UFC heavyweight contender Martin Buday’s shocking release confused the opponent he defeated at UFC Abu Dhabi.
Martin Buday extended his three-fight winning streak at UFC Abu Dhabi against one of the promotion’s biggest signees of 2025. But despite his upset victory, the fight would end up being his final appearance inside the Octagon.
Buday was not re-signed by the UFC following his unanimous decision win over Buchecha at UFC Abu Dhabi. It was a shocking decision by the matchmakers after Buday made a strong case to move up in the latest heavyweight rankings.
Many around MMA expressed their confusion and criticism of the UFC’s decision to move on from Buday, including Buday’s opponent Marcus Buchecha.
Marcus Buchecha ‘really sad’ over Martin Buday’s bizarre UFC release
In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Buchecha was asked for his thoughts on Buday’s shocking dismissal.
“Honestly, I was really sad,” Buchecha said.
“I was sad for him because he’s such a nice guy. I knew him from years ago, we ended up training together in Abu Dhabi — he was a blue belt, I already was a black belt, a world champion. We respected each other a lot during fight week. And he’s 7-1 in the UFC. [Tom Aspinall] is 8-1. There was no reason to cut him.
“I was sad because he was well-ranked and everybody thought he would climb the ranking even more, and ended up getting cut.”
Buday went 7-1 in the UFC with wins over Andrei Arlovski, Josh Parisian, and Jake Collier. His lone defeat came against Shamil Gaziev at UFC 296 by TKO.
Buday, a Dana White’s Contender Series alum, earned a UFC contract by knocking out Lorenzo Hood with a knee in 2021. He went on to win his first four UFC appearances before the loss to Gaziev.
Buday revealed earlier this week that the PFL and Glory Kickboxing are two promotions that have reached out to him since he became a free agent. His former stomping grounds, Oktagon MMA, is also interested in welcoming him back to the promotion.
Reinier de Ridder hit back at Paulo Costa in brutal fashion over UFC Abu Dhabi critique
In the UFC Abu Dhabi main event, Reinier de Ridder defeated Robert Whittaker by split decision to remain unbeaten in his promotional tenure. Despite De Ridder’s victory, not everyone was impressed with his performance.
Former UFC title challenger Paulo Costa mocked De Ridder on social media after watching his win over Whittaker, claiming he would knock De Ridder out three times if they squared off in the cage. De Ridder responded by reminding Costa that Whittaker outpointed him earlier in their careers.
De Ridder is on the verge of a potential middleweight title shot, and will be keeping a keen eye on the UFC 319 headliner. UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis will face Khamzat Chimaev in his latest title defense.