Ranking all the DWCS Season 1 contract winners

3. Geoff Neal

There was a time in his UFC career when Joe Rogan dubbed Neal as a future UFC title challenger. That may no longer be the case, but Neal has still carved out a role for himself as a bonafide top 15 contender for several years to come.

Neal is now a welterweight but made his impression on Dana White at DWCS in the middleweight division, knocking out Chase Waldon in under two minutes. Through his first five Octagon appearances, Neal would go 5-0 in a stretch that included impressive wins over Belal Muhammad and Mike Perry.

Upon reaching the top 10, however, Neal faltered, losing consecutive decisions to Stephen Thompson and Neil Magny. Neal has since recovered with a win against Santiago Ponzinibbio, his first against a ranked opponent.

The biggest win of his career would come at UFC Vegas 59 when Neal would brutalize Vicente Luque to the point of threatening his life. Before the official stoppage would come in the third round, the punishment Neal had dealt gave the Brazilian a brain hemorrhage that forced Luque to re-evaluate his career, though he has since returned to fighting.

Luque, however, has never been the same since the loss to Neal.

As of May 2024, the win over Luque has been the last in the young career of Neal. He has gone on to face top 10 opponents in Shavkat Rakhmonov and Ian Machado Garry, losing to both rising contenders.