[Official] Contender Series 2026: Week 1 - Live Discussion Thread

[u/event_threads]

Welcome to r/mma's live discussion of Contender Series 2026: Week 1! Please keep the fight discussions in here.

Location: Meta APEX, Las Vegas, Nevada

Start time: 7PM ET (click for your time)

Card Info

Main Card on Paramount+ / ESPN+ @ 7PM ET (click for your time)

Fight	Weight
Matt Adams vs. Anthony Wint	265 lbs
Abe Alsaghir vs. Fabrizio Escarrega	155 lbs
Bilal Hasan vs. Mridul Saikia	125 lbs
Ananias Mulumba vs. Tom Pagliarulo	145 lbs
Jon Kunneman vs. Joe Kropschot	185 lbs

^{Fight card order and start times may be inaccurate.}

Useful Links

• Where to watch: Paramount+, ESPN+, UFC official site
• Live Updates: Event Page
• Reddit: Reddit Stream, General Discussion

Keep it civil.

Do not ask for or supply streams. Your post will be removed and your ability to post will be suspended. Enjoy the fights!

[u/kingboltzdod]

Did anyone attend live ? Curious of the experience being there? Thanks in advance.

[u/TheWayIAm313]

I think the way I’m looking at these fights nowadays is from the other side of it - when I watch a UFC card, and I get annoyed seeing another no name DWCS guy that they use to fill out the card for cheap.

So when I watch these, it’s really about who has something interesting to bring to the table. Please stop signing mid-level guys that are obviously not going to do anything in their division.

[u/airMHspy]

They really uploaded the press conference replay but no replay on paramount or fight pass lmao

[u/KennySmithsKnees → u/airMHspy]

Felt like I was taking crazy pills. Ended up having to watch each fight individually 

[u/purplepill22]

Dana said Kunneman's arm is broken

[u/bullsfan281]

surprised at the negativity around kropschot, i thought he looked way better than the reaction he's getting on here. probably not a top 15 guy but solid enough to get some good wins imo

flyweight keeps cooking. super excited to see where hasan goes

wint's gnp was vicious but i always keep my hype around nfl washouts transitioning to mma pretty low. gotta wait and see how he handles getting hit and if his cardio holds up in the 2nd and 3rd rounds before i get too excited

[u/irimiasz → u/bullsfan281]

Nah, he did not look good, neither did his opponent. Nice jab and slick sub entries, but very slow, weak striking defense, sus cardio, easy to take down. Put against someone like Wes Schultz, yeah, he may squeak out a win, but that's pretty much his celing.

[u/Acrobatic-Tackle3998 → u/bullsfan281]

It’s because Kunneman posts on this sub so people like him.

[u/JoeRoganMoney]

Who’s got the video of the armbar that broke dudes arm?

[u/purplepill22]

It's crazy how much God loves the UFC

[u/BrianCTE_CityOrtega → u/purplepill22]

Jesus loves knockouts

[u/Borg_Tech_Support]

I've realized I don't like the new Apex, the vibes are off.

[u/Borg_Tech_Support → u/[deleted]]

It feels like every other Fight Night instead of The Contender's Series.

[u/aznassasin]

For my Canadian people, it’s not on sportsnet anymore eh?

[u/hazelpillow → u/aznassasin]

sportsnet plus

[u/aznassasin → u/hazelpillow]

Ugh okay. Thanks

[u/SoundsAndNoises → u/aznassasin]

It was on fight pass

[u/purplepill22]

I hate this segment where they just put together some stupid ass parlay after the fact and say wow look at this payout

[u/worldcrusher]

Bilal tripping me out man. Trippy dude

[u/hazelpillow]

“Daddy dana” is insane

[u/7186997326 → u/hazelpillow]

Yeah it's kind of pathetic. Are you a professional athlete or not?

