The UFC is gearing up for a major trimming of its roster, and although that generally sounds like bad news, there could be some long-term positives for mixed martial arts on the horizon.
This past Saturday following UFC on ESPN 19, UFC president Dana White told reporters that the promotion is planning to release about 60 fighters from their contracts before the end of 2020. White said the roster is “very inflated right now” and that “serious cuts” were on the way.
The news came shortly after the release of Yoel Romero, a multiple-time UFC title challenger and perennial contender at middleweight.
But this shouldn’t be a surprise. Back in August, White had a similar message when asked about how the large influx of newcomers from Dana White’s Contender Series would affect the promotion.
“It’s all a numbers game,” White said back in mid-August. “We have to give everybody three fights a year, so you can only have so many people under contract. This is how it works. Every once in a while, you’ll see a huge cut. We’ll go through, and there would be 14, 15 guys cut in a week. That’s the nature of the beast.”
It seems the UFC is about to do a refresh of its talent pool given who’s being signed and who’s being let go.
DWCS seems to be the main avenue to reach the UFC today. The format of the program is designed to not find the best, most seasoned, or most accomplished talent outside of the UFC, but the most promising and exciting up-and-comers.
In Season 4 alone, which ran from early August to mid November, just six of the 37 contract winners were older than 30. The average age was 27.
And from the fighters the UFC has let walk away in recent months, it makes me think this trim of the roster will not be similar to others seen in the past, as it won’t be necessarily exclusive to the sporting side of things – fighters who are at the bottom of the division.
Just look at the surprising names that left the UFC in recent months.
Fabricio Werdum, 43, a former UFC heavyweight champion and ranked contender at the time, became a free agent and later signed with PFL. The UFC also cut Jussier Formiga, 35, another ranked fighter and staple of the flyweight division. And let’s not forget Corey Anderson, 31, who was granted his release and signed with Bellator.
While some cuts will be obvious, such as Rachael Ostovich first reported by MMA Junkie on Monday, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a bigger number of ranked fighters released – solid and respected world-class competitors who’ve had their title shots or aren’t next in line.
This is where many outside organizations such as Bellator, PFL, ONE Championship, RIZIN, KSW, BKFC, and others could benefit.
I don’t suspect we’ll see enough ranked fighters released to build a division. But out of 60 planned releases before 2021, there should be a fair amount of notable names and free-agent gems who could be interesting additions to other organizations.
It seems to me, that with all the changes we’ve seen in recent years, the UFC is no longer interested in having all the best fighters in the world, just the very best and those who promise to be that.