Latest news with #Buday
Yahoo
18 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
UFC Heavyweight Released Despite Nearly Flawless Octagon Run
UFC Heavyweight Released Despite Nearly Flawless Octagon Run originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Abu Dhabi card delivered action, but one heavyweight's win wasn't enough to save his spot UFC Abu Dhabi delivered its share of thrills, especially in the main event where Reinier de Ridder defeated former champion Robert Whittaker in a high-stakes clash. While the spotlight belonged to the headliners, a surprising roster shake-up took place just beneath the surface. One victorious heavyweight may have just competed in his final UFC bout—despite adding another win to his résumé. Promising UFC heavyweight Martin Buday, 33, picked up a solid unanimous decision win over Marcus Buchecha on the undercard. But according to MMA Fighting's Mike Heck, that performance wasn't enough to secure his place on the roster. 'The UFC has parted ways with Martin Buday following Buday's UFC Abu Dhabi win over Marcus Buchecha,' Heck reported. 'Buday fought out his deal, and the UFC elected not to re-sign the ranked heavyweight.' The news, also confirmed by @guicruzzz, came as a shock given Buday's recent form. The Slovak heavyweight walks away from the promotion with a 7-1 record, including a win over former champion Andrei Arlovski. He was riding a three-fight win streak and had just begun to find his rhythm in the division. Still, the UFC opted not to bring him back—possibly clearing space amid a reshuffling of the division. With Dana White and the UFC kickstarting the heavyweight division once again—especially with Tom Aspinall returning at UFC 321 in October—and the retirement of Jon Jones, the promotion appears set on stacking fresh talent to mix things up. And while Buday was never quite a contender, the timing of his release—despite a nearly flawless UFC record—adds a curious footnote to an evolving weight class. This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 31, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
UFC veteran Martin Buday signs with OKTAGON MMA, faces off with heavyweight champ
It didn't take long for Martin Buday to find a new home after his puzzling exit from the UFC. After winning seven of eight fights in the UFC heavyweight division, including a unanimous decision victory over Marcus Buchecha at UFC on ABC 9 just two weeks ago, the promotion opted to not sign Buday (16-2) to a new deal at the conclusion of his contract. This came to the surprise and disappointment of Buday, who said he did not ask for a raise or any other demands to stay with the UFC. It didn't happen, though, and he entered free agency, where he quickly was picked up by OKTAGON MMA. Buday competed for OKTAGON MMA in 2018-2019 and became heavyweight champion. He vacated the belt when he signed with the UFC, but will now seemingly have the chance to get it back from reigning titleholder Will Fleury (15-3), whom he faced off with after his signing was announced at Saturday's OKTAGON 74 event. The promotion did not reveal a timeline for the teased showdown between Buday, 33, and Fleury, 36, who is on a nine-fight unbeaten streak dating back to June 2020. This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC castoff Martin Buday signs with OKTAGON, faces off with champ
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
UFC veteran Martin Buday signs with OKTAGON MMA, faces off with heavyweight champ
It didn't take long for Martin Buday to find a new home after his puzzling exit from the UFC. After winning seven of eight fights in the UFC heavyweight division, including a unanimous decision victory over Marcus Buchecha at UFC on ABC 9 just two weeks ago, the promotion opted to not sign Buday (16-2) to a new deal at the conclusion of his contract. This came to the surprise and disappointment of Buday, who said he did not ask for a raise or any other demands to stay with the UFC. It didn't happen, though, and he entered free agency, where he quickly was picked up by OKTAGON MMA. Buday competed for OKTAGON MMA in 2018-2019 and became heavyweight champion. He vacated the belt when he signed with the UFC, but will now seemingly have the chance to get it back from reigning titleholder Will Fleury (15-3), whom he faced off with after his signing was announced at Saturday's OKTAGON 74 event. The promotion did not reveal a timeline for the teased showdown between Buday, 33, and Fleury, 36, who is on a nine-fight unbeaten streak dating back to June 2020.
USA Today
7 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Josh Thomson scolds UFC for releasing Martin Buday from 'weak' heavyweight division
Josh Thomson can't fathom why the UFC would let go of rising heavyweight contender Martin Buday. The UFC parted ways with Buday (16-2 MMA, 7-1 UFC) just days after he fought out his contract in a unanimous decision win over Marcus Buchecha (5-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) earlier this month at UFC on ABC 9 in Abu Dhabi. Buday, 33, was released as the No. 12 ranked UFC heavyweight. "Let's not pretend there is a ton of great heavyweights," Thomson said on his "Weighing In" podcast. "If you want to get him beat, then get him beat so he leaves. Not re-signing him? One of two things happened: The contract negotiations didn't go well or he's just been so boring that they were like, 'Look, we don't want to have anything to do with you. You're too wrestling-based, you're too top-control based.'" Thomson takes issue with the UFC's decision, especially because of how shallow the heavyweight division is. "What I get upset about, though, is stop saying you have the best fighters in the world when you're pushing away some of the best fighters," Thomson added. "This guy is 7-1 in a weak heavyweight division where you need the best fighters. You can say this guy is the best fighter. Have him fight the guys in the top seven, top eight. If he wins, he wins. Maybe the cream rises to the top. Maybe you get a great performance out of him that makes him something that he never would have been. "If he's used to being that guy, have him fight Jailton Almeida, have him fight (Alexander) Volkov who's used to being taken down. Let's see what happens. Let's see if he rises to the occasion. You can sometimes find that little diamond in the rough by making them fight somebody that's going to pull it out of them. I just hate when I hear all the best fighters are in the UFC because we know that's not true. It bothers me when they're cutting guys that are good, and who are beating UFC fighters, and they still let them go." Buday earned his UFC contract though Dana White's Contender Series in 2021 when he knocked out Lorenzo Hood. His lone octagon loss came to Shamil Gaziev by TKO in December 2023.
USA Today
31-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
UFC parts ways with Martin Buday despite 7-1 promotional record
The UFC has released a ranked heavyweight despite his lopsidedly successful record in the promotion. Five days after his UFC on ABC 9 win, Martin Buday is no longer with the promotion. Buday (16-2) went 7-1 in the UFC and fought out his contract Saturday in a win over Marcus Buchecha. A person with knowledge of the situation confirmed the roster transaction to MMA Junkie on Thursday but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. MMA Fighting first reported the move. Buday, 33, was ranked No. 15 in the official UFC heavyweight rankings at the time of the split. Shortly after news of the UFC's decision hit social media, Buday posted a brief statement. "Yeah its true, yesterday we got a call that @ufc is not resigning us for the moment," Buday wrote. "Well it is what it is atleast im leaving with my head up. Thank you." Buday's UFC resume A native of Slovakia, Buday earned his UFC contract in 2021 when he knocked out Lorenzo Hood. He then defeated Chris Barnett, Lukasz Brzeski, Jake Collier, and Josh Parisian before his first promotional loss to Shamil Gaziev by TKO in December 2023. After the defeat, Buday defeated Andrei Arlovski and Uran Satybaldiev before his unanimous decision victory over BJJ legend Buchecha (5-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC).
