UFC middleweight Deron Winn released after ‘freak accident,’ fight cancellation

The UFC has released Deron Winn from its roster.

UFC Roster Watch on Twitter was first to report the release, which was then confirmed by Damon Martin of MMA Fighting.

“Being released after a freak accident on their property the week before Christmas,” wrote Winn on Twitter in response to his release. “Man, ‘it’s business not personal’ has never been more real.”

The UFC middleweight was scheduled to fight Julian Marquez at UFC Vegas 66 this past Saturday. However, Winn fainted at the UFC Performance Institute and sustained a mild concussion, which led to his removal from the Fight Night.

In his first post-cancelation comments, Winn expressed interest in rescheduling his fight against Marquez, but that is no longer an option after his release.

“I am devastated,” wrote Winn. “I have put so much work in these last couple months. I hope to rebook soon. Sorry to my opponent and sorry to all have invested into me this camp. I’m heartbroken. Love all.”

Winn joined the UFC in 2019 and debuted against Eric Spicely at UFC on ESPN+ 12, where he earned a unanimous decision in their ‘Fight of the Night’ awarded outing. The American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) product went on to lose his next two fights to Darren Stewart and Gerald Meerschaert at UFC Boston and UFC 248, respectively.

He returned to the win column with a unanimous decision over Antônio Arroyo, but failed to maintain his momentum and suffered a second-round TKO loss to Phil Hawes. Winn underwent surgery on a broken orbital after his loss to Hawes and was expected to return to the Octagon before the ‘freak accident’.

Winn went 2-3 in his UFC tenure.