The UFC is continuing to clean up its roster, as another nine fighters have been removed.
In the latest round of cuts (or in some cases, contracts expiring, plus a retirement), Tristan Connelly and TJ Laramie, two Canadian talents, have been removed from the promotion’s active roster. Additionally, Felipe Colares, Louis Smolka, Andreas Michailidis, Alex Da Silva,
Frank Camacho, and Niklas Stolze have been removed, per automated service UFC Roster Watch.
Felice Herrig is also out, though that should come as no surprise — the strawweight veteran announced her retirement this past weekend, after a loss to Karolina Kowalkiewicz.
Smolka (17-9) confirmed his exit from the promotion recently. It’s the second time “Da Last Samurai” has been shown the door by the company, but he’s not letting that get his spirits down.
“I’m kinda excited to test free agency, the MMA landscape is changing a lot and pretty soon it might be like boxing where huge entities are roaming the globe to take each other out,” Smolka wrote on social media in response to the news. “Sounds like it has the potential to be really lucrative to me.”
Tbh I’m kinda excited to test free agency, the MMA landscape is changing a lot and pretty soon it might be like boxing where huge entities are roaming the globe taking each other out. Sounds like it has the potential to be really lucrative to me https://t.co/zrvTZR1gPF
— Da Last Samurai (@LouisSmolkaMMA) June 7, 2022
Connelly (14-8) came into the UFC on a high, defeating Michel Pereira in an upset at welterweight at UFC Vancouver in 2019. After an extended layoff, he moved to featherweight to face Pat Sabatini last year, coming up short. Following another year on the sidelines, he returned this past April, losing a decision against Darren Elkins.
Laramie (12-5), a Contender Series winner in 2020, was unable to pick up a win inside the octagon, losing both of his fights. The Windsor, Ontario native also suffered a loss against Sabatini, after losing his promotional debut to Darrick Minner.
Niklas Stolze fought this past weekend, and told Cageside Press going into the fight that he knew his back was against the wall. Alex Da Silva fought and lost on the very same card, falling to 1-3 through four UFC fights.
