Last month, surprising news leaked out of the UFC. The largest and most profitable MMA organization in the world was releasing one of the top flyweight contenders in the world, the venerable Brazilian Jussier Formiga, one of the world’s elite 125-pounders for over a decade and the only man to ever beat the reigning champ, Deiveson Figueiredo. When interviewed after the news broke, Formiga revealed that he had been told the UFC was planning to cut as many as 75 fighters – evidently, a list that would include some of their best.
It seems that the big cutdown is starting. UFC president Dana White himself alluded last weekend that the cuts would happen by the end of 2020, as a reaction to a roster that he says has grown “inflated.” It’s likely that many of them will include the usual struggling undercard fighters, guys failing drug tests or dealing with repeated injuries – fighters like the 4-6 Rachael Ostovich, for example, who was released this week – that usually get cut by the UFC after a time. But the stunning release of world-class middleweight and recent title challenger Yoel Romero indicated that there are higher stakes here. Some of the top fighters in the world really are going to lose their jobs.
It’s ludicrous on its face that this is even happening. The UFC’s television rights deal with ESPN has ensured it record levels of revenue even despite the COVID-19 pandemic, and that’s mostly gone to line the pockets of shareholders and executives instead of actually paying the fighters. UFC fighters risk their short-term and long-term health for pennies compared to other pro athletes, and the same exact piddly bonus pool that has been in place for well over a decade. Joaquin Buckley hit the greatest KO in history a couple months ago and he’s still working at fucking Walgreens. The UFC can afford to pay every one of these fighters, and much more.
But the UFC has never been about having all the best fighters in the world under one roof and actually creating a true, objective championship of mixed martial arts. If it was, they would have paid Corey Anderson, one of the best light heavyweights in the world and still in his early 30s, instead of letting him walk to Bellator. Hell, they wouldn’t have released Jon Fitch seven years ago. The UFC exists to make rich people richer, and to give disgusting freak Dana White the cult of personality he so craves. So when you consider that, this paring down makes all the sense in the world.
White promised after the Romero news broke that more big names would follow. If we’re looking at Romero as an example, you can start to suppose what types of fighters might be in danger. Romero is one of the best middleweights in the world, but he’s 44, was likely never getting another title opportunity, had lost four of five to elite competition, and his accomplishments and seniority mean that he was probably making a decent chunk of change per fight.
This never should have happened in the first place, but you can see the criteria the UFC was working off of when choosing Romero to release. We know for a fact he isn’t going to be the last one. So keeping those criteria in mind, I put together a list of 10 fighters I think could be in danger of being part of the UFC’s impending cutdowns.
Few UFC fighters have the kind of seniority Andrei Arlovski has. Arlovski made his UFC debut during the Clinton administration – his first turn in the Octagon was so long ago, that it took place at the first UFC event sanctioned in a northern state – and in 2005, he climbed the mountain to win the UFC heavyweight title. After a six-year gap fighting in other organizations, Arlovski returned in 2014, and despite his age and the tread on his tires, he’s done reasonably well for himself. Even today, at 41, he’s in the top 15 and on a two-fight win streak, after ending a hot run by Tanner Boser in November. But at this point it’s almost impossible to imagine Arlovski beating any of the real factors in the heavyweight division, and his win over Boser was one of the most boring fights of the year. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Arlovski sent packing.
Another former heavyweight champion could be on the chopping block here as well. Junior dos Santos is one of the best pure boxers in MMA history, and in 2012, he stormed to the UFC title by knocking out Cain Velasquez in just over a minute in the UFC’s debut on national television. JDS ate two huge beatings from Cain in return, and while he’s recovered to have a nice career as a top level heavyweight – he even beat Stipe Miocic in 2014, when Stipe was on the way up – he’s coming off three straight KO losses to elite heavies: Francis Ngannou, Curtis Blaydes and Jairzinho Rozenstruik. He’s fighting one of the most promising heavyweights in the world, Ciryl Gane, this week. With a loss, JDS might be gone.
