Dana White Says 60 Fighters Are About To Be Released

Dana White has given some bad news to his entire roster of fighters. After the sudden release of multiple-time UFC Middleweight title contender Yoel Romero, White has had to address the question of possible future cuts. After UFC Vegas 16, White answered the questions everyone has had regarding the trimming of the roster.

“We’re going to go through some serious cuts at the end of the year. About 60 cuts coming up before the first of the year. Yoel has lost 4 of his last 5, he’s 44 years old. Our roster is very inflated right now, so we’re going to have some big cuts happening before the end of the year. Lots of names going in the next several weeks.”

This is quite unprecedented for the company. We have seen mass-cuts before but nothing of this nature. There were four more cuts after Romero’s release, and the magnitude of this could resemble the ‘Black Wednesday‘ WWE saw in April this year.

Dana White adds stakes for all fighters on the next two cards

The fact that the releases have been slow up until now is probably an indication that the UFC is waiting to see how the next few fights pan out. Fighters on the losing end may be on the chopping block as well. However, the bigger question is- how many more top-tier talents will be released?

Some releases that may happen will be high up the rankings, like the Romero one. Could wee fighters like Donald Cerrone or Diego Sanchez make their way out? Is Mike Perry possibly on the verge of being released? The UFC have also been hit financially by losing gate money this year and arranging Fight Island. They have put in a lot of effort from their end are trying to balance the books.

After backlash for low fighter pay anyway, the UFC will face criticism for this. The releases will furnish a lot of other promotions with talent, so hopefully, the released fighters all secure their futures upon their release.