The UFC flyweight division remains under siege, with the most recent casualty being Ben Nguyen.
Another blow to the flyweight division has been struck. Ben Nguyen (18-8), who was 4-3 in the UFC in, has been cut by the promotion. Nguyen, who picked up a memorable Performance of the Night win against Tim Elliot back in June of last year, announced on social media late Thursday that he’d been let go. The release of the American flyweight who spent a good chunk of his career in Australia comes among continued rumors regarding the demise of the weight class.
Noting that MMA is one of “the toughest sports in the world, and like anything we have our ups and we have our downs,” Nguyen broke the news that “unfortunately, the down is that I have been released by the UFC.”
“I may not have had the opportunity to fight for UFC gold, but I’m grateful to have fought for the UFC and shared the centre spotlight with many great flyweights. I have met a lot of great people and made heaps of friends throughout my time in the UFC.”
You can read Nguyen’s full statement below.
Nguyen’s most recent outing in the octagon came earlier this month at UFC Adelaide, where he suffered a unanimous decision loss against former title challenger Wilson Reis. It was the second straight loss for Nguyen, which likely sealed his fate.
However, with Nguyen’s experience on the international scene, he’s a lock for the likes of ONE Championship or RIZIN FF. ONE, of course, traded Ben Askren for all-time flyweight great Demetrious Johnson, while RIZIN has picked up a handful of former UFC flyweights including Ulka Sasaki and Justin Scoggins.
