Shakur Stevenson released by Zuffa Boxing without a fight, Dana White says

UFC CEO Dana White said he offered the undefeated boxer his release himself, after a rumoured showdown with Devin Haney never came together, and insisted there is no bad blood between the two sides.

By Combat Sports UK Staff · Published Sun 25 Oct, 18:09 UK · AI-assisted reporting

Post by @ringmagazine on X

Shakur Stevenson has left Zuffa Boxing without fighting once for the promotion, and UFC CEO Dana White says the exit came at his own offer.

Stevenson's signing was widely considered the biggest addition to the Zuffa Boxing roster since the organisation launched. Unbeaten and regarded as one of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the sport, he was immediately linked with a showdown with Devin Haney. That fight did not come together, and no other matchup was made before the two sides parted.

Speaking at the UFC 333 post-fight press conference, White said he had offered Stevenson's team the release and they had accepted. He pointed to how little the relationship had produced, saying: “We never even did one fight with the guy.” He added that the two sides had only been in business for a couple of months.

White said he had nothing bad to say about Stevenson or his team and declined to go into what had been attempted during their brief partnership. He said: “Listen, I’m not going to say anything negatively about him or we tried to do this or we tried to do that. We got to a position where we both agreed we were cool with the release.”