Dana White hails 13/1 underdog after earning UFC contract with 'one of the most impressive knockouts' he's ever seen
04/09/2024 16:34
Dana White couldn't believe his eyes as an enormous underdog scored a brutal knockout on last night's episode of the Contender Series, just 73 seconds into the opening round.
The ongoing eighth season of Dana White's Contender Series continues to deliver new stars who MMA fans should certainly keep an eye out for, and it's safe to say that the UFC President was blown away by one viral finish in particular.
Dana White celebrates 73-second Contender Series KO from Yuneisy Duben
Venezuelan flyweight Yuneisy Duben wasn't 'supposed' to win her fight on last night's episode of DWCS, at least according to the bookies, as she closed as a near +1000 underdog.
Yet no one told that to the 28-year-old finisher as she delivered a brutal knockout of Canadian Shannon Clark just 73 seconds into the opening round with a picture-perfect overhand right.
Not only was it a flush one-punch knockout, but the power and timing of the strike had Clark unconscious as soon as it landed, causing her to fall backward to the ground in a manner eerily similar to Josh Emmett's iconic overhand KO of Michael Johnson, or even Jesus Aguilar KO of Shannon Ross from last year.
Unsurprisingly, the knockout caused Dana White and the entire Apex crowd to leap to their feet, with the UFC President quick to offer his congratulations to the now 5-0 flyweight as he confirmed she was now officially a UFC athlete.
"Let's not even f***** wait, let's just get straight to it… There are two types of people in this world, there are people that come in and go 'Oh my God, I'm a 13/1 underdog, and then there's people that go 'How dare you make me a 13/1 underdog' – and we saw a couple of I dare you's tonight.
"I love that stuff, that's what this show is built on – I don't know if she can grapple, I don't know if she can kick, I don't know if she can defend a takedown but let me tell you, [this was] one of the most impressive knockouts that I've ever seen."
Yet as unbelievable as the first-round knockout was, what’s more unbelievable is Duben's story with Dana White later revealing that she had almost missed the chance to fight on the Contender Series due to being 'flat broke'.
"I love stories like that, I'll expand on this – Mick was telling me that he has a string of text messages where she almost didn't make it, she wasn't going to come… She doesn't have a dollar to her name, she's flat broke and has nothing. She came here and took this opportunity tonight and that's what this show is all about.
"You can't gauge heart and determination; a woman who comes from Venezuela with nothing, almost didn't make it and is a 13/1 underdog and wins with one of the most vicious knockouts and the biggest upsets in Contender Series history."
Speaking to Laura Sanko after the contract was awarded, Duben herself would react to both the outstanding finish and the congratulations from White.
"I told myself that this is my night, this night belongs to me and I'm going to shine, and this is what I did. I always had the dream [that] I'm going to be in the UFC… I'm ready to go, ready and healthy – [I'd like to] fight as soon as possible and Dana will not be disappointed, it's always going to be a show."
Duben is now 5-0 as a professional mixed martial artist; all five of which have ended via KO/TKO.
Who else won a UFC contract on this week's episode of DWCS?
A whopping five UFC contracts were handed out on last night's episode of Dana White's Contender Series, all of which went to the season 8 episode 4 victors.
- Seok Hyun Ko def. Igor Cavalcanti via unanimous decision: 30-27, 29-28, 29-28
- Djorden Santos def. Will Currie via unanimous decision: 30-27, 30-27, 30-27
- Austin Bashi def. Dorian Ramos via submission: Second-round rear-naked choke
- Yuneisy Duben def. Shannon Clark via knockout: First-round finish
- Quillan Salkilld def. Gauge Young via. unanimous decision: (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Interestingly, Duben wasn't the only significant underdog who was able to upset the applecart en route to earning a long-awaited UFC contract with Seok Hyun Ko and Djorden Santos also claiming long-shot victories.
Dana White's Contender Series returns for Week 5 on Tuesday, September 10.
