Connor Gets UFC Contract Despite Loss; Novenyi Denied After Win — SkimNews
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- Callum Connor, 26, of Manchester earned a UFC contract on Dana White's Contender Series despite losing by unanimous decision to Peru's Piero Guaylupo, dropping his pro record to 8-1 with a prior four-fight win streak on Full Contact Contender
- Dana White said the Connor–Guaylupo bout could be a fight-of-the-year contender, logging more significant strikes than any UFC lightweight three-round fight, and quipped both fighters were 'in the hospital right now, as they should be'
- Six fighters earned UFC contracts across Tuesday's five fights — four winners plus two losers, making Connor one of only two defeated fighters signed
- Piero Guaylupo, 21, took a unanimous decision over Connor and was also awarded a contract, with White praising his performance
- Norbert Novenyi Jr, a Hungary-born London-based middleweight, improved to 11-1 with a unanimous decision over American Theo Haig but was the only winner denied a contract; White told him 'tonight's not your night, my friend'
Why it matters: Six UFC contracts from five fights on a single Contender Series night is an unusually high haul, and White's willingness to sign a losing fighter — Connor — over a winning one (Novenyi) signals that entertainment value and striking volume can outweigh result on this pathway to the roster.
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