Get to know Dana White’s Contender Series fighter Dennis “The Great” Buzukja

Las Vegas – Get to know Dana White’s Contender Series fighter Dennis “The Great” Buzukja.

The fourth season of the hit show Dana White’s Contender Series continues with Episode 5, featuring a lineup of rising athletes looking to make their dreams come true by impressing UFC President Dana White and earning a spot on the UFC roster.

The fifth episode of season four takes place on Tuesday, September 1 at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT, with all five bouts streaming exclusively on ESPN+ in the US.

ESPN+ is available through the ESPN.com, ESPNPlus.com, or the ESPN App on all major mobile and connected TV devices and platforms, including Amazon Fire, Apple, Android, Chromecast, PS4, Roku, Samsung Smart TVs, X Box One and more. Fans can sign up for $4.99 per month or $49.99 per year, with no contract required.

NAME: Dennis Buzukja
NICKNAME: Dennis “The Great” Buzukja
WEIGHT CLASS: Featherweight
AGE: 22 years old – 10/1/97
HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 5-9, 145
REACH: 72”
LEG REACH: –
STANCE: Switch
BIRTHPLACE: Staten Island, NY
FIGHTING OUT OF: Staten Island, NY
LANGUAGES SPOKEN: Albanian, English
STYLE: MMA
TRAINER: Ray Longo and Matt Serra
STRENGTHS: My strengths are my confidence, my toughness, my speed and accuracy, and my
ability to mix it up between my striking and grappling.
TRAINING: A typical day of training would be I would wake up and have a coffee with some
blueberries, I would get some teammates together then go do hill sprints. 3 5 minute rounds and
then some shadow boxing/pad work. I would go home after, rest and rehydrate then head to a
second training at night. Would do either wrestling or BJJ, or some striking drilling.
PROFESSIONAL MMA RECORD: 4-1

Q&A

Thoughts on opponent, Melsik Baghdasaryan? I think Melsik is a good kickboxer, especially as a southpaw. He’s technical and explosive and trains with a good camp in Cali. I respect his skills as a striker.

When and why did you start training for fighting? I was training just to stay in shape and because I loved it. My coach at the time called me up and asked me if I wanted to fight, so I took  my first MMA amateur fight. I won the fight by first round knockout and fell in love with the game immediately.

What ranks and titles have you held? I am a brown belt in karate. Amateur Triton Fights Featherweight Champion, Amateur Ring of Combat Lightweight Champion, and Ring of Combat Pro Featherweight Champion.

Do you have any heroes? My parents are my heroes.

What would it mean for you to fight in the UFC? For me to fight in the UFC it would mean I am literally living my dreams. I get to work out every day with people I love, get better every day, and fight the best in the world. And get rich while doing it.

Did you go to college and if so what degree did you earn? I went to college but put it on hold to turn this dream into a reality.

What was your job before you started fighting? Before I started fighting, I was working construction. I would set up suspended scaffolds on certain jobs and brought the bricklayers cement and blocks.

Specific accomplishments in pro competition? My ROC fight for the featherweight championship (versus Tim Dooling) is being called the greatest Ring of Combat fight ever by the promoter, Lou Neglia.

Favorite grappling technique: Head and arm choke from top position

Favorite Striking technique: Left hook to the body

Twitter account name: @DennisBuzukja

Facebook account: Dennis Buzukja

Instagram account: @dennisbuzukja

OTHER KEY POINTS:

  • Pro since 2018
  • Two wins by KO
  • Two first round finishes
  • On three fight winning streak
  • Origin of nickname: “It came from a friend because my middle name is Aleksander, so he would call me ‘The Great’ and It stuck.”

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