Bryan Battle has been released from the UFC roster.
The former Ultimate Fighter winner missed weight for the second straight time this past weekend at UFC 319 with his latest matchup against Nursulton Ruziboev being cancelled. Now just a few days later, Battle was released from his contract.
UFC officials confirmed the news to MMA Fighting on Wednesday.
Currently riding a three-fight win streak, Battle missed the welterweight mark for his matchup against Randy Brown back in December 2024 but still came
away with a victory. A long layoff followed and the next time he got a call from the UFC, Battle was offered a middleweight contest with Rusiboev.
Battle didn’t blink and he ultimately accepted the fight but still hoped welterweight would be in his future.
“Circumstances aside, didn’t make weight for the last one. It was kind of hard getting another fight,” Battle told MMA Fighting prior to UFC 319. “I told my agent, I’m not afraid of these dudes up at middleweight. I used to fight there. I’m a pretty big guy myself. I’m not afraid of these middleweights and as soon as I said that, a fight came as fast as you know what.
“I would love to go back down to welterweight at some point. Just because I feel like the story’s not finished down there. I’m a prize fighter. Whoever they pay me to fight is who I’m going to fight.”
Unfortunately, Battle then missed weight going up to middleweight after he hit the scale at 190 pounds — four pounds over the limit for a non-title fight — and the matchup was eventually scrapped from the card.
As a result, the UFC opted to release Battle from his contract. He leaves the organization with a 7-1 record with one no contest overall.
