Best Prospects of the Week (Sept 25-27)

After a solid weekend of prospect action, we have a jam-packed weekend in the regional MMA scene. Here are quick notes on ten prospects to look out for this weekend:

1. Norbert Novenyi Jr. (Middleweight, Hungary/England, DWCS): Headlining this week’s Contender Series will be blue-chipper Norbert Novenyi Jr, an amateur wrestler who has been bred for combat sports. Like his father Norbert Sr, he has a really good wrestling base but also has a strong boxing attack as well. He spent most of his career in Bellator, meaning he has some high-quality experience. His lone loss was to Dalton Rosta, which is no shame given how strong he has been. He has a high finish rate which he wishes to continue when he takes on Contender Series vet and fellow wrestler Theo Haig.
2. Emilio Quissua (Light Heavyweight, Germany, DWCS): Talented kickboxer Emilio Quissua is looking to score a UFC contract as well and continue his undefeated pro career. Quissua is a big 205er at 6’4″ and uses his size/length well. He has recently stepped up in competition and looked solid, including wins over Juscelino Ferreira and Jorick Montagnac. He has a very tough test in Damian Piwowarczyk, in a battle of Oktagon (Quissua) vs. KSW (Piwowarczyk).
3. Alvi Dasuyev (Welterweight, Belgium, DWCS): We don’t get a ton of talent coming from the country of Belgium, but Alvi Dasuyev looks to be on the few real talents coming from that nation. Dasuyev is a long welterweight that has a good mixture of kickboxing and wrestling. He has a really flashy striking style with good kicks and knees, in addition to his punches. He also has ground-and-pound on the mat that he mixes with submissions. Dasuyev will have no pushover when he fights impressive young striker Jaden Ortega with a UFC contract on the line.
4. Marcos Degli (Flyweight, Brazil, DWCS): I have long said that Marcos Degli is a carbon copy of John Lineker, which is hig praise, but he could be even better. Degli is an absolute juggernaut, moving forward in the cage throwing with reckless abandon. He has massive power in his hands that can put anybody down with one shot. He mixes to the body and head well, which is why he’s able to damage his opponents quickly. He brings his violent style to the Contender Series when he takes on Paris Moran.
5. Josh O’Connor (Featherweight, Wales, Ares FC): One of the plethora of UK prospects that are gracing the European scene is John O’Connor of Wales. O’Connor, the Ares FC Featherweight Champion, has been immensely impressive thus far, including in his most recent bout where he finished 30-plus fight vet Ylies Djiroun. His best asset is his ground game, though he has solid boxing as well. He defends his Ares title for the second time this weekend when he fights Fabacary Diatta.
6. Alexis Nicolas (Welterweight, France, Ares FC): There continues to be a trend of top kickboxers jumping over from that sport to the world of MMA, and that continues with Alexis Nicolas. Nicolas, the former ONE Championship Kickboxing champ, shocked the world when he beat Regian Eersel for that title, though he ended up losing it in their rematch (and subsequently lost the rubber match). Nicolas is a decorated beyond that as well, but jumped to MMA in April, where he scored a knockout. He will continue his MMA journey when he fights Ilyasse Drabo this weekend.
7. Tyjani Beztati (Lightweight, Netherlands, Levels Fight League): Speaking of kickboxers making their way to MMA, Tyjani Beztati beat Nicolas to the punch by debuting in November of 2025 and already having three fights. In those three fights, Beztati has scored first-round knockouts in all of them, as the world-class Muay Thai artist and kickboxer looks to crack the big leagues at some point. He takes on Daniel Kolasinski this weekend looking to make it four-for-four on first round knockouts in MMA.
8. Freddie Vosgrone (Light Heavyweight, Germany, Oktagon): The second German light heavyweight that will compete this weekend is Freddie Vosgrone, a high-level submission wrestler that has run through the competition thus far. He has an absolute dominating ground game where he’s positionally dominant wants he finishes the takedown and voracious in finding any submission he wants. That includes two heel hooks in his five pro wins. He fights UFC veteran and 47-fight veteran Karlos Vemola this weekend in a massive bout.
9. Paddy McCorry (Middleweight, Ireland, Cage Warriors): TUF and Contender Series veteran Paddy McCorry looks to defend his Cage Warriors title this weekend and continue to stay on the UFC’s radar. McCorry is a power striker who likes to stay on the outside and poke before he looks for the kill shot. His struggles have come when he does get taken down and has to counter-grapple. He missed out on a UFC contract last year in a win over In Soo Hwang because his performance lacked inspiration, but McCorry obviously has the talent. He takes on Julio Spadaccini this weekend to defend his Cage Warriors title for the first time.
10. Artem Belakh (Bantamweight, Kazakhstan, 559 Fights): We end the week with TUF veteran Artem Belakh, who will be making his first appearance since being on the show. Belakh is a solid striker with good wrestling. He has excellent experience in the cage, taking on tough opposition to good results. His time on TUF saw him fall to eventual winner Mehemmedali Osmanli in a fight that coach Daniel Cormier was disappointed in his approach. This weekend he fights Tony Cortez, a prospect coming off a loss.

LAST WEEK’S PROSPECT RESULTS

1. Zevan Hunt was viciously knocked out by Mayton Perea on the Contender Series.
2. Igor Cavalcanti mauled Oscar Ravello to a TKO win on the Contender Series, securing a UFC contract.
3. Akbar Abdullaev hit a quick, one-punch knockout over Edilson Santos at the Contender Series, becoming a no-brainer signing to the UFC.
4. Luis Hernandez scored a crazy rear-naked choke win over Hugo Guillon at the Contender Series, scoring a UFC contract.
5. Tyshawn Williams scored a dominant unanimous decision victory at the Contender Series over Antonio Monteiro, but did not score a UFC contract…he instead earned another invite back to the Contender Series episode 10.
6. Davi Bittencourt won via highlight reel head kick knockout over Devan Lozej in the LFA main event.
7. Marcos Breno also had a brutal knockout win at LFA, downing Shuya Kamikubo with his hands.
8. Steve Collins blew through Kevin Carrier via TKO, also at the LFA event.
9. Hunter Lee fell via split decision to UFC vet Darian Weeks at Unified MMA.
10. Millie Eriksson was downed by TKO vs. Sani Brannfors at ICF, her first pro loss.