Matt Riddle will not fight on this Friday’s Bellator 109 card.
In fact, he won’t fight for Bellator at all. Ever.
A recent report from Fox Sports’ Damon Martin neatly summarized the situation:
Bellator Director of Communications Anthony Mazzuca said this in a press release sent Tuesday:
Matt was a guy we had high hopes for coming into Bellator. After Matt suffered his rib injury and withdrew from our tournament, we went back to the drawing board and got Matt another fight on November 22. Unfortunately, Matt very recently informed us he would not be fighting on November 22 from Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and at that point we decided to release Matt from Bellator. We wish him the best in his future endeavors.
As Mazzuca alluded to, Riddle’s career has been anything but stable lately.
The 27-year-old former The Ultimate Fighter contestant was cut by the UFC in late February following a string of failed drug tests and questionable PR moves.
He was quickly scooped up by Legacy Fighting Championships, but he never stepped foot in their cage, as rival promotion Bellator bought out his contract and added him to their welterweight tournament.
His first matchup in the tournament was scheduled for Sept. 20 at Bellator 100, but he cracked a rib and withdrew from the fight and MMA altogether.
After reconsidering his “hissy fit,” however, Riddle un-retired and scheduled a new bout with Bellator, this time for Nov. 22 at Bellator 109 against Nathan Coy.
This bout, many thought, would revitalize Riddle’s career, as the event was scheduled to take place in Bethlehem, Pa., just minutes outside of Riddle’s hometown.
Nevertheless, Riddle’s series of unfortunate events continued, as he again withdrew his name from the night’s lineup, this time offering no reason for his actions.
Bellator, at this point, has apparently had enough of Riddle’s failure to deliver on his obligations, and they gave him the boot Tuesday, just three days before Bellator 109.
Stay tuned for updates regarding Riddle’s future as more details emerge.
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