UFC CEO Dana White rarely hands out second chances, and when he does, it’s a rare occurrence. For instance, take undefeated UFC flyweight contender Muhammad Mokaev. Despite his flawless record in the promotion, White cut Mokaev last year. UFC officials later admitted that handling the situation behind the scenes proved challenging, which highlights the harsh reality that nothing in the MMA business comes guaranteed.
Consequently, Mokaev has repeatedly tried to repair his relationship with the Dana White & Co., appealing for a return—but White turned him down, highlighting just how unpredictable a career in the sport can be. In contrast, UFC featherweight Julian Erosa, a true knockout artist, has battled his way back into the promotion—not once, but three times. Now 36, he remains active in the division, even after a setback against Melquizael Costa in May.
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Inside Julian Erosa’s fight to reclaim his UFC dream
Recently, Julian Erosa sat down with Andrew Whitelaw of EssentiallySports for an exclusive interview. The UFC veteran received a warm welcome and earned praise as one of the promotion’s “most entertaining” fighters. Whitelaw asked: “You fought on the Contender Series, tough in the UFC, won titles around the world, fought in Cage Warriors. Which of those means the most to you personally? Or is there a fight, a moment, or a span of your career that stands out—something that really means the most to you?”
With 43 fights under his belt, ‘Juicy J’ didn’t single out any specific UFC or Cage Warriors bout. Instead, he said: “I would say—I mean, all my fights are part of my journey. So they’re all a piece of that, and, you know, I enjoy them to a certain degree. But the one that really stands out the most to me was when I got my job back with the UFC.” Julian Erosa’s UFC career has taken him on a rollercoaster ride. He currently sits at 10-8 in the promotion, with eight losses in 18 bouts—enough to get cut at one point.
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Reflecting on his journey, ‘Juicy J’ recalled: “I had been cut from the UFC twice before—done the Ultimate Fighter, the Contender Series—so at that point in my life, I thought maybe fighting in the UFC wasn’t going to be a realized dream for me anymore. But I took that fight, got back in there, and I’ve had 12 fights since then. So, yeah, it worked out pretty well for me.”
Erosa first cracked the UFC through Dana White’s Contender Series and The Ultimate Fighter: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber. He won his debut—but a loss to Teruto Ishihara in 2016 sent him packing. Fast forward to 2019: back in the mix, he suffered defeats to Grant Dawson and Julio Arce, landing him outside the promotion once again. Most fighters might have faded—but not Erosa.
Determined to fight his way back, he returned to face Devonte Smith at UFC Fight Night: The Korean Zombie vs. Rodríguez, only to be knocked out in the first round. He didn’t let that define him. His next challenge came against Grant Dawson on March 9, 2019, where a unanimous decision loss led to yet another release.
Undeterred, Julian Erosa returned once more to face Julio Arce on May 18, 2019, at UFC Fight Night 151, only to suffer a third-round knockout and face release again. But in the summer of 2020, Dana White and the Dana White & Co. finally brought Julian Erosa back into the promotion, giving him another chance to prove himself.
TUF 22 fighters reflect on Dana White’s strategy to build Conor McGregor’s stardom
Conor McGregor didn’t just fight—he dominated the global spotlight. At the UFC Fight Night 46 weigh-in, 13,000 fans packed the arena just to watch him step on the scale. Every stare, every line, every viral moment made him more than a fighter. As an Irishman, he carried his nation’s pride into the octagon, lifting the UFC into the global spotlight it enjoys today. Yet McGregor’s peak also highlights a current problem for the promotion: true superstar power is in short supply.
Dana White and the UFC rode the wave expertly. At the height of Conor McGregor’s era, they pushed his hype to the maximum, turning every fight into a must-watch event. But that strategy drew criticism. During the build-up to UFC 229, White pushed McGregor to his limits, and Khabib Nurmagomedov accused the promotion of deliberately stoking their rivalry.
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TUF 22 alum Julian Erosa pulled back the curtain in a recent interview with ESPN’s Andrew Whitelaw. “ It always seemed like the production would put Faber and Conor in spots for a couple of minutes with awkward silences to see if they would kind of trip back and forth because they would be like…So they would sit us in the back, ready to walk out, but they’d say, ‘All right, we’re going to sit here for five minutes. We’ll walk out in five minutes when we’re all ready.’ I was just thinking in my head, They’re just having us stand here for five minutes. Then Conor would say something, Faber would respond, and they’d kind of chip back and forth.”
Now, years later, the hype machine isn’t done. McGregor is gearing up for his long-awaited return next year, and the question on every fan’s mind: after years away, can he ignite the same frenzy he once commanded? Drop your predictions below.