Ranking all the DWCS Season 1 contract winners

15. Boston Salmon

Salmon will always have a place in the DWCS record book, as he was actually the first fighter to be given a UFC contract from the show. In the first-ever episode, Salmon defeated eventual TUF winner Ricky Turcios by decision and was offered a contract by Dana White after the event along with the weekly headliner Kurt Holobaugh.

Upon entering the UFC, Salmon had a decent amount of hype. He was a product of the new DWCS concept at just 26 years old with a 5-1 record. He trained out of the credentialed Xtreme Couture gym and as a native of Hawaii, he had the passionate Hawaiian fanbase behind him.

However, Salmon would be the only DWCS season-one contract winner who would go winless in the UFC. Salmon would fight just twice in the official Octagon, losing to Khalid Taha and Randy Costa in 2019, both by first-round TKO.

After a combined just 2:40 in the UFC, Salmon was released from the promotion. In the years since his unsuccessful UFC tenure, Salmon found his way into the PFL, winning a fight on the Challenger Series in 2022.

Salmon was scheduled to face Brendan Loughnane in the 2022 PFL Season but withdrew from the fight and has not been booked for another appearance since. The 33-year-old appears to still be active in training but has not competed in over two years.

14. Lauren Mueller

Like Boston Salmon, Mueller will also have a permanent record with DWCS as the first female fighter to be signed off the show. In the eighth and final week of the first season, Mueller defeated Kelly McGill by decision to earn her spot on the UFC roster.

Then just 4-0, Mueller made her UFC debut eight months after her win on DWCS at UFC on FOX 29. Against another debuting fighter, Mueller kept her undefeated record intact and started her career off on the right foot, winning a convincing decision over Shana Dobson.

But later in the same year, Mueller was asked to face Yanan Wu in Beijing and would suffer her first professional loss in enemy territory. The loss would unfortunately be the beginning of the end for Mueller, who would go on to lose two more fights in the UFC to Poliana Botelho and JJ Aldrich.

Mueller was released in the UFC in 2019 after her loss to Aldrich and would subsequently take time away from the sport. She returned in 2021 in the all-female promotion Invicta FC but lost a split decision to Serena DeJesus.

After her fourth career loss, Mueller would once again step away from MMA and settle into her life on a ranch. Still just 32 years old, Mueller appeared to be interested in making a comeback to fighting on her social media, posting a training video in January, saying it is "never too late to start again."