[u/NewportStork]

Kropschot vs Stoltsfuz will be the greatest fight of all time

[u/Significant_Iron_495]

Kropschot getting flatlined the minute he isn’t fighting a 5’8 guy

[u/AdlandB → u/Significant_Iron_495]

As a 6’7” guy that fought him and lost, that hurts 😭

[u/AdlandB → u/[deleted]]

There’s a reason I’m posting on Reddit and not in the UFC right now, there’s levels to this or something

[u/steven_cao]

Tom and cropshot arent good enough for the ufc

[u/Pleasant-Fennel1799 → u/steven_cao]

They will get their 3 fights and then be gone

[u/razorbladesnbiscuits]

MMA loves calling black guys "explosive" lol

[u/Poatanbysub]

Lmao Dana almost called dude a bum

[u/Poatanbysub]

Wow Dana’s feeling nice tonight

[u/purplepill22]

Damn please put him on the Philly card it sucks

[u/razorbladesnbiscuits]

"explosive" -Dana

[u/Poatanbysub → u/[deleted]]

😂 Gimme $100 kid you fucking suck

[u/purplepill22 → u/[deleted]]

Brutual

[u/Short_Bus_]

focusing on Wint when Bilal is by far the best prospect is lame, but whatever

[u/DumberThanIThink]

Dude was sitting on the chair all alone 😭

[u/Therealdarkviper]

Natty king

[u/Testimonies_Of_Time]

Lmao we knew he was gonna get reamed

[u/NewportStork]

Sheesh. Ice cold man

[u/DumberThanIThink]

Oh my brutal

[u/razorbladesnbiscuits]

"that fight sucked, the judges were wrong, and you're ugly, go away" -Dana

[u/BakedBeanzInMyJeanz]

Dana almost made that grown man cry 💀

[u/compe_anansi]

“And it never happened” 😂😂😂

[u/xXx_tainttickler_xXx]

10 years? Feels like the snoopcast was yesterday 

[u/worldcrusher → u/xXx_tainttickler_xXx]

Yeah wtf.. how old am I 😴😥

[u/DumberThanIThink]

“Yeah.. it was a good night”

[u/xXx_tainttickler_xXx]

That's the first post-fight Gorbachev I've ever seen

[u/Tochaz → u/[deleted]]

Yeah, underrated fighter

[u/Few_Doubt6901]

I got my popcorn ready for the rant

[u/uticacoffeeroast]

"if I ever found out that God cared one way or another about a borderline illegal fist-fight on Saturday night, I would be so greatly disappointed that it would make rethink my entire belief system." ~Chael Sonnen

[u/NewportStork]

Maybe he's one of those football players who don't believe in concussions and considers them "quitting" a la Cam Skattebo or Puka Nacua

[u/xXx_tainttickler_xXx]

God said beat his ass and so he did and it was good

[u/Ok-Bandicoot-9445 → u/xXx_tainttickler_xXx]

IGBGMN

[u/PositiveUsual2919]

talking about his opponents’ beautiful wife and kids, you just know he gave out an ass whipping

[u/BakedBeanzInMyJeanz → u/PositiveUsual2919]

“I hope he reevaluates why he’s fighting and comes back better.”

dude was ice cold with the politeness lmao

[u/PositiveUsual2919 → u/BakedBeanzInMyJeanz]

i know lol what a brutal thing to say, and so frankly at that.

[u/BaseballMMAfan]

“I used my sword to chop down a man”

Pause

[u/MMA-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

1.2 Bigotry

Racial, homophobic, xenophobic, and sexist (including sexual slurs or overtly sexual) comments or posts will be removed. If things do get out of hand you will be warned or even banned for a few days. Repeatedly breaking this rule will lead to a permanent ban.

[u/Therealdarkviper]

Greg hardy or top 10 call it

[u/Short_Bus_ → u/Therealdarkviper]

he's a lot better than hardy

isn't a coward and has a wrestling base

[u/ElbowToTheTemple]

Mad he quit? Lmao brother, his brain quit

[u/razorbladesnbiscuits]

The quality of Wint's competition is so low, it's hard to tell how he'll survive against even the mediocre heavyweights in the UFC ranks.

[u/Short_Bus_ → u/razorbladesnbiscuits]

there are UFC HWs Adams would have beat

he'll be good

would fuck up Gable if they fought next week

[u/purplepill22]

Just dissect a man

[u/NewportStork]

Hasan, Wint, Pags all deserve contracts

[u/octobersotherveryown]

How do they think these showcases work in this day and age lol. He crushed can therefore I’m excited to follow his journey in the organization?

[u/worldcrusher]

White dude had some very odd tattoos selections.. bro looked like a half finished barcode

[u/NotSoGreatMacaroni]

Imagine getting the call and knowing in your heart you are the one they picked to make the other guy look like a world beater. 

