The UFC roster is bigger than ever – and it continues to expand.
Fresh faces appear on nearly every card, whether onboarded as short-notice opening fillers, “Dana White’s Contender Series” signees, or rare straight-up additions. Sometimes it’s hard to keep track of the hustle and bustle of the mixed martial arts news beat, but here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got you covered.
“Fresh Ink” is your list of fighters added to the UFC roster the previous month and provides background on who they are and where they came from.
Check out the October 2023 list below.
Rodolfo Bellato
Record when signed: 11-2
Signing type: DWCS
Weight class: Light heavyweight
Age: 27
Debut: Dec. 2 vs. Ihor Potieria (20-4 MMA, 1-2 UFC) at UFC Fight Night in Austin, Texas
#BellatoToUFC. That’s what happened on DWCS in early October. In what was his second chance to impress the UFC brass, Rodolfo Bellato knocked out Murtaza Talha in a violent battle. Known as a do-or-die fighter, Bellato is an explosive addition to the UFC light heavyweight division with 10 finishes in 11 wins.
Rayanne Dos Santos
Record when signed: 14-6
Signing type: Straight up
Weight class: Strawweight
Age: 28
Debut: TBA
The Invicta FC atomweight champion is moving up in the world. Rayanne dos Santos moves up to strawweight and enters the UFC on a three-fight winning streak. After back-to-back wins over Vitoria Karolina and Katie Saull, Dos Santos clinched gold vs. Jillian DeCoursey by unanimous decision in May.
MMA Fighting was first to report news of Dos Santos’ signing.
Magomed Gadzhiyasulov
Record when signed: 8-0
Signing type: DWCS
Weight class: Light heavyweight
Age: 29
Debut: TBA
Magomed Gadzhiyasulov earned a UFC contract on DWCS with a unanimous decision win over a durable Jose Medina. While he couldn’t put Medina away inside the distance, Bahrain’s Gadzhiyasulov maintained his undefeated record. Prior to his UFC signing, Gadzhiyasulov competed for a variety of promotions including Brave CF and Eagle FC.
Victor Hugo
Record when signed: 24-4
Signing type: DWCS
Weight class: Bantamweight
Age: 30
Debut: Saturday vs. Daniel Marcos (15-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 231 in Sao Paulo, Brazil
Victor Hugo entered DWCS as one of the most experienced fighters in the series’ history, and exited with one of the show’s all-time slickest submissions. The kneebar wowed the UFC brass and propelled him into a quick promotional debut turnaround in his home country vs. surging Daniel Marcos.
Andre Lima
Record when signed: 7-0
Signing type: DWCS
Weight class: Flyweight
Age: 24
Debut: TBA
Andre Lima’s DWCS fight wasn’t particularly action-packed, but Dana White didn’t put the blame on him. After a Lima defeated a gun-shy Rickson Zenidim by unanimous decision, White offered Lima a UFC deal. The win marked only the second time Lima has been to the decision in his undefeated professional career. Five of his seven career wins are by knockout.
Connor Matthews
Record when signed: 7-1
Signing type: DWCS
Weight class: Featherweight
Age: 31
Debut: TBA
The New England Cartel representation in the UFC has multiplied. The third time was the charm for Connor Matthews, who earned a UFC deal from Dana White on DWCS with a unanimous decision win over Jair Farias. Matthews had previously competed on DWCS in 2022 and also fought in front of White during a taping of “Dana White: Lookin for a Fight.”
Brendon Marotte
Record when signed: 8-1
Signing type: Short notice
Weight class: Lightweight
Age: 27
Debut: Oct. 14 loss to Terrance McKinney via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 0:20 at UFC Fight Night 230 in Las Vegas
Also a member of the New England Cartel, Brendon Marotte jumped on a short notice opportunity to make his UFC debut up a weight class on short notice. While the decision resulted in a 20-second TKO loss, Marotte is through the door and will get a second chance at his natural weight class. Marotte has six finishes in eight wins.
Marquel Mederos
Record when signed: 8-1
Signing type: DWCS
Weight class: Lightweight
Age: 26
Debut: TBA
Factory X’s Marquel Mederos thrilled in his DWCS opportunity as he landed a nasty knockout knee vs. Issa Isakov. The strike earned him a UFC contract and extended his winning streak to five. Mederos has six knockouts in eight wins.
Jose Medina
Record when signed: 11-3
Signing type: DWCS
Weight class: Light heavyweight
Age: 32
Debut: TBA
Jose Medina lost a lopsided unanimous decision on DWCS, but he won over the heart of UFC CEO Dana White – and that’s all that really mattered. With his signing, Medina is the first Bolivia-born fighter in promotion history. Though he entered DWCS on a six-fight winning streak, Medina claims to never have had a true MMA coach. That’s something he hopes will change after his UFC signing.
Lucas Rocha
Record when signed: 17-1
Signing type: DWCS
Weight class: Bantamweight
Age: 23
Debut: TBA
At 23 years old, Lucas Rocha already has 18 fights and 17 wins. The 17th was his most important to date as he finished rival Davi Bittencourt with a lights-out knee in Round 2. The win came one week after the two were supposed to fight at flyweight, but the fight was postponed after Rocha missed weight. Whether he debuts in the UFC at bantamweight or flyweight, Rocha will look to extend his winning streak to seven.
Mauricio Ruffy
Record when signed: 9-1
Signing type: DWCS
Weight class: Welterweight
Age: 30
Debut: TBA
The Fighting Nerds continue to invade the UFC. Mauricio Ruffy finished Raimond Magomedaliev with 15 seconds remaining on the clock of their three-round DWCS bout. The win extended his streak to four and elevated him onto the UFC roster, where he joins teammates Caio Borralho, Jean Silva, and Carlos Prates.
Oumar Sy
Record when signed: 9-0
Signing type: Straight up
Weight class: Light heavyweight
Age: 27
Debut: TBA
The UFC has eyed Oumar Sy for a while – and now they have him. A large light heavyweight with brutal knockout power and submission prowess, Sy competed three times under the KSW banner from July 2022 to June 2023. Other stops along his MMA journey included Eagle FC, ARES FC, and OKTAGON.
Ramon Taveras
Record when signed: 9-2
Signing type: DWCS
Weight class: Bantamweight
Age: 29
Debut: Jan. 20 vs. Serhiy Sidey (10-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) at UFC 297 at Toronto
Ramon Taveras got two chances on the most recent season of DWCS. After a controversial referee stoppage ended his first opportunity, Taveras was invited back by Dana White. Taveras capitalized on his mulligan when he flattened Cortavious Romious in 29 seconds. Now, Taveras will rematch Serhiy Sidey, the fighter who defeated him in the controversial moment aforementioned.
Puja Tomar
Record when signed: 8-4
Signing type: Straight up
Weight class: Strawweight
Age: 27
Debut: TBA
Puja Tomar has made history. She’s the first India-born woman in UFC history. Tomar enters the UFC on a three-fight winning streak. From 2017-2020, Tomar competed for ONE Championship. She went 1-3 in MMA and 0-1 in muay thai for the promotion.
