DWCS 78, the second week of season nine on Dana White’s Contender Series, is here! This evening, UFC CEO Dana White will be back at the UFC Apex facility front and center to watch 10 more MMA prospects vie for a UFC contract.
A week ago at the Apex, only two contestants secured a UFC contract, including Baisangur Susurkaev, who’s already won his UFC debut. This past Saturday night in Chicago, Susurkaev (10-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC), made his first walk to the Octagon as a member of the active roster.
In his first UFC fight, he submitted Eric Nolan (8-4 MMA, 0-1 UFC) with a second-round rear-naked choke. It goes without saying that heading into DWCS 78 tonight, the bar has already been set high.
DWCS 78 Main Event: Manuel Exposito vs. Jose Delano
Live coverage begins tonight at 8 pm ET/ 5 pm PT. Inside the United States of America, ESPN+ will carry the show gavel-to-gavel.
If, by chance, you’re watching internationally, UFC Fight Pass will stream the event this evening. After a successful weigh-in window on Monday morning, tonight’s schedule of five fights will proceed without issue.
At the top of the bill on DWCS, you’ll see a featherweight showdown matching Manuel Exposito (13-2 MMA) against Jose Delano (15-3 MMA.) All fights on DWCS 78 will be a maximum of three rounds at five minutes per round.
DWCS 78 Co-Main Event: Brandon Holmes vs. Cam Rowston
Immediately beforehand, the middleweights get a shot at a UFC deal. Brandon Holmes (5-0 MMA) will be making the walk to face Cam Rowston (11-3 MMA.) This is Rowston’s second opportunity at a UFC deal by way of Contender Series.
Last year, he came away empty-handed after losing by unanimous decision to Torrez Finney (11-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC.) What will his second chance bring? Find out tonight.
Rest of the Card
Also tonight on the show, you’ll be seeing a bantamweight contest pairing Kaushik Saikumar (5-0 MMA) with Louis Lee Scott (9-0 MMA), the latter of whom missed weight on Monday, a heavyweight fight between Josh Hokit (5-0 MMA) and Guilherme Uriel (6-1 MMA), and a featherweight affair pitting Tommy Cuozzi Jr. (8-0 MMA) against Ramiro Jimenez (10-0 MMA.)
DWCS 78 Results:
Card: (Tonight, 8 pm ET/ 5 pm PT- ESPN+- United States Only, UFC Fight Pass- Internationally)
Main Event: Jose Delano def. Manuel Exposito by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27.) Delano awarded UFC contract.
RELENTLESS 😤@CamRowston gets the TKO win IN STYLE at #DWCS! pic.twitter.com/42Hv3kR0dH
— UFC (@ufc) August 20, 2025
Co-Main Event: Cam Rowston def. Brandon Holmes by KO (Elbows) at 2:58 into Round 1. Rowston: Making second Contender Series appearance in as many seasons. Rowston awarded UFC contract.
LIGHTNING LOUIS STRIKES ⚡️
Lee Scott landed a great combo to get the TKO!
Watch #DWCS Week 2 on @ESPNPlus NOW! pic.twitter.com/qBXEDWQyGT
— UFC (@ufc) August 20, 2025
Louis Lee Scott def. Kaushik Saikumar by KO (Punches) at 2:20 into Round 3. Scott awarded UFC contract.
Josh Hokit def. Guilherme Uriel by TKO (Ground and Pound) at 1:06 into Round 2. Hokit awarded UFC contract.
Ramiro Jimenez def. Tommy Cuozzi Jr. by TKO (Strikes) at 2:53 into Round 1. Jimenez awarded UFC contract.
