After almost eight months of absence, Dana White Competitor Series returns to the ESPN+ on the air tonight (Tuesday, July 26, 2022) for the first episode of season 6, streaming live online with a correct start time of 8 p.m. here.
Tonight’s action features four fights instead of the usual five, as a scheduled clash between Farid Basharat and William Souza was canceled yesterday when Souza hit the scale 10 pounds over the bantamweight limit. The main event sees LFA middleweight champion Ozzy Diaz (7-1) take on returning Joe Pyfer (8-2), who suffered a 2020 injury to Dustin Stoltzfus. At 205 pounds, the veteran BRAVE CF’s Anton Turkalj (7-0) meets Acacio Dos Santos (14-4), while Dennis Buzukja (7-2) makes his second offer for Competitor Series glory against Kaleio Romero (6-1). The flyweight opener pits Lux Fight League titlist Alessandro Costa (10-2) against undefeated Ecuadorian Juan Andres Luna (12-0).
Contender Series Quick Results:
Ozzy Diaz vs. Joe Pyfer
Anton Turkalj vs. Acacio dos Santos – Turkalj defeats. dos Santos by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28 x2)
Dennis Buzukja vs. Kaleio Romero – Buzukja defeats. Romero by unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
Alessandro Costa vs. Juan Andres Luna – Costa defeats. Luna via split decision (30-27, 28-29, 29-28)
“Contender Series” Play-By-Play Results:
185 pounds: Ozzy Diaz vs. Joe Pyfer
First round :
Second round:
Third round:
Final result:
205 pounds: Anton Turkalj vs Acacio dos Santos
First round: dos Santos opens with a big flurry. Turkalj responds with a body lock, can’t complete the first two lifts. Looking for the back. He knocks dos Santos down, only gets one hook as the latter stands tall. A minute later, dos Santos is holding a handful of kimura. Two minutes. Still stuck in that position against the fence. Turkalj puts him on his knees two minutes from the end.
Complete disassembly now. Looking to take the back proper. Strong elbows. dos Santos gets back on his feet, can’t separate. One more minute. Take a step back by Turkalj. Lose it. He tries a spinning elbow strike and a gust to the bell. 10-9 Turkalj.
Second round: dos Santos counters a low kick with a flurry. Acute straight left. They trade mowers for the fence until Turkalj levels up and swings him into side control. Potential installation of d’arce in a minute. Deepen. Lose it. He looks for the back on the way up, playing with Santos dos base. Two minutes. Sneaky elbow from dos Santos. It separates with a nasty blow. Turkalj is looking for a Thai knee. Lands straight left for dos Santos. Again, then a 2-3 that knocks back Turkalj’s header. Two more minutes.
Big exchange near the fence. dos Santos takes over. 1-2 on the counter. Check the hook. Turkalj blitzes and pulls him down the back waist lock. The two hook up with a minute remaining. Body triangle. Strong elbow and punches. 10-9 Turkalj but it’s close.
Round Three: Both land within the first 10 seconds. Turkalj fires a two-piece after eating a low kick, then wraps a back waist lock for another takedown in side control. Return to half guard. A clumsy transition almost allows dos Santos to take over. Back in the top half for Turkalj. Two minutes later, dos Santos drops to his knees and Turkalj again tries to take the back. They run to the fence. Two more minutes.
dos Santos gets down on his knees again and again Turkalj tries to take him back. Climb back up, come back down with a minute to go. More control until the bell. 10-9 Turkalj.
Final result: Turkalj defeated. dos Santos by unanimous decision
145 pounds: Dennis Buzukja vs. Kaleio Romero
First round: Romero slips early, eats a kick. Buzukja advances, is caught at the entrance. One-legged attempt from Romero, who pulls Buzukja to the fence. One minute. Always grinding. Two minutes. There is an elevator, nothing to do. Jockey for position. Two more minutes.
