A milestone has been reached for the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s president as our MMASucka staff picks are locked in for another night of fights.
Season six of Dana White’s Contender Series sees its fourth week of competition in 2022 and its 50th event set for action later tonight, August 16th from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event will kick off at 8:00pm ET (5:00pm PT) aired live for subscribers on ESPN+.
Results from Dana White’s Contender Series 50 will be available here at MMASucka.
Be sure to recap our staff picks from last weekend’s Bellator 284, PFL 8 2022, and UFC on Vegas 41.
The Fights
Ten of the best prospects around the world look to earn their shot at a contract with the UFC from promotional president Dana White. Closing the show sees lightweight finishing specialists Thomas Paull of England and Esteban Ribovics or Argentina set for three possible rounds in the main event.
In the co-main event, recent Future FC MMA middleweight champion Claudio Ribeiro and recent Lux Fight League middleweight champion Ivan Valenzuela will both put their respected five-fight win streaks on the line at 185 pounds.
Also competing at the event sees Jose Johnson get a second chance at earning an opportunity with the UFC after his 2020 contest in the Apex against Ronnie Lawrence came short by unanimous decision. Johnson will battle the undefeated and three-time defending Cage Warriors bantamweight champion Jack Cartwright.
Find further below our MMASucka staff picks for all five fights taking place at Dana White’s Contender Series 50.
Staff Picks
Staff picks in 2022 will follow the same set of rules from the 2021 season. Throughout the calendar year, staff picks will be composed of main card fights from both UFC and Bellator events. Main card fights and selected preliminary fights will be included for PFL MMA. Dana White’s Contender Series will be composed of the entire fight card.
The WINNER of staff picks in 2022 will have a choice between receiving a custom-made championship belt from ProAmBelts or a chain from Championship Chains. A winner is determined simply by the individual correctly picking the most victorious fighters at the year’s end. Nate Freeman secured his first victory with MMASucka in 2021 with a compiled record 243-136.
See our staff picks for Dana White’s Contender Series 50 below.
Staff Records after Dana White’s Contender Series 49:
1. Nate Freeman: 162-79
2. Wesley Riddle: 161-80
3. Michael DeSantis: 158-83
4. Frazer Krohn: 155-86
5. William Dong: 153-88
6. Jeremy Brand: 147-88
7. Julio Monteros Jr.: 145-75
8. Chris Presnell: 143-92
9. Andrew Benjamin: 137-103
10. Tim Wheaton: 131-70
11. Mike Lynch: 123-74
12. Brandon Joint: 111-72
13. Ash Camyab: 105-77
14T. Brian Knight: 103-70
14T. Jack Goodwillie: 103-43
16. Coby Weinsier: 87-47
17. Chinyere Okafor: 72-38
18. Jacek Okninski: 70-58
19. Matt Bricker: 24-22
20. Roemello Reyes: 15-9
21. Joe Porter: 11-5
*Note – not all staff pick for every event*
*Note – Bellator 284, PFL 8 2022, & UFC on ESPN 41 picks will be added to the above records NEXT weekend*
Nazim Sadykhov (6-1), -190
vs.
Ahmad Suhail Hassanzada (9-1), +160
Lightweight Division
– 155 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Sadykhov via Round 2 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Sadykhov via Unanimous Decision
Michael DeSantis: Sadykhov via Unanimous Decision
Andrew Benjamin: Sadykhov via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Sadykhov via Round 2 TKO
Nate Freeman: Sadykhov via Unanimous Decision
Tim Wheaton: Sadykhov via Round 3 SUB
Chris Presnell: Suhail Hassanzada via Round 1 TKO
Roemello Reyes: Sadykhov via Unanimous Decision
Ben Jamieson: Suhail Hassanzada via Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Sadykhov: 8
Staff picking Suhail Hassanzada: 2
Hailey Cowan (6-2), +100
vs.
Claudia Leite (7-2), -120
Women’s Bantamweight Division
– 135 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Cowan via Round 1 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Cowan via Round 3 SUB
Michael DeSantis: Leite via Unanimous Decision
Andrew Benjamin: Cowan via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Cowan via Unanimous Decision
Nate Freeman: Cowan via Unanimous Decision
Tim Wheaton: Leite via Unanimous Decision
Chris Presnell: Cowan via Unanimous Decision
Roemello Reyes: Cowan via Unanimous Decision
Ben Jamieson: Cowan via Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Cowan: 8
Staff picking Leite: 2
Jack Cartwright (10-0), -105
vs.
Jose Johnson (14-7), -115
Bantamweight Division
– 135 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Johnson via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Cartwright via Round 1 SUB
Michael DeSantis: Cartwright via Round 2 TKO
Andrew Benjamin: Cartwright via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Cartwright via Round 2 SUB
Nate Freeman: Cartwright via Round 1 TKO
Tim Wheaton: Cartwright via Round 2 TKO
Chris Presnell: Cartwright via Round 2 SUB
Roemello Reyes: Cartwright via Round 1 SUB
Ben Jamieson: Johnson via Round 2 TKO
Staff picking Cartwright: 8
Staff picking Johnson: 2
Claudio Ribeiro (9-2), -105
vs.
Ivan Valenzuela (8-1), -115
Middleweight Co-Main Event
– 185 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Valenzuela via Round 3 SUB
Wesley Riddle: Valenzuela via Unanimous Decision
Michael DeSantis: Ribeiro via Round 2 TKO
Andrew Benjamin: Valenzuela via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Ribeiro via Round 2 TKO
Nate Freeman: Valenzuela via Round 2 TKO
Tim Wheaton: Ribeiro via Round 1 TKO
Chris Presnell: Ribeiro via Round 2 TKO
Roemello Reyes: Ribeiro via Round 2 TKO
Ben Jamieson: Valenzuela via Round 1 TKO
Staff picking Ribeiro: 5
Staff picking Valenzuela: 5
Thomas Paull (11-3), +240
vs.
Esteban Ribovics (10-0), -285
Lightweight Main Event
– 155 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Ribovics via Round 1 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Ribovics via Round 1 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Ribovics via Round 1 TKO
Andrew Benjamin: Ribovics via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Ribovics via Split Decision
Nate Freeman: Ribovics via Round 1 TKO
Tim Wheaton: Ribovics via Unanimous Decision
Chris Presnell: Ribovics via Round 1 TKO
Roemello Reyes: Ribovics via Round 1 TKO
Ben Jamieson: Ribovics via Round 2 TKO
Staff picking Paull: 0
Staff picking Ribovics: 10
*Fight odds from DraftKings*
DANA WHITE’S CONTENDER SERIES 50 FEATURED IMAGE:
Embed from Getty Images
