Dana White claims UFC duty roster cuts are not linked to a reduction in combatant salaries

Dana White has claimed that upcoming roster cuts in the UFC “have nothing to do with paying fighters” as veteran lightweight Matt Wiman is the next big name to be phased out.

UFC boss White announced over the weekend that a roster cleanup would take place to downsize the 724-strong roster, which he believes has always been done over the years.

White was questioned on Saturday about the decision to release Cuban middleweight Yoel Romero, who was recently dropped from the organization despite not battling for the title until March.

The 51-year-old said the roster was very inflated and the surprises would continue to come, but the decision to do so had nothing to do with cutting costs.

“We’ve been doing the same steps every weekend for 20 years,” said White MMA junkie. “We haven’t done that in the past few months. It has nothing to do with fighters’ wages or anything else. It just wasn’t done in a few months during the pandemic.

“If I tried to save money, I would be laying off employees like any other company in America. This will save you money with something like this.

“I kept every fighting contract and didn’t lay off any employees during this pandemic.”

Veteran lightweight Matt Wiman became the latest name released from the action

Wiman (left) has been fighting with the UFC since making his UFC 60 debut in 2006

As of last week, 117 female and 607 male fighters were on the company’s books, but with the release of Romero and UFC icon Anderson Silva in recent weeks, fans have been wondering who is facing the blow.

According to FightThe final round of cuts was announced on Tuesday. The most recognizable of the names that were released was Wiman, who has been battling with the company since UFC 60 in 2006.

He has since fought exclusively for the company and has a 10-8 record in the octagon.

The UFC also released the light heavyweights Gadzhimurad Antigulov and Saparbek Safarov, the bantamweight Cole Smith and the featherweight Eduardo Garagorri.

The cuts are expected to continue to make room on the roster for Contender series alum, new fighters from The Ultimate Fighter, and free agent signings.

Middleweight Yoel Romero has already been ousted, although he was fighting for the title in March

44-year-old Romero (left) was deemed overwhelmed due to his recent defeats

The UFC’s 724 active fighters will be drastically reduced and many will fear for their seats

The UFC was one of the first major American sports to restart after the COVID-19 pandemic. In Florida and Las Vegas, as well as on ‘Fight Island’ in Abu Dhabi, a bubble and staging maps were created that were not attended by fans.

Despite the difficulties and the impending cuts, White was happy with the way 2020 went, saying, “Despite all the negative and bad things that have happened this year, it has turned out pretty well for us.”

Next up is UFC 256 on December 13th with the co-headliner Tony Ferguson facing a pivotal battle with Charles Olivera trying to regain some pride after being subdued by Justin Gaethje in May.

A flyweight bout between Deiveson Figueiredo and Brandon Moreno will be the other co-main event in Nevada.