Back in 2013, it felt like Anthony Pettis was going to be the next great superstar of mixed martial arts. Young, athletic and incredibly exciting, Pettis authored one of the most cinematic moments in the sport’s history – the Showtime Kick, in the closing moments of his classic bout with Benson Henderson in the final fight of the WEC’s history – and won the UFC lightweight title at the age of 26. But it ultimately feels like he hasn’t lived up to the hype, and he’s shuttled between 155 and 170 for a few years with middling results. His brother Sergio departed the UFC last year, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Pettis’ next fight, against Alex Morono next week, be his last in the UFC.
Maia is one of the foremost grapplers in the history of mixed martial arts, a former ADCC world champion who has had a fantastic MMA career based solely off his abilities on the ground. He’s fought twice for UFC titles at two different weight classes: middleweight against Anderson Silva in 2010, and welterweight against Tyron Woodley in 2017. The 43-year-old is a wonder, having stayed relevant for an incredibly long time despite still having a one-dimensional game, but at this point it seems inconceivable that Maia will ever truly contend again. Either way, his UFC career is winding down.
This is one that would hurt, but when you think about it, it makes some sense. “Wonderboy” is the UFC’s brilliant karate man, the nicest guy in MMA, and everyone’s favorite. His striking is artful – remember that shit he did to Jake Ellenberger? – and in his two-fight series with Tyron Woodley, he came as close as you can possibly come to winning a UFC title without actually winning it. But Thompson is 37 years old – not so much of a WonderBOY anymore – and while he’s undoubtedly still one of the best welterweights in the world, he’s lost three of five and it’s hard to envision him beating someone like Kamaru Usman. If Thompson can’t deal with Geoff Neal next week, he might be gone.
Neil Magny has won almost continuously since signing with the UFC in 2014. His 17 UFC wins are second all-time among welterweights, trailing only Georges St-Pierre. In 2014, he tied a UFC record with five wins in a single year. He’s grinded out three unanimous decision dubs this year alone. But over the years, Magny’s ceiling has been firmly established as low top 10, and his unexciting wrestling style has garnered him few fans. We’ve seen Dana White let guys like Jon Fitch and Jake Shields, guys who won a lot of fights in boring ways, walk in the past. It wouldn’t be a shock to see Magny be next.
Raging Al Iaquinta is another good fighter whose ceiling has been rather set for a while, even though he did under bizarre circumstances challenge for the UFC lightweight title on just a day’s notice in 2018. He hasn’t fought in over a year, and hasn’t won in nearly two. He seems to have a relatively bustling real estate business going, and he’s clashed with the UFC on contract terms in the past. I personally wouldn’t be too surprised if we never saw Iaquinta fight again – and you know what, good for him. Go make some money in a business where you don’t get brain damage, my dude.
Joseph Benavidez is doomed to always be the bridesmaid, and never the bride. He’s the Hirooki Goto of mixed martial arts. Benavidez has challenged for world titles an astounding FIVE times – the first coming in the WEC – and lost every time, and in more and more violent fashion. He got two cracks at Deiveson Figueiredo this year, and got demolished both times. He’ll never get another shot as long as Figgy is champ, which may be a long time, and he may never get another chance no matter who holds the flyweight gold. He might fit the profile. One potential complicating matter is the presence of his wife Megan Olivi, a regular part of UFC broadcasts as a cageside reporter. Cutting her husband may mean losing her too – we’ll see if that has any influence.
It doesn’t matter what year it is, I’m always down to watch Lil’ Heathen get in the cage. There are few fighters in the UFC who have been in more wars than Stephens, who’s been scrapping in the Octagon since 2007 and has won Fight of the Night six times. He throws bombs, and we love to see it. But Stephens is another guy whose ranking and reputation might outpace the fighter he is today – while ranked in the top 10 at 145, he hasn’t won a fight since early 2018. In one of the deepest divisions in the UFC, a group filled with fantastic young talent, the 34-year-old Stephens is getting passed. I fear he could be on the list.
Rounding out this group of 10 is another top contender in a lighter-weight division who’s starting to get passed by. Moraes should have challenged for the bantamweight title earlier this year and was ludicrously snubbed – that shows you right there that he isn’t much of a priority in Dana White’s mind. He then came back in October to get knocked out in glorious fashion by Cory Sandhagen, a fight where he lacked the same bite on the feet that made him a star. His fight with Rob Font next week could prove to be a very big one for Moraes, who’s in danger of dropping off the radar for the 135-pound championship.
The Big Fight 