Buzukja still defending, unable to separate. Romero is still fighting for a takedown. One more minute. Buzukja overturns, overturns in turn. Romero tries one last level change. 10-9 Romero
Second round: Quick exchanges early. Buzukja still pushes forward, swings a big 2-3 and has to fight a takedown. Romero brings him to his knees, can’t hold him back for a minute. He always rubs against the fence. Two minutes. They are separating. Buzukja drives forward, lands well to the body and follows with a heavy right hand. A big knee forces Romero to shoot. Two more minutes.
Buzukja lands some heavy punches, but Romero manages to switch levels. Hammers hard as he defends. One more minute. Back to the grind. Romero tries a few elbows before heading home. Sneaky knee. 10-9 Buzukja.
Round Three: Low kick from Romero as he retires. Buzukja sending the right hand, avoids an ugly fist that spins back. Romero looks rather exhausted. Now Buzukja shoots and he finishes him against the fence. A minute later. Romero progresses and separates. The right hook lands for him as Buzukja looks for combos. Buzukja looks for a spinning elbow. Body shot. Romero lands a clean header two minutes later. Nice straight line to the left. Low blow, against two pieces. Long right hand in a takedown attempt in the front headlock. He shoots Buzukja down, then goes for a banana split. Loses it with two minutes to go.
Buzukja at the top. Romero tries to sit up in a takedown attempt. Back to the feet. Romero fakes a shot, lands a kick to the body, eats two in return with a minute to go. Romero fakes a level change against the fence. Sneaky knee. Romero searches for a guillotine, loses it, ends up on his back. Buzukja drops blows. Honestly, I think Romero may have gutted him. 10-9 Romero.
Final result: Buzukja defeats. Romero via unanimous decision
125 pounds: Alessandro Costa vs. Juan Andres Luna
First turn: Luna changes position. No one is throwing anything as we approach the minute. There is a low kick from Costa. Luna attempts a headbutt, is cautioned for extended fingers. Direct left landing for him, simultaneous kicks. Neither man is really willing to commit; they sit at the very end of the kicking range. Costa low kick. Two minutes later. Luna fires a body kick in return. Costa just misses with a counter right. Luna does the same with a forward lead. Headbutt against headbutt. Two more minutes.
Luna throwing a lot of kicks, none in range. The punches are also insufficient. Costa responds to a low kick with a blitz. One more minute. Begin pushing forward, attempt a kick to the body. Luna lands a front kick and has to deal with another blitz that comes her way. Costa jumps into Luna’s outstretched heel first for a last-second break. 10-9 Luna in activity?
Round two: Solid jab and kicks from Luna. He backs away from a combination. Costa has problems with the range. A minute later. Luna back and forth, nice low kick. Knee to the body in the clinch. Costa continues to fail. Two minutes later. Luna just feeds him a steady diet of long-range shots as he spins around. Two more minutes.
There’s a calf kick from Costa. He attempts a head kick, Luna comes back with a front kick. Luna dodges a wheel kick and backs away from a combo. Costa appears to sting him with a right hand inside and they start to negotiate. One more minute. Luna tries to respond but ends up on the ground with another heavy right throwing an uppercut. Costa follows him into side control, only to get swept away in seconds. He briefly considers an arm triangle. Both men attack with strikes. 10-9 Costa but it wouldn’t be a mistake to give Luna the turn for early control.
Round three: Hard calf kick from Costa. Trading low blows. The left counter lands for Luna. Back to trying to potshot. A minute later. Luna shoots, refuses, eats a right hand on the way out. Things slowed down. Counter on the right by Luna. Hit left as they trade, kicks to the body. Two minutes later. Costa breathes a two-room apartment. Nice calf kick. Counter right to respond to a bare kick. Throwing the overhand rights, lands another calf kick. Two more minutes.
Costa attempts a right hand and a head kick. Luna low and front kicks. Right hand out. Clumsy attempt at a backward kick. Long uppercut, right hand in combination with one minute to go. Costa stops a takedown, lays off heavy rights. Both land on the body. Luna changes level, refused. Costa tries to swing hit and denies one last level change. 10-9 Costa.
Final result: Costa defeats. Luna by Split Decision
For more information and notes on the “Contender Series”, be sure to check out our full archive to the right here.
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