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The UFC has released two of its most popular heavyweight fighters.
Alistair Overeem and Junior Dos Santos were recently informed by the promotion that they were being released, sources confirmed with ESPN.
Dos Santos broke the news himself on his Instagram account, while MMA Junkie first reported Overeem’s release.
UFC officials subsequently confirmed the releases with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto.
Overeem had two fights left on his contract, while Dos Santos had five, sources say.
Overeem, a former UFC heavyweight title challenger who previously won the Strikeforce and DREAM heavyweight, as well as the K-1 kickboxing World Grand Prix, recently suffered a knockout loss to Alexander Volkov in February. The loss snapped his two-fight winning streak.
Dos Santos, a former UFC heavyweight champion, lost his fourth straight fight in December when he was defeated via TKO by Cyril Gane.
According to sources close to Dos Santos, he was recently offered a short-notice fight against Marcin Tybura at UFC 260 on March 29. After Dos Santos declined the fight due to not having enough time to prepare, the promotion ultimately decided to part ways with him, sources say.
In his Instagram post, Dos Santos, 37, hinted that he would continue to fight. Overeem, 40, has yet to comment on his future.