Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) CEO Dana White has apologized to Farid Basharat after his comments regarding the undefeated Bantamweight\u2019s surprising departure from the promotion painted him as potentially difficult to work with.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen guys\u2019 contracts are up \u2014 and this isn\u2019t the first time this has happened \u2014 either guys aren\u2019t good to deal with, or the matchmakers don\u2019t want to deal with them, which could be turning down fights or whatever the reasoning is,\u201d White said following UFC Edmonton. \u201cIf you\u2019re 16-0 with seven wins in the UFC and don\u2019t get re-signed, there\u2019s definitely a reason<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n Basharat vehemently denied ever declining a fight and accused White of potentially damaging his reputation with other promotions. \u201cFerocious\u201d pointed toward the injuries and extreme weight discrepancies he accepted during his UFC tenure as proof that he was never difficult to work with.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I was talking to the media that night, and I was saying reasons that you could not get re-signed, I wasn\u2019t saying that about him,\u201d White explained. \u201cI said, \u2018Well, it\u2019s happened before.\u2019 There are lots of reasons why guys don\u2019t get re-signed. I wasn\u2019t talking about him specifically.<\/p>\n \u201cI actually saw his response video on my Instagram, and I was like, \u2018Oh s\u2014t. I didn\u2019t mean to do that to that kid,\u2019\u201d White continued. \u201cAnd I saw he had said something like, \u2018If you\u2019re not going to re-sign me, don\u2019t try to hurt my career.\u2019 And in no way, shape or form did I try to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n White insisted there are no personal or professional issues between UFC and Basharat, predicting that the undefeated 29-year-old will have no trouble finding another promotional home.<\/p>\n \u201cI have no problems with him whatsoever, personally or professionally, and I\u2019m sure with his record and what he\u2019s got going on, he\u2019ll get signed somewhere,\u201d White said.<\/p>\n Could Basharat eventually return to the Octagon?<\/p>\n \u201cI wouldn\u2019t say in the near future,\u201d White said. \u201cWe just let him go. But I\u2019m not saying it\u2019s not a possibility that he could come back to the UFC.\u201d<\/p>\n White\u2019s apology clears Basharat of the accusations surrounding his exit. However, it still leaves the biggest question unanswered: Why did UFC allow an undefeated, ranked contender to walk away in the first place?<\/p>\n