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DWCS 2026 Week 7 Preview & Predictions: Novenyi vs Haig, Guaylupo vs Connor and Full Fight Card

DWCS 2026 Week 7 Preview & Predictions: Novenyi vs Haig, Guaylupo vs Connor and Full Fight Card

Dana White's Contender Series returns to the Meta APEX in Las Vegas on September 22 with five fights, five undefeated prospects and a particularly interesting lightweight matchup for anyone looking beyond the biggest favorites on the card.

DWCS 2026 Week 7 is headlined by former Bellator prospect Norbert Novenyi Jr. against returning Contender Series fighter Theo Haig. Unbeaten welterweights Alvi Dasuyev and Jaden Ortega meet in the co-main event, while Brazil's Marcos Degli puts his 12-fight winning streak on the line against Paris Moran.

Our attention, however, is drawn most strongly to Piero Guaylupo vs. Callum Connor. Both lightweights are undefeated, both have demonstrated serious finishing ability and the moneyline is close to even. That creates a more interesting betting decision than simply paying a short price for one of the card's established favorites.

Through six episodes of Season 10, 28 fighters have earned UFC contracts. Week 7 begins at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT on Paramount+ in the United States. All 10 fighters made weight on Monday, so the five-bout lineup remains intact.

Watch the DWCS 2026 Week 7 weigh-in highlights for the final look at Novenyi, Haig and the rest of the card before fight night.

Norbert Novenyi Jr. vs. Theo Haig: A grappling matchup that may be decided on the feet

Norbert Novenyi Jr. enters the middleweight main event at 10-1, with nine finishes and a substantial amount of experience under the Bellator banner.

The Hungarian prospect won six consecutive Bellator fights before suffering his first professional loss to Dalton Rosta by majority decision in 2024. He has since responded with three consecutive first-round finishes.

Novenyi is not simply a striker facing a submission specialist. Five of his professional victories have come by submission, and his ability to move between striking and grappling makes him difficult to approach with a single defensive game plan.

Theo Haig is dangerous on the mat in his own right. All seven of his professional victories have come by submission, including his second-round finish at LFA 227 earlier this year.

Haig also has firsthand experience with the pressure of this particular stage. He appeared on DWCS in 2025 but was stopped by Cezary Oleksiejczuk in just 36 seconds. His return gives him another chance to earn a UFC contract, though the striking exchanges against Novenyi could again prove decisive.

The social-media assessment above identifies Haig's striking as a potential weakness. That is a reasonable area to examine, although one previous knockout loss does not establish that he cannot compete standing against Novenyi.

Haig's clearest path is to make Novenyi Jr. vs. Haig a sustained grappling contest rather than a series of striking exchanges followed by brief scrambles. Novenyi has the tools to meet him on the ground, but accepting prolonged exchanges with a specialist who has submitted all seven of his defeated opponents introduces unnecessary danger.

Our prediction is Novenyi Jr. to win, with a stoppage a realistic outcome. The problem for bettors is the price: at approximately 1.20–1.25, there is little room for the kind of unexpected submission that can happen when two capable grapplers engage.

MMAtown prediction: Norbert Novenyi Jr. to win. We would pass on his short moneyline rather than treat him as a risk-free selection.

Alvi Dasuyev vs. Jaden Ortega: Two unbeaten welterweights with dangerous hands

The co-main event guarantees that somebody's undefeated professional record will end.

Alvi Dasuyev is 9-0 with nine finishes. The Chechen-born fighter representing Belgium has won eight of those nine fights in the opening round and arrives with a successful amateur background as well as regional championship experience.

Jaden Ortega brings a 6-0 record into Alvi Dasuyev vs. Jaden Ortega. Five of his victories have come by KO/TKO, four in the first round.

This is an important step up for Ortega. Dasuyev has shown that he can finish opponents through more than one phase of a fight, while Ortega's most obvious route to an upset is making his own striking count before Dasuyev establishes control.

Dasuyev's finishing record explains why he is favored, but there is a distinction between expecting him to win and finding his moneyline attractive. Ortega's power makes an early exchange potentially dangerous for either fighter, particularly when neither has encountered a professional defeat that forced a major adjustment to his approach.

MMAtown prediction: Alvi Dasuyev to win, but the approximately 1.40–1.50 moneyline is not a priority for us.

