Martin Buday has been left upset by the UFC’s decision to cut him from the roster.
Buday had been signed to the promotion since he knocked out Lorenzo Hood in 2021, as part of Dana White‘s Contender Series.
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Buday has worked with Aspinall but will no longer compete in the UFC
While his initial UFC contract ended when he fought Josh Parisian, Buday had signed a further four-fight deal with the promotion following his win.
The Slovak trained with Tom Aspinall following his only loss to Shamil Gaziev in 2023, who then helped him make improvements to become a more well-rounded MMA fighter.
And the recently crowned new heavyweight champion even ruled out fighting Buday due to their friendship.
After celebrating his third consecutive win against Marcus Buchecha in July, he found out his contract would not be renewed for a second time.
It was a big blow for the in-form heavyweight, who has now opened up on exactly what went wrong before they even reached the negotiating table.
He explained on The Ariel Helwani Show: “I found out [July 30]. I got a call from my manager to say the UFC will not be extending the contract with us. So, it was pretty rough.
“I was very upset and very sad because I love UFC. I was hoping to get re-signed. I was sad about the situation.
“There [were] no negotiations, I also want to make it clear I wasn’t asking for more money if anything I was saying I could just wait for a match to come up.
“I didn’t ask for anything, the only thing was to be re-signed.”
When asked by Helwani if he knew the reasoning behind White’s decision to drop him from his roster, the 16-2 fighter shared his understanding of the situation.
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Buday addressed the reality of being surprisingly dropped from the UFCCredit: Youtube/The Ariel Helwani Show
With Buday typically winning his fights via decision, he explained that the UFC were piling on the pressure to deliver more highlight-reel stoppages to boost his profile.
He continued: “The only thing I was told was they don’t have any fights for me right now, so they will not extend my contract.
“I think there are more reasons behind that, the main reason is that some of my fights weren’t so attractive for the eyes of the fan.
“But I do everything to secure the win. That was the main problem – I didn’t have finishes in the fight.”
What’s next for Martin Buday?
Now that the dust has settled from receiving the news, Buday has began to consider the next moves for his career.
He explained: “I’m a little bit better 1754397488, I have some offers from other promotions from all around the world. I’m thinking [about] what’s next for me and will decide in the near future.”
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Buday was on a bright winning run but will now need to fight elsewhereCredit: Zuffa LLC
Prior to signing with the UFC, Buday had fought under the Oktagon banner until 2021, where he held the heavyweight title.
There has also been interest from the PFL in acquiring his services and given his recent winning streak, he will be in demands.
And the 33-year-old could be keen on returning to his roots, to boost his chances of being brought back to the UFC.
Buday said: “I like the interest from PFL, and also Oktagon MMA, where I was champion before the UFC.
“They’re doing incredible things and are No. 1 in Europe right now. Expanding big. Doing stadiums. Big promotion, and good for them.”