Athletes
Mansur Abdul-Malik | DWCS Grad Showcase
Highlighting Fighters Who Made Their Mark On Dana White’s Contender Series And Have Continued To Impress In The UFC
Dana White’s Contender Series has proven to be a launching pad for rising UFC stars, offering fighters the opportunity to showcase their skills in front of the UFC CEO.
With one chance to make an impression, DWCS fighters can earn a UFC contract based solely on their performance that night if White believes they have what it takes to compete with UFC talent.
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In this series, we showcase DWCS grads who have continued to shine since earning their UFC contract on the show. Next up: one of last season’s standouts, Mansur Abdul-Malik, who will make his third official walk to the Octagon this Saturday at UFC Atlanta.
Mansur Abdul-Malik
Coming into his Dana White’s Contender Series matchup at just 5-0, Mansur Abdul-Malik was one of the greener prospects on the show. Yet the Las Vegas native entered his bout against Wes Schultz as a -300 favorite and quickly proved those odds right.
As Laura Sanko mentioned on the broadcast, every strike the 27-year-old threw carried fight-ending intentions, and his power was connecting with Schultz nearly every time. After a dominant opening frame, it would be the first time in Abdul-Malik’s young career that he needed to go into a second round.
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Schultz started putting pressure on and, for a moment, it seemed the tide could be shifting. That didn’t last long, however, as Abdul-Malik defended and reversed one of Schultz’s takedowns, eventually securing top position. With a minute-and-a-half left in the round, Abdul-Malik unleashed a barrage of ground-and-pound strikes until securing a TKO victory.
The Xtreme Couture product made his UFC debut less than three months later against veteran Duško Todorović. While you’d expect Abdul-Malik to be under the most pressure of his career making his UFC debut, he fought like he’d been in the Octagon plenty of times before.
Just 30 seconds into the fight, Todorović slipped against the cage and fell to the mat, which Abdul-Malik capitalized on quickly. He launched himself into Todorović’s guard and immediately began throwing a flurry of punches. Todorović managed to get back to his feet, but Abdul-Malik stalked him down and landed a knee flush on his chin, sending him crashing to the canvas. After some ground-and-pound, the referee stepped in and called the fight.
This statement victory sent a strong message to the middleweight division that a now 7-0 prospect had arrived with clear intent to make it to the top.
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Despite having just one UFC win, Abdul-Malik entered his second UFC fight as a massive -1200 favorite against Nick Klein. With those odds, you’d expect him to run right through Klein, however, it’d be the first time he’d face real adversity.
Halfway through the first round, Klein caught Abdul-Malik with a spinning elbow, leaving him stunned on his feet. Abdul-Malik was able to initiate a clinch against the cage to recover and escape the round.
Mansur Abdul-Malik Knocks Out Nick Klein In Round 2 | UFC Seattle
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Mansur Abdul-Malik Knocks Out Nick Klein In Round 2 | UFC Seattle
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In the second, Abdul-Malik showed that his power carries throughout the fight, despite being rocked. With two minutes left, he landed a right hook as Klein was trying to get back up his feet, briefly knocking him back down to the mat. Klein eventually got up, but as soon as Abdul-Malik smelled blood, he emptied the tank, throwing nonstop strikes until the referee was forced to step in.
While not the prettiest performance of his career, it was his most resilient and a valuable learning lesson as he continues climbing the middleweight ladder. The next step is this Saturday, when he faces Cody Brundage at UFC Fight Night: Usman vs Buckley.
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Brundage has been in the position of facing an exciting new prospect before, which he handled with flying colors by knocking out Zachary Reese and Tresean Gore in the first round. He’s also coming off an impressive first-round TKO of Julian Marquez in March, making this a highly intriguing matchup for Abdul-Malik’s third trip to the Octagon.
It all goes down this Saturday at 10pm ET/7pm PT on ESPN+.
Don't miss a moment of UFC Fight Night: Usman vs Buckley, live from State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia on June 14, 2025. Prelims start at 7pm ET/4pm PT, followed by the main card at 10pm ET/7pm PT.