Fabricio Werdum lost UFC broadcasting gig after speaking out against Reebok deal

UFC fighters may be free to negotiate sponsorship deals outside the cage, but it appears there are clear repercussions to aggressively speaking out against the promotion’s exclusive apparel deal with Reebok.

Earlier this week, former heavyweight champ and No. 3 ranked fighter in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA heavyweight rankings Fabricio Werdum (21-6-1 MMA, 9-3 UFC) posted a a photo on Instagram with the message, “I’m not generic, I’m Nike since I was a kid.” Following the message was a pair of hashtags that roughly translate to “suck my balls.”

He followed up by stating he was currently in negotiations with Nike for an outside-the-cage sponsorship deal.

Now, Werdum said in a video on Instagram, he has been removed from his duties as a Spanish-language commentator.

“I’m here to clarify the controversy from the other day, because I posted a picture on Instagram and really nothing happened because I don’t have a contract with Reebok in everyday life, only on fight night,” Werdum said in the video. “So I don’t have anything against them. But I don’t think it’s fair because before Reebok came in I made $100,000, $150,000, even $200,000, and now I’m making only $5,000 per fight, which is not fair.

“So now I’m here to protest and explain what happened. I wasn’t fined because I don’t have a contract, but they removed me from the UFC broadcasts as a commentator. For three years, in which I did an excellent job, always worked very well with my partners, it was considered the best broadcast in Spanish in the world. I’m not happy, I thought it was absurd and wanted you to know. Thanks, guys.”

While his phrasing led some to believe he had been suspended from his duties for three years, Werdum confirmed to MMAjunkie he had been removed from his commentator duties completely.

Werdum is set to face No. 2-ranked Cain Velasquez (14-2 MMA, 12-2 UFC) at UFC 207, which takes place Dec. 30 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on FS1 and UFC Fight Pass.

A win over Velasquez puts him in position to rematch Stipe Miocic, the man who took the title from him at UFC 198. However, it appears the promotion is not thrilled with the Brazilian’s recent decision to speak out against the Reebok deal.

For more on UFC 207, check out the UFC Rumors section of MMAjunkie.