Marcos Degli vs. Paris Moran: Is the Brazilian flyweight worth the short odds?

Marcos Degli has built a strong case for a UFC opportunity. The 14-3 Brazilian is the reigning LFA flyweight champion, has defended the belt twice and arrives on a 12-fight winning streak.

Thirteen of his 14 professional victories have come by finish, giving him an unusually aggressive record for a 125-pound fighter.

His most recent win, from January 2026, is shown in the clip below.

Paris Moran is an experienced opponent rather than another prospect brought in to protect Degli's record. The American is 14-3, has held Fury FC gold and has shared the cage with fighters including Joshua Van.

Moran's route to victory is to prevent Degli from building the kind of offensive momentum that has produced so many finishes. He needs to make the Brazilian work through complete rounds, use his versatility and avoid standing in front of Degli's power for extended periods.

We expect Degli's finishing ability to be a serious problem, but Moran's experience is enough to make a price around 1.25 on the Brazilian difficult to justify as a betting opportunity.

MMAtown prediction: Marcos Degli to win Degli vs. Moran. No moneyline bet at the current short price.

Piero Guaylupo vs. Callum Connor: Our preferred DWCS Week 7 betting pick

This is the matchup we find most interesting at the available odds.

Piero Guaylupo is a 21-year-old Peruvian lightweight who has built his unbeaten record around aggressive striking and a high finishing rate. The UFC's pre-event preview lists him at 11-0 with 10 finishes.

Callum Connor is also undefeated, entering at 8-0 on the UFC's pre-event listing. The Manchester Top Team fighter is six feet tall, giving him a three-inch height advantage over the five-foot-nine Guaylupo.

Connor has six finishes in eight professional victories and has already shown that he can win fights that last the full three rounds. He also returned successfully in April after undergoing knee surgery in 2025.

On social media, one of the talking points has been an unusual training clip involving Connor and a medicine ball. It is entertaining footage, but an isolated gym mishap provides very little useful evidence about what will happen in an MMA fight.

Our interest in Guaylupo has nothing to do with the medicine-ball clip.

Connor's height and range give him a clear way to make this a difficult matchup. If he keeps Guaylupo outside, forces the Peruvian to reach for punches and mixes his offense effectively, his experience in longer fights could become increasingly relevant.

Guaylupo, however, has shown the ability to carry his finishing threat beyond the opening round. His latest recorded victory came by fourth-round TKO against Maicon Miler in May, evidence that his knockout record isn't built exclusively on opponents collapsing during the first minute.

That matters against Connor. Guaylupo doesn't necessarily have to rush through the taller fighter's range to make his power count. He can work his way inside, attack the body and look for cleaner exchanges as the fight develops.

The main concern is the quality of opposition behind Guaylupo's record. Connor represents a meaningful test, and neither fighter has previously had to respond to a professional defeat.

At roughly 1.80–1.95, though, we believe Guaylupo is worth considering. His sustained knockout threat gives him a realistic path to victory without requiring Connor to make an obvious mistake in the opening seconds.

MMAtown pick: Piero Guaylupo to beat Callum Connor at near-even odds. We prefer the straight moneyline to a knockout prop because Connor has the size and experience to make the fight last longer than Guaylupo's earlier regional appearances.

Damian Piwowarczyk vs. Emilio Quissua: Don't underestimate the KSW experience

The opening light heavyweight fight is one of the closest matchups on the betting board.

Damian Piwowarczyk is 11-4, stands six feet six inches tall and has spent much of his career fighting under the KSW banner.

Ten of his 11 victories have come inside the distance: six by KO/TKO and four by submission. His recent wins include a stoppage of Sergiusz Zając, a guillotine submission of Cédric Lushima and a knockout of Bartosz Szewczyk.

Those are more useful pieces of evidence than his four losses alone. Piwowarczyk has already faced established professional opposition, and he has demonstrated that he can finish fights both standing and on the ground.

Emilio Quissua is unbeaten at 8-0 and has five knockout or TKO victories. The German trains at Planet Eater under former UFC fighters Peter Sobotta and Denys Bondar, and his striking poses a genuine threat to Piwowarczyk.