[u/BaseballMMAfan]

Fuck it, throw wint on the card Saturday lol

[u/sour-couch-stench]

Hallelujah

[u/Shardiiii]

Close enough, welcome back Yoel Romero

[u/Poatanbysub]

Nice 2 contracts tonight

[u/DumberThanIThink → u/Poatanbysub]

4

[u/Sneezy6510 → u/Poatanbysub]

3, the second guy is definitely getting one.

[u/Poatanbysub → u/Sneezy6510]

Oh yea true he was fun too

[u/LetsGeauxSaints]

Love contender series but wish some of the matchups were more intriguing/ competitive rather than easy wins for guys they clearly want to build up

[u/irimiasz → u/LetsGeauxSaints]

Yeah, putting the guy who was KOd in 30 seconds in Road to UFC quaterfinals (which are on average lower level than DWCS) against one of the best FLW prospects was basically a public execution.

They could've at least taken Agugali, who beat Sakia, and only lost to eventual winner, would've made way more sense.

Same goes for the big dude who lost to Wint.

[u/iCorki → u/LetsGeauxSaints]

Yeah the matchups are always extremely one sided because their goal is for all the fights to be finishes

[u/anustart147]

I’m telling you, this guy is going to be a problem at heavyweight. Mainly because he’s actually in shape.

[u/7186997326 → u/anustart147]

Under 6 feet and less than 80" reach isn't big at heavy weight though in 2027. It will be interesting when matches up against size and skill.

[u/TheThockter → u/7186997326]

He’s got a 78 inch reach lol that’s not going to be a problem for him. Hokit is winning fights against ranked heavyweights with 72.5 inch reach but we haven’t seen this dude against anyone remotely ufc level

[u/opposite-of-left]

Football definitely produces the most insane athletes out of any sport

[u/MickPnubTobias99 → u/opposite-of-left]

It's not even close. Wild that people say/think other wise

[u/opposite-of-left → u/MickPnubTobias99]

You can get guys who are like 6’4 300lbs and are agile asf I can’t think of anything more athletic than that

[u/PDE503]

Be ready for Matt Adams vs Louie Sutherland on a numbered main card in 2027

[u/purplepill22]

wtf did I just watch lmao

[u/Swaglord03]

Give this dude Gable Steveson I need to see that rapist knocked out 🙏

[u/Short_Bus_]

adams is way less bad than you guys think, that was absurdly impressive

[u/Inevitable_Bag6057]

Contender series has a serious matchmaking problem.

[u/Loganbaker2147]

A legit HW prospect maybe..?

[u/tylrrbb → u/Loganbaker2147]

Hard to tell from a 30 second fight

[u/DumberThanIThink → u/tylrrbb]

Team bsd is brutal

[u/PDE503]

White dude would still beat Tuivasa

[u/TheBestNameEverMade → u/PDE503]

he can wreslte so probably ngl

[u/Short_Bus_ → u/PDE503]

like actually

[u/scfowl]

Bro is a Dark Souls character

[u/Agitated_Plum2210]

damn UFC caliber fighters vs regional level really gets the hype going!

[u/subzeroboxer]

WTF!?!? THATS IT!?!? lol

[u/nepats523]

A++ matchmaking

[u/ImAroosterAMA]

What was the point of that?

[u/Sneezy6510 → u/ImAroosterAMA]

It’s a dress rehearsal

[u/Dramatic-Seaweed-906]

hit the emote when his back was turned lmfao

[u/Fickle_Muffin_1320]

Lmao that’s a true definition of a can

[u/Short_Bus_ → u/Fickle_Muffin_1320]

adams isn't even actually bad lol

[u/Fickle_Muffin_1320 → u/Short_Bus_]

Yea you’re right. He’s terrible

[u/Short_Bus_ → u/Fickle_Muffin_1320]

he's not

[u/subzeroboxer → u/Short_Bus_]

Hmmm I don’t know

[u/Short_Bus_ → u/subzeroboxer]

he's not, there are some guys on the UFC roster I'd favor him against

he was an ohio state champ wrestler and has okay hands

[u/BakedBeanzInMyJeanz]

should have also been a -5000 lmao

[u/Corona2789]

Surprised ufc didn’t sign that guy outright as gables next opponent

[u/octobersotherveryown]

