Perennial Middleweight Contender Derek Brunson No Longer on UFC Roster

Even though he was scheduled to face Roman
Dolidze at UFC
295 on Nov. 11 in New York City’s world-famous Madison Square
Garden, long-time
Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight contender Derek
Brunson has parted ways with the promotion.
MMAFighting was first to report the news Thursday.

A part of the Las Vegas-based company for the past 11 years,
Brunson, 39, stepped inside the Octagon a whopping 21 times and
holds a record of 14-7 in the organization.

Perhaps one of the most consistent fighters in the division,
Brunson faced the likes of Anderson
Silva, Yoel Romero,
Robert
Whittaker, Israel
Adesanya, Uriah Hall
and Darren Till
throughout his UFC tenure.

Despite being unable to secure a divisional crown, Brunson racked
up two impressive runs to the title, often serving as a roadblock
for up-and-coming contenders in the 185-pound division.

Brunson’s long-time manager Ali Abdelaziz had this to say about his
client’s release from the UFC: “Derek Brunson has been under the
UFC umbrella for 11 years,” Abdelaziz told MMAFighting. “He had an
amazing career there. The last seven years he’s been in the Top 10
rankings. The UFC was amazing to him there, helped shape who he is
today and I’m very grateful for the opportunity he was given. He
has to move on and [I’m] looking forward to what comes next for
him.”