Dana White's Contender Series reaches the halfway point of Season 10 on Tuesday, September 8 with another five-fight card at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas.
The first four weeks have set a difficult standard to follow. Twenty fighters have already earned UFC contracts, only five of the first 20 bouts have reached the scorecards, and eight fights have ended in the opening round. Week 5 brings a different mix: two undefeated light heavyweights in the main event, one of the stronger welterweight prospect matchups of the season, a returning Contender Series fighter and the first weight miss of Season 10.
Contender Series 2026: Week 5 begins at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT and streams on Paramount+ in the United States.
Quentin Pasley vs Arlind Berisha headlines DWCS Week 5
The featured fight is an unusually raw but intriguing light heavyweight matchup between Quentin Pasley and Arlind Berisha. Neither man has lost as a professional, and neither has needed much cage time to build his record.
Pasley is 3-0 with three first-round finishes. The 24-year-old also went unbeaten as an amateur, finishing all seven of his opponents, and his limited professional résumé doesn't tell the whole story of a career that has repeatedly been interrupted by knee injuries. After tearing his ACL following his professional debut, Pasley returned with a flying-knee finish before eventually suffering another ACL tear while preparing for a previous Contender Series opportunity.
That makes Pasley vs. Berisha more than a standard 3-0 prospect getting pushed quickly. Pasley has been trying to reach this stage for a while.
Berisha arrives with a 5-0 professional record and five first-round finishes of his own. The 25-year-old represents Albania and becomes the first athlete representing the country to compete on Dana White's Contender Series. He also brings an amateur background that includes an IMMAF World Cup gold medal.
There isn't much room for a slow start here. Both men have built their early careers around ending fights before opponents can settle in, and one of them is likely to leave Las Vegas with a very different trajectory.
Isaac Moreno vs Reginaldo Junior could be the best prospect fight on the card
The welterweight matchup between Isaac Moreno and Reginaldo Junior has arguably the deepest combined résumé of Week 5.
Moreno is 8-0 with five knockout victories. His background began in karate before expanding into point fighting and kickboxing, and that experience still shows in the way he approaches MMA striking. He isn't simply an undefeated prospect being protected for television; this is a meaningful test against someone with more professional fights and a very different skill set.
Junior enters Moreno vs. Junior at 11-1 and trains with the Fighting Nerds team in São Paulo. Grappling has been one of the Brazilian's strongest weapons, but his recent development has been aimed at making him less dependent on getting fights to the ground.
Both men hit the welterweight mark at 170.5 pounds.
俺的メイン‼️🤩
— MMA FRONTIER (@ufc_mmafrontier) September 7, 2026
アイザック・モレノ 🇺🇸
8勝無敗(5TKO・0Sub)28歳
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レジナルド・ジュニオール 🇧🇷
11勝1敗(4TKO・5Sub)27歳#DWCS pic.twitter.com/SC4SiS0ORy
Christian Echols misses weight for Martin Kozák fight
The biggest story from the DWCS Week 5 weigh-ins came at middleweight.
Christian Echols weighed 189 pounds for his fight with Martin Kozák, missing the non-title middleweight limit by three pounds. He became the first fighter to miss weight during Season 10 and will forfeit a percentage of his purse, but the bout remains scheduled.
The circumstances were already unusual before Echols stepped on the scale. He accepted the fight on short notice after Kozák's original opponent encountered visa problems.
That adds another obstacle for a fighter who was already taking a difficult assignment. Echols owns an 8-4 record, and all eight of his professional victories have come in the first round. He has shown before that he can make a late-notice opportunity count, including a knockout of highly regarded wrestler Pat Downey earlier in his career.
Kozák, however, enters Kozák vs. Echols unbeaten at 6-0. The 24-year-old Slovakian has finished every professional opponent, with four knockouts and two submissions, and already holds championship experience on the European regional scene.
For Echols, merely winning after missing weight may not automatically solve the contract question. Contender Series performances are evaluated with more than the result in mind, and arriving three pounds heavy gives him another reason to need an emphatic performance.
Kwon Won Il returns to Contender Series against Apollo Gomes
Kwon Won Il is the rare Week 5 fighter who already knows exactly what the Contender Series environment feels like.
The South Korean bantamweight appeared on the show last season and was stopped by Juan Diaz after a wild fight. Rather than disappearing back into the regional circuit, Kwon has been given another opportunity one season later.
He faces Apollo Gomes, a 26-year-old Brazilian carrying a 12-2 record with one no contest and nine professional finishes. Gomes is part of the Chute Boxe Diego Lima setup, one of Brazil's most established active MMA teams.
Kwon Won Il vs. Apollo Gomes also has a small piece of Season 10 history attached to it: this is the first bantamweight matchup of the season. Through four weeks, every men's division that has appeared has produced at least one UFC contract winner. Bantamweight finally gets its turn.
Christian Natividad and Colton Loud open the card at flyweight
The night begins with another fight in which the records immediately stand out.
Christian Natividad enters unbeaten at 9-0 against Colton Loud, who is 7-1.
Natividad has taken a more decision-heavy route through his professional career, while Loud has yet to win by decision. Loud's seven victories are split between four knockouts and three submissions, making his finishing ability the obvious contrast in Natividad vs. Loud.
Both successfully made weight at 125.5 pounds.
DWCS 2026 Week 5 weigh-in results and full fight card
- Light Heavyweight: Quentin Pasley (204.5) vs. Arlind Berisha (205.5)
- Welterweight: Reginaldo Junior (170.5) vs. Isaac Moreno (170.5)
- Middleweight: Martin Kozák (185) vs. Christian Echols (189) — Echols missed weight by three pounds
- Bantamweight: Apollo Gomes (135.5) vs. Kwon Won Il (135.5)
- Flyweight: Christian Natividad (125.5) vs. Colton Loud (125.5)
DWCS 2026 Week 5 FAQ
When is Dana White's Contender Series Week 5?
DWCS 2026 Week 5 takes place Tuesday, September 8, 2026 at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas.
What time does DWCS Week 5 start?
Dana White's Contender Series Season 10 Week 5 begins at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT and streams on Paramount+ in the United States.
Who is fighting in the DWCS Week 5 main event?
Undefeated light heavyweights Quentin Pasley and Arlind Berisha headline the five-fight card.
Who missed weight for DWCS Week 5?
Christian Echols weighed 189 pounds, three pounds above the non-title middleweight limit for his fight against Martin Kozák. The fight remains scheduled, and Echols will be fined a percentage of his purse.
Is Martin Kozák undefeated?
Yes. Martin Kozák enters DWCS Week 5 with a 6-0 professional record and has finished all six of his opponents.
What are Isaac Moreno and Reginaldo Junior's records?
Isaac Moreno enters at 8-0, while Reginaldo Junior is 11-1 entering their welterweight matchup.
Has Kwon Won Il fought on Contender Series before?
Yes. Kwon Won Il appeared on Dana White's Contender Series in 2025 and returns in Week 5 of Season 10 to face Apollo Gomes.
How many UFC contracts have been awarded in DWCS Season 10?
Twenty contracts have been awarded through the first four weeks of Season 10, with Week 5 marking the midpoint of the 10-episode season.