It’s the beginning of the month, which means the UFC is updating their website to reflect their current roster. While not an official announcements per se, the deletion of these profiles usually signifies a fighter being released, and UFCFIGHTERSiNFO has listed the recent changes.
This month’s changes have seen 17 fighters being removed from their official list, and 14 of them are releases that haven’t been reported before hand.
Fighters who have been let go are Lisa Ellis, Jessica Rakoczy, Zhang Lipeng, Luiz Dutra, Josh Sampo, Justin Edwards, Hatsu Hioki, Ryan Jimmo, Robbie Peralta, Wendell Oliveira, Nolan Ticman, Dhiego Lima, Andrew Todhunter, and Bentley Syler.
Must Reads
Although not a huge surprise, the biggest name here is Hioki. The Sengoku featherweight champ came into the UFC with much fanfare, but after winning his first two fights, he had a long and tough stretch. He lost 5 of his last 6 bouts, and his brutal KO loss against Daniel Hooker last May put an end to the 31-year-old’s disappointing run in the promotion.
Ryan Jimmo has also been let go after a lackluster performance against Francimar Barroso last May. He has dropped two in a row, and after being one of the more vocal fighters criticizing the UFC and its “abusive relationship” with fighters, the release isn’t all too surprising. He has since confirmed his release commented on it via twitter:
@Y2CASEY nope, Joe silva personally called me. can’t tell you how happy I am to be out of that prison sentence
— Ryan Jimmo (@RyanJimmo) July 7, 2015
Another notable and somewhat surprising release was TUF: China winner Zhang Lipeng. He lost two decisions in a row, but with his stint on the reality show and the UFC’s desire to break into Mainland China, many thought he would stay longer. One would wonder what the UFC’s plans for China are, with the most promising TUF vets in Zhang and Wang Sai now both out of the promotion.
Andrew Todhunter got released from the promotion even before he had his first fight. He passed out during a weight cut for his short notice bout at UFC 188, and it looks like he won’t get another chance to make his debut.
Bloody Elbow will have more in depth news and analysis on this month’s chopping block in the coming days.
About the author
