Longtime UFC heavyweight Ben Rothwell released, match vs. Alexander Gustafsson scratched

After 17 appearances under the Ultimate Fighting Championship banner, heavyweight vet Ben Rothwell’s time with the promotion has come to an unexpected end.

At the  UFC Fight Night event on May 21 headlined by Holly Holm vs. Ketlen Vieira, Alexander Gustafsson and Rothwell were going to square off on the main card. On Thursday, plans changed, as the automated Twitter account UFCRoster Watch first noted that Rothwell had been released from the organization. Following this post, the UFC confirmed to MMA Fighting Rothwell’s release for currently unknown reasons, despite his May booking.

Rothwell made his UFC debut back in 2009 when he took on future champ Cain Velasquez at UFC 104. Falling victim to Velasquez’s ruthless ground-and-pound, and then losing two of his next four after that defeat, the man once known as “Big Ben” finally notched a signature win when he beat Brandon Vera in 2013. Following his knockout of “The Truth,” Rothwell failed a post-fight drug test for elevated testosterone, but the win still remained on his record. Coming back a year later, Rothwell destroyed Alistair Overeem, Matt Mitrione and Josh Barnett in the span of less than 17 months.

The win over Barnett may have been his signature victory as a UFC fighter, as he became the first and only man in MMA competition to submit “The Warmaster.” A trio of decision losses to Junior dos Santos, Blagoy Ivanov and Andrei Arlovski sent Rothwell tumbling down the rankings, with another failed drug test keeping him on the shelf for over two years in that stretch. While the International Fight League vet had won three of his last five, the undisclosed reason for his sudden release proved more significant than his recent results.

Gustafsson faced former champ Fabricio Werdum in his first trip up to heavyweight, where he fell victim to a Werdum armbar in the midpoint of the first round. “The Mauler” considered returning to 205 pounds, even accepting a match with Paul Craig in 2021, only to withdraw due to injury shortly before the card took place. This left the Allstars Training Center product with a choice to make, and he decided to remain at heavyweight instead of making the weight cut as he advanced in age. It is unclear if Gustafsson will receive a new opponent for this event or if he will be booked at a later date.

The UFC Fight Night card on May 21 will likely go down inside the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Capping off the night’s festivities will be a bantamweight showdown between former champ Holly Holm and Ketlen Vieira. Additional noteworthy matchups include a welterweight scrap pitting Santiago Ponzinibbio against Michel Pereira, a light heavyweight tilt between Jailton Almeida and Maxim Grishin, and a featherweight fight when Chase Hooper takes on Felipe Dias Colares.