Derek Brunson has left UFC following an 11-year, 21-fight stint, with the promotion and the veteran middleweight contender parting ways, and is also out of his UFC 295 fight against Roman Dolidze.
Roman Dolidze’s anticipated faceoff with Derek Brunson in UFC 295 is no longer happening. However, the development goes beyond a mere match change; Brunson is leaving UFC completely. After an impressive 21-fight run that spans 11 years, the experienced middleweight player and UFC have mutually decided to go separate ways. The decision was confirmed by UFC officials.
Brunson, aged 39, was initially slated to fight Dolidze in a showdown of ranked contenders on November 11th at Madison Square Garden for UFC 295. However, Dolidze took to Twitter on Wednesday to announce that Brunson had pulled out of the bout. In response to this sudden change, Dolidze expressed his interest in fighting against either Robert Whittaker or Jared Cannonier. Dolidze extended his good luck wish to Brunson for his next endeavor in a tweet posted Thursday, in response to the tweet about Brunson’s departure.
Brunson’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, released a statement about the fighter’s sudden UFC exit on Thursday. However, Abdelaziz maintained a positive attitude and expressed gratitude towards UFC for the tremendous opportunities provided to Brunson. He said, “Derek Brunson has been under the UFC umbrella for 11 years,” and added, “He had an amazing career there. The last seven years he’s been in the top 10 rankings…I’m very grateful for the opportunity he was given. He has to move on and looking forward to what comes next for him.”
After joining the UFC in 2012 from Strikeforce, Brunson maintained an active role in the UFC’s 185-pound division, earning a solid 14-7 record in the octagon. He fought against top-ranked middleweights like Anderson Silva, Israel Adesanya, Whittaker, Lyoto Machida, Yoel Romero, Ronaldo Souza, Cannonier, and Dricus Du Plessis. Even at the time of his exit, Brunson ranks as the eighth-best middleweight player in the promotion’s media-generated rankings, while being the 11th best middleweight worldwide.