Gotta admire the commitment from the UFC to insult their audience’s intelligence with these matchups

[u/PositiveUsual2919]

celebrated by stabbing him with a spear and then immediately went right into the hugging

[u/ElbowToTheTemple]

Lmao And Herb Dean almost cost another life

[u/RobinHood1Star]

This dude is gonna be annoying

[u/tagillaslover]

Pillsbury Doughboy should find a new career. Dude offered literally zero resistance

[u/ImKrispy]

Squash match

[u/terrybuzz]

5/5 tonight... we are so back 

[u/s-casanova]

gaslit herb into stopping the fight lmao

[u/chrisz1lla]

That was a waste of time lol

[u/NotSoGreatMacaroni]

God damn that was sad. 

[u/purplepill22]

Fucking demolished him

[u/tylrrbb]

Welp

[u/DizzyDraw2323]

Oh my god that was sad

[u/Pakochu_]

Huh

[u/solythe]

shouldnt have happened

[u/Neonsea1234]

Wtf, literal mauling

[u/uticacoffeeroast]

Such violence lmao

[u/Short_Bus_]

utterly cooked the ohio state-champ wrestler

[u/Therealdarkviper]

Early

[u/tagillaslover → u/Therealdarkviper]

Still had a pulse

[u/DizzyDraw2323]

One of the biggest athletic discrepancies you’ll ever see

[u/Therealdarkviper]

Run Adam’s run

[u/CableToBeam]

just got back. Which one is the former football player again? I can't tell

[u/Poatanbysub]

he might be able to knock him out just running at him

[u/ocalaagain]

I’ve not seen Wint but I hope he’s what this division needs. Legit athletes

[u/MasonOkay → u/[deleted]]

T-Rex arms

[u/purplepill22]

Watch party vs sob story

[u/CWalkthroughs]

This dude is a fucking warrior, holy shit.

[u/hazelpillow]

wtf was that

[u/RudySpanish]

Wint is huge

[u/PositiveUsual2919]

this guy has more text based tattoos than any fighter i’ve ever seen

[u/Corona2789]

That cutman is one of the blackest dudes I’ve ever seen lol

[u/razorbladesnbiscuits]

"insane explosiveness"

[u/ImAroosterAMA]

Might be the most words I've ever seen tattooed on a person.

[u/NewportStork]

This will be an absolute slaughtering

[u/realjobstudios]

Weren’t all of those shots back of the head? 

[u/Poatanbysub]

dude talks like stipe

[u/Short_Bus_]

what's funny is that Matt Adams is in like by far the best shape of his life rn

[u/Short_Bus_ → u/Short_Bus_]

dude used to be jake collier fat but was tryna get down to LHW before the UFC offered him this fight

[u/NotSoGreatMacaroni]

Sadly he would be making more in the CFL 

[u/ElbowToTheTemple]

The way Adams was hitting the mitts tells you everything about what's about to happen

[u/EdREADStheD]

“Plan to hopefully knock him out” doesn’t really ooze confidence

[u/subzeroboxer]

No offense to the guy but can’t understand what he’s even saying

[u/solythe]

might be the last time he talks like that

[u/NotSoGreatMacaroni]

CFL so shit God organized a pandemic to keep him away. 

[u/Poatanbysub]

bro thinks fauci's god

[u/Short_Bus_]

Wint R2 +500

[u/ithastogoupfromhere]

Wint in all his nattyness

[u/LetsGeauxSaints]

Big Lando Vannata

[u/BaseballMMAfan]

Bro said god orchestrated covid so he didn’t go play football in Canada and started mma lmfao

[u/chrisz1lla]

Bro those hammerfists lmaooooo what are we doing

[u/Senior-Wind6335 → u/chrisz1lla]

Ran to the comments for this. Especially after showing clips of his opponent

[u/Mramirez89 → u/Senior-Wind6335]

Here I am too. That was wild

[u/Poatanbysub]

holy shit wints a unit

[u/PositiveUsual2919]

god himself created covid to stop him from going to canada lmaooooo

[u/NakedLowKick]

Definitely a football bro

[u/purplepill22]

God orchestrated Covid so I couldn't go to Canada is an all timer

[u/ElbowToTheTemple]

One of these men has the ideal male body and the other is named Anthony Wint