Nicco Montano’s time with the UFC has come to an abrupt end.
MMA Fighting revealed on Tuesday that Montano has been cut from the promotion. This coming hours after UFC President Dana White shared his thoughts on Montano’s recent weight troubles that saw yet another one of her bouts canceled.
“I don’t know off the top of my head, but over three or four of her fights have been canceled,” White told MMA Junkie. “I think no matter what weight class you put her at, she seems to have a hard time making weight. This might not be the sport for her.”
Nicco Montano was scheduled to compete in a bantamweight tilt with China’s Wu Yanan this past Saturday night at UFC Vegas 33. Unfortunately, the 32-year old Syndicate MMA product came in seven pounds over their 136-pound weight limit on Friday — thus resulting in the bout’s cancelation. Montano cited metabolic issues as her reasoning for the miss.
Montano (4-3) joined the promotion through The Ultimate Fighter season 26 where she won her way to the finals with wins over Lauren Murphy, Barb Honchak, and Montana De La Rosa. In the finals, Montano defeated Roxanne Modafferi to become the inaugural UFC flyweight champion. Since then, she’s fought a single time in a losing effort to Julianna Pena at bantamweight — after being stripped of the title due to hospitalization during her weight cut for a title defense against Valentina Shevchenko.
In total, Montano’s UFC career ends with nine bout cancelations — six of which were consecutive and six of which were on her end.
The trailer for a new documentary highlighting Montano’s past weight struggles was released during UFC Vegas 33 fight week. The film titled Warrior Spirit is set to premiere on Aug. 6 at the Las Vegas Premiere Film Festival.