Week 8 Preview | Dana White’s Contender Series, Season 10

Abushaar would match Jalin Turner as the tallest lightweight in the UFC if he were to secure a contract this week. The 6-foot-3 Arizona-native enters with a 7-1 record and a 100-percent finishing, and he will be making his third start of the year with designs on handing Staines his first loss.

Training at Next Generation MMA Liverpool alongside Paddy Pimblett and Luke Riley, the undefeated Staines came out of the gates with eight straight wins to begin his pro career after an outstanding 16-1 amateur mark that included an IMMAF European title as well as a silver medal finish at the 2022 IMMAF World Championships. He too has already earned a pair of wins this year, most recently handing Conor McCarthy his first loss in June under the Cage Warriors banner.

Both men have shown promise on their way to Las Vegas, but now it’s time to find out if either of them — or both — are ready to take the next step forward in their careers.

Adama Diop vs Zaurbek Sabanov

The fourth heavyweight bout of the season sees Adama Diop clash with Russian wrestler and Sanda practitioner Zaurbek Sabanov.

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Diop joins Demba Seck as the only two athletes from Senegal to compete on Dana White’s Contender Series, touching down at the Meta APEX with a 6-1 record, five consecutive wins, including a five-round battle in January. The 31-year-old Diop has earned finishes in all of his other victories, venturing beyond the first round only once.

Opportunities have been hard to come by for the undefeated Sabanov, who made his pro debut at Ares FC 12 in February 2023. He has logged just three additional appearances since, winning each of them to land in Las Vegas with a 4-0 record. Sabanov has never faltered and largely handled things expediently, so it’ll be interesting to see how things shake out between he and Diop on Tuesday.

Each of the first three heavyweight contests this season have produced first-round finishes and contracts. Week 1 standout Anthony Wint has already gone on to win his UFC, and his sophomore appearance set for this weekend in Salt Lake City at UFC 332. Will Diop or Sabanov measure up and keep the heavyweight momentum rolling?

Ian Escuza vs Luca Borando

Featherweights with a combined 16-1 record and 15 finishes clash in the middle of this week’s card as Ian Escuza meets Luca Borando.

An undefeated Muay Thai stylist from Peru, Escuza has earned finishes in all seven of his professional appearances to date. Nicknamed “The Specimen” after Dominick Cruz called him one during a visit to the UFC Performance Institute in Mexico City, the 30-year-old hopes to find his way into the Octagon so Cruz can call his fights going forward.

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Not to be outdone, Borando arrives in Las Vegas with a 9-1 record and eight finishes, having earned five straight stoppage wins heading into this one. Each of his last eight appearances have come under the Cage Warriors banner, so you know that at the very least, he’s been matched up well.

Featherweight is a loaded division, but a strong performance either side could unlock the door to the Octagon for one of these two men.

Aieza Bertolso vs Camila Reynoso

Aieza Bertolso and Camila Reynoso face off the first strawweight bout of the season on Tuesday.

Bertolso is a tremendous prospect, owning a 7-0 professional record and 21-fight winning streak dating back to her amateur career. She was a two-time IMMAF world champion before turning pro, is the reigning LFA strawweight titleholder, and owns a pro win over DWCS vet Janaina Silva.

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Reynoso was amongst the final cuts from this past season of The Ultimate Fighter and returns to Las Vegas seeking to topple Bertolso and land a place on the UFC roster. The 23-year-old Argentine enters on a three-fight winning streak, elevating her record to 9-1 overall, though her level of competition has been limited.

Ilias Bulaid vs Erick Visconde

Business kicks off in the featherweight division as undefeated Ilias Bulaid squares off with Brazil’s Erick Visconde.

Fighting out of The Netherlands by way of Morocco, the 31-year-old Bulaid owns a 9-0 mark with one no contest after amassing a 25-6 record as a kickboxer and earned each of his last two wins in 3:09.

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As strong as his 17-3 record looks, Visconde is elevated by the fact that each of his setbacks came at bantamweight, and he’s coming off quality wins over Chris Mecate and Gustavo Pintos under the LFA banner. The 29-year-old counts both TUF alum Cristiano Marcello and WEC vet Chad George as his two main coaches, and knowing those two, you can be assured he will be well-prepared for what’s in store for him on Tuesday night.

It’s always fun when one weight class is represented multiple times in the same night as the earlier bout always gets the opportunity to set the bar high for their counterparts competing later in the night. This should be no different as Bulaid and Visconde will look to set the Octagon ablaze before Escuza and Borando make the walk.