out after night of finishes

Five more fighters have joined the ranks of the UFC.

On Tuesday night, Week 4 of Season 10 of Contender Series took place at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, featuring four stoppages over five fights, including one 15-second knockout. At the end of the night, Dana White was so impressed by the performances that he handed out UFC contracts to all the winners.

Adam Darby def. Patrick Rivera

In the main event of the evening, Adam Darby showed why he was the biggest betting favorite on the card, wailing on Patrick Rivera for the better part of 15 minutes before getting a doctor's stoppage in the third round, earning himself a UFC contract.

Darby was over a 4-to-1 favorite against Rivera, and right from the start, Darby chewed Rivera up with low kicks and sharp punches. By the third round, Rivera's face was barely recognizable from the start of the fight, and Darby had landed a would-be record for low kicks in a UFC welterweight fight (Contender Series bouts are not counted as UFC fights). Rivera was simply too tough for his own good, and midway through the round, referee Kerry Hatley decided he'd seen enough, calling in the doctor to check Rivera's eye, and then ended the fight.

Modestino Rodrigues def. Brandon Holmes

In the penultimate fight of the evening, Modestino Rodrigues demolished Brandon Holmes in seconds, earning his spot in the UFC.

A former K-1 kickboxer, the 22-year-old out of Brazil showed off how dangerous his striking is, landing a low leg kick before lighting Holmes up with a blitz of punches almost immediately, causing the referee to jump in just 15 seconds into the bout, giving Rodrigues the win and a UFC contract.

Silvestre Sanchez def. Liam McCracken

In the swing bout of the evening, Silvestre Sanchez made the case for being the next big UFC fighter out of Mexico as he beat down Liam McCracken in their lightweight contest.

McCracken had some success early against Sanchez as his speed and jab gave the Mexican fighter some problems, but Sanchez simply would not be deterred, bullying McCracken with power shots and takedowns. By the third round, Sanchez had bloodied McCracken up and appeared to be on his way to a hard-fought decision, but instead he took the judges out of the equation with a thudding left hook that ended McCracken's night and earned Sanchez a UFC contract.

Gabriel Lorenco def. Charlie Cleveland

In the second bout of the evening, Gabriel Lorenco delivered a savage knockout of Charlie Cleveland — albeit with some controversy — to punch his ticket into the UFC.

Lorenco and Cleveland came out throwing bombs right away, and early on, it looked like Cleveland was getting the better of things. But when Cleveland got lazy while circling out from in close, Lorenco clocked him with a wild hook that sent him crashing down. Miraculously, Cleveland somehow popped back up, but a nasty elbow (that may have landed on the back of the head) sent him back down, and a few hammerfists finished the job and earned Lorenco a contract.

Adam Livingston def. Hunter Smith

In the opening bout of the evening, Adam Livingston made good on his second attempt on Contender Series, winning a spirited scrap over Hunter Smith to earn a UFC contract.

Livingston competed on Season 9 of Contender Series, losing to Tommy Gantt. The 25-year-old returned to the APEX on Tuesday hoping for redemption, but it certainly wasn't easy. Livingston used his length and striking acumen to repeatedly crack Smith — a few times with spinning attacks — but Smith pressured him relentlessly with power punches, turning the fight into a back-and-forth battle. In the end, Livingston did enough to edge out a split decision and earn his UFC contract.

Check out the full Contender Series results below.

Adam Darby def. Patrick Rivera via TKO (doctor's stoppage) — 2:42, Round 3

Modestino Rodrigues def. Brandon Holmes via TKO (punches) — 0:15, Round 1

Silvestre Sanchez def. Liam McCracken via TKO (punches) — 2:44, Round 3

Gabriel Lorenco def. Charlie Cleveland via TKO (punches) — 2:02, Round 1

Adam Livingston def. Hunter Smith via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

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REPORT: Valentina Shevchenko OUT of rumored UFC 332 headliner as matchmakers scramble

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REPORT: Valentina Shevchenko OUT of rumored UFC 332 headliner as matchmakers scramble

UFC women's flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko is reportedly injured and unable to fight in the rumored UFC 332 main event.

The UFC matchmakers will reportedly have to go down alternative avenues to book a main event for UFC 332 after their rumored initial plan hit a roadblock.

UFC women's flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko, who hasn't fought since defeating Zhang Weili last year at UFC 322, was rumored to fight in the UFC 332 main event against top contender Natalia Silva. Silva, who has earned recent wins over former titleholders Rose Namajunas, Alexa Grasso, and Jessica Andrade, is the consensus No. 1 contender in the division.

With just about a month to go before UFC 332 in Salt Lake City, the card remains without an announced main event booking. Despite recent rumors that Shevchenko vs. Silva would headline the card, those plans were scratched due to unfortunate circumstances.

Ag.Fight was the first to report the news of Shevchenko's injury. As of this writing, the nature of Shevchenko's injury remains undisclosed.

Valentina Shevchenko vs. Natalia Silva canceled for UFC 332 as card remains without headliner

It's also uncertain if Silva still plans to fight at UFC 332 in a potential interim title bout during Shevchenko's hiatus. Originally, the UFC was expected to book an interim light heavyweight title bout for UFC 332 amidst champion Carlos Ulberg's injury recovery, but nothing has materialized.

As of this writing, the arguably highest-profile bout on the card features bantamweights Payton Talbott vs. Deiveson Figueiredo, leaving the matchmakers without an ideal option to promote to the main event slot.

A women's bantamweight bout between Kayla Harrison and Amanda Nunes could be an option, but Harrison is coming off neck surgery and will need ample time to cut down to 135 lbs. UFC 332 continues to be one of the biggest unknowns of the year as October 3rd quickly approaches.

What potential fight do you want to headline UFC 332? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM


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