Quissua's latest win came at Oktagon 83 in January when Jorick Montagnac was unable to continue because of a knee injury. It counts as a TKO victory, but it should not be presented as proof that Quissua broke down his opponent through sustained striking.

That distinction has become part of the pre-fight discussion. One prospect account questioned whether Quissua has shown enough against strong opposition to earn a UFC contract.

We wouldn't dismiss Quissua on that basis. He has won eight professional fights, can finish opponents with his hands and has not yet been defeated. His previous opponents and the circumstances of one stoppage are relevant to evaluating his résumé, but they do not establish how he will perform against Piwowarczyk.

A separate viral post highlights an earlier three-second knockout involving a fighter described as a favorite on this week's card. Without clearly established context around the clip, an isolated knockout is not a reliable basis for judging that fighter's current ability.

The meaningful questions in Damian Piwowarczyk vs. Emilio Quissua are whether Piwowarczyk can use his longer frame and varied offense without exposing himself to counters, and whether Quissua can reproduce his regional success against someone with extensive KSW experience.

We lean toward Piwowarczyk because he has demonstrated more against established professional opposition and has multiple paths to a finish. Quissua's striking makes this a competitive fight, however, and there is little reason to treat the Pole as a safe selection.

MMAtown prediction: Damian Piwowarczyk to win. A small moneyline play could be considered near 1.80, but we prefer Guaylupo as our primary Week 7 selection.

MMAtown's DWCS Week 7 betting picks

We see a difference between predicting a winner and deciding that the available odds justify a bet.

Novenyi Jr., Dasuyev and Degli all have credible routes to victory, but their short moneylines demand a higher level of confidence than we have in five-minute-round MMA fights involving dangerous opponents.

Our Week 7 selections are:

  • Piero Guaylupo to win vs. Callum Connor: Our preferred moneyline pick at approximately 1.80–1.95.
  • Damian Piwowarczyk to win vs. Emilio Quissua: A smaller, less confident moneyline consideration around 1.80.
  • Norbert Novenyi Jr., Alvi Dasuyev and Marcos Degli: Expected winners in our matchup analysis, but no recommended moneyline bet at their current prices.

These odds are approximate pre-event prices and may differ between markets or change before the fights begin. The picks are MMAtown's analysis, not endorsements of the predictions or opinions in the social-media posts embedded above.

DWCS 2026 Week 7 full fight card and weigh-in results

All 10 fighters made weight for the September 22 card:

DWCS 2026 Week 7 FAQ

When is Dana White's Contender Series 2026 Week 7?

DWCS Season 10 Week 7 takes place Tuesday, September 22, 2026, at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada.

What time does DWCS Week 7 start and where can I watch it?

The five-fight card begins at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT and streams on Paramount+ in the United States.

What is the DWCS 2026 Week 7 main event?

Norbert Novenyi Jr. faces Theo Haig in a middleweight main event. Novenyi enters at 10-1, while Haig returns to the Contender Series with a 7-1 record.

Who is MMAtown picking in Piero Guaylupo vs. Callum Connor?

MMAtown's preferred Week 7 betting pick is Piero Guaylupo to beat Callum Connor at near-even money. Guaylupo's finishing ability is attractive at that price, although Connor's height, range and experience over three rounds make it a competitive matchup.

Is Alvi Dasuyev undefeated?

Yes. Alvi Dasuyev enters his welterweight fight against Jaden Ortega at 9-0, with all nine professional victories coming by finish.

How many consecutive fights has Marcos Degli won?

Marcos Degli enters DWCS Week 7 on a 12-fight winning streak. He is the LFA flyweight champion and has successfully defended that title twice.

Has Theo Haig fought on DWCS before?

Yes. Haig lost to Cezary Oleksiejczuk by first-round knockout on the 2025 Contender Series. He returned to competition with a submission victory at LFA 227 and is now getting another opportunity to earn a UFC contract.

Did all fighters make weight for DWCS Week 7?

Yes. All 10 fighters made weight for the five scheduled bouts, including Norbert Novenyi Jr. at 185.5 pounds and Theo Haig at 184 pounds in the middleweight main event.

How many UFC contracts have been awarded in DWCS Season 10?

Twenty-eight fighters earned UFC contracts through the first six weeks of Season 10, before the September 22 Week 7 event.

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