Week 1 of Dana White’s Contender Series (2023) took place Tuesday in Las Vegas, and we’re grading the winners from the five fight card, which streamed on ESPN+ from the UFC Apex.
With a simple but digestible format that has had the MMA fanbase responding, this series has shown to have legs in multiple ways while serving as a crockpot for contenders the UFC matchmakers can use for future events. With that trend in mind, I once again will be taking a look at the winning fighters, regardless of whether or not they won a UFC contract, and grading their performances in regard to their probability of returning to a UFC stage.
Kevin Borjas
Weight class: Flyweight
Result: Kevin Borjas def. Victor Dias via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Grade: B
Summary: Kicking off the season was a solid flyweight fight between Kevin Borjas and Victor Dias.
Dias, who is a strong Brazilian jiu-jitsu talent that serves as a training partner for Alexandre Pantoja at American Top Team, did his best to force a ground fight for the first half of the contest, constantly looking for takedowns along the cage.
However, as Laura Sanko correctly noted from the broadcast booth, Dias was not able to score with much meaningful offense from his perceived positions of control and was quietly wearing himself out in the process. In Dias’ defense, he did take this fight on two weeks’ notice and was the second opponent change for Borjas.
Nevertheless, Borjas still demonstrated solid defensive fundamentals in spite of being held against the cage, and was able to smartly pick up the pace with strikes on separations.
The Peruvian also did a good job of finding openings for his patent right hands, both coming forward and off the counter. That said, it was Borjas’ beautiful left hooks to the liver that deservedly got Dana White’s attention.
Even though the UFC is practically recruiting every Contender Series winner at this point, I was happy to see White sign an action-friendly flyweight like Borjas. I say throw Borjas in there with other up-and-comers like Stephen Erceg or Joshua Van for some classic flyweight fireworks.
Payton Talbott
Weight class: Bantamweight
Result: Payton Talbott def. Reyes Cortez via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Grade: B
Summary: Despite arguably having the highest star potential on the entire card, I felt that a solid B was more than fair for the fun performance offered up by Payton Talbott.
Talbott, who was up against Contender Series alum Reyes Cortez, once again found himself in a very competitive opening frame due to his slow-burn stylings. Talbott displayed solid counter-wrestling that ranged from fundamental defense to backflipping out of treetop single-leg variations, but offense was clearly the 24-year-old’s forte.
Showing an ability to fluidly string offense together, Talbott does well at working off of his lead hand by doing things like hooking off of his jab (which, in turn, opens up his right hand). Talbott will also mix in knees and shift to southpaw when feeling in stride, but his striking defense still leaves a lot to be desired given the lack of head movement in his style.
I would love to see him matched up with fellow Contender Series prospect Raul Rosas Jr., but that’s not the UFC’s style as they’ll probably pair Talbott up with someone like Steven Koslow for his first swing at bat.
Caio Machado
Weight class: Heavyweight
Result: Caio Machado def. Kevin Szaflarski via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Grade: D
Summary: In what was easily one of the worst Contender Series fights in recent memory, I found it incredibly difficult to justify anything north of a C- for Caio Machado.
In Machado’s defense, you need a partner to dance properly in this game, and his opponent, Kevin Szaflarski, appeared to be going through some real octagon shock that was essentially the MMA equivalent to what Cameron in “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” experienced given how wide-eyed and unresponsive the Polish fighter became at points of the fight.
Still, that doesn’t excuse the fact that Machado – who was throwing some of the sloppiest strikes I’ve seen in some time – was crowding his own work by constantly crashing into the clinch with Szaflarski. In fact, Machado’s poor technique lead to multiple fouls that broke up a potential finishing sequence and could’ve cost him the fight entirely.
I’m not sure why Machado didn’t go to his strengths on the ground that served him so well on the regional scene, but I’m guessing that it has to do with the fact that Dane White and the UFC not-so-secretly encourage “stand and bang” affairs.
I know the UFC is basically taking all the cheap Contender Series talent they can to fuel their relentless content schedule, but this signing – in particular – should show you just how much the term “UFC level” now means to the top brass.
White went out of his way to sell this signing as some sort of underdog story, while on the same night slamming proven fighters and company men like Stephen Thompson, taking shots at the amount they’re paid.
Their priorities couldn’t be clearer, but I digress.
If they offered odds on this sort of thing, I’d bet the house that we will see the UFC matchmakers put a guy like Machado on the main card (because he’s a heavyweight) while an exciting flyweight matchup with two contenders trying to move up the rankings before they age out gets relegated to the prelims. Watch.
Tom Nolan
Weight class: Lightweight
Result: Tom Nolan def. Bogdan Grad via knockout (punches) – round 1, 1:23
Grade: A
Summary: Even though I’m admittedly a bit of a hater of ridiculously tall fighters cutting down to lighter weight classes, it was hard to deny Tom Nolan anything short of an A for his decisive victory over Bogdan Grad.
Nolan, who still gives me Sam Patterson vibes, moved slightly more fluidly than I expected for a lightweight of his size.
Working from a southpaw stance, Nolan seems to have powerful kicks from the rear and an accurate left hand that hits with some real power. Nolan was able to score an early knockdown before the finish, which gave Grad a chance to show flashes of his ground game by threatening the Australian with an armbar.
That said, Nolan showed solid defensive composure and a brutal ground-striking style that is synonymous with long and lanky fighters.
Given Nolan’s age and record, I’m sure the UFC will try and give him a steady level of competition to work with since the Australian seems to check off a lot of the promotional boxes regarding marketability and region.
In fact, I wouldn’t be shocked to see him booked on the next Australia card opposite a fighter from that side of the world like Hayisaer Maheshate or Anshul Jubli.
Cesar Almeida
Weight class: Middleweight
Result: Cesar Almeida def. Lucas Fernando via unanimous decision (30-26, 29-28, 29-27)
Grade: B
Summary: Closing out the night was an impressive performance from Cesar Almeida, who got to show off a well-rounded game opposite Lucas Fernando.
Despite coming from a kickboxing background, Almedia demonstrated solid takedown defense fundamentals and the ability to get back to his feet using the cage. Considering the amount of grappling training Almeida has had in a four-fight MMA career, that’s impressive regardless of the level of competition.
In addition, Almeida also displayed the skills to competently operate from topside. Whether Almeida was striking and passing or threatening with the occasional submission, the 35-year-old Brazilian was consistently scoring well.
Even though Almeida wasn’t able to find a finish on the feet, I’d argue that it was due to his opponent’s lack of meaningful engagements. Almeida was traditionally a bit of a counter-fighting slickster on the kickboxing scene, so I’m curious to see how his game fleshes out in MMA.
I’d love to see Almeida matched up with someone like Armen Petrosyan from a stylistic standpoint, but – given his history with Alex Pereira – I suspect that the UFC will book him in a more sensible fight against someone like Valentine Woodburn.
