The UFC roster purge is not slowing down. Dana White‘s Contender Series returns for its 2026 run on August 11, and a new wave of hungry prospects is trying to punch its way into the promotion. However, as some fighters compete for a spot in the biggest MMA promotion in the world, others are finding out they no longer have one.

According to UFC Roster Watch, six fighters have been axed from the UFC roster. Basically, the promotion is creating room, and a few familiar faces got caught in the shuffle. The most prominent name on the list is none other than Jessie Rosas, the older brother of UFC bantamweight standout Raul Rosas Jr.

‘Tachidito’ was scheduled to make his UFC debut against Miles Johns at UFC Vegas 120 last Saturday. However, his much-anticipated debut fell apart just one day before the event when he was pulled from the fight due to medical reasons.

The 23-year-old later explained that doctors initially suspected the spot on his forehead to be herpes. However, it was eventually found to be a mat burn, but it was too late to save his fight. His brother Raul Rosas Jr. had earlier expressed his frustration with the situation, while Jessie himself apologized to fans after being forced out.

And unfortunately for the featherweight, this wasn’t the first time he had to pull out of a big fight at the last minute. He earlier withdrew from his Fury FC 102 main event versus John Yannis only minutes before it began.

Jessie Rosas had joined the UFC with an 8-1 professional record and a three-fight win streak. Two of those victories had been via stoppage, giving him plenty of momentum as he prepared for his promotional debut.

Instead, he never got to enter the Octagon.

The Rosas family has three siblings who compete in MMA, and Jessie hoped to finally join Raul on the UFC roster. Now, he will have to work his way back to the promotion, if at all that’s possible.

After all, the UFC has shown recently that it isn’t particularly sentimental when it comes to roster decisions. Michel Pereira’s UFC career ended last month after a unanimous decision loss to Sharaputdin Magomedov at UFC Baku.

‘Demolidor’ was 10-6 inside the Octagon and received seven post-fight bonuses during his UFC career. To make the optics worse, his release came shortly after he publicly lambasted referee Herb Dean for his poor officiating in his loss. So, it was no surprise that former UFC champion Alex Pereira questioned the promotion’s decision to cut him.

Now, with Jessie Rosas, six more fighters have found themselves on the outside looking in.

Total six fighters removed as UFC continues roster cleanup

Hailey Cowan’s departure is perhaps the least surprising of the six. After all, the fighter recently announced her retirement from MMA after struggling to establish herself in the UFC. The bantamweight finishes the promotion with a 0-4 record.

Bekzat Almakhan is another bantamweight fighter whose release is not very surprising. The Kazakh fighter is 1-3 in his four UFC fights. He did face some tough competition, but with most UFC contracts lasting four fights, Almakhan’s tenure had likely reached its natural conclusion, with the UFC seemingly deciding not to renew it.

Cody Gibson is the most experienced fighter of the six. The 38-year-old American finished 3-8 in his UFC career and is now on a three-fight losing streak. Gibson’s 2023 fight against Brad Katona was named Fight of the Night, but his recent slump made his status on the roster increasingly difficult to defend.

Shayilan Nuerdanbieke is possibly a more intriguing case. The Chinese featherweight finished 3-3 in six UFC fights, winning one as an underdog. However, he hadn’t competed since June 2024, when he lost against Melquizael Costa. There were also reports that ‘Wolverine’ had planned to leave the promotion, which made his removal less surprising.

But while his exit seems intentional, Stewart Nicoll’s UFC record paints a harsher picture. The Solomon Islands-Australian fighter went 0-4 in his four UFC fights. He faced some strong competition, but four consecutive losses at the top level left little opportunity for the promotion to justify keeping him around.

Then there’s Jessie Rosas, and his reported departure is the most frustrating of the six fighters. Because unlike the others, Rosas never got the opportunity to prove his abilities inside the UFC. And the question now is whether the UFC will give him another chance.

With the Contender Series back and a new crop of competitors vying for contracts, the UFC has limited space. For Jessie Rosas, the quickest way back may involve proving once again that he deserves to be there. And considering he never actually got his chance to make a first impression, there may still be unfinished business between ‘Tachidito’ and the UFC.