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Marc RaimondiESPN
It didn’t take long for John Lineker to find a new home.
Just six days after news broke that Lineker had been released by the UFC, the Brazilian bantamweight has signed with Asia’s ONE Championship, his manager, Alex Davis, confirmed to ESPN on Monday.
MMA Fighting was first to report the news.
Lineker was cut by the UFC on the heels of his late-notice withdrawal from UFC Greenville last month. Lineker was scheduled to be in the co-main event against Rob Font but pulled out two days prior due to a cut — even though he was reportedly cleared by doctors to compete.
“The guy wasn’t being professional,” UFC president Dana White told TSN during UFC 239 fight week. “When you don’t make it to the Octagon, either, a bunch of times, it’s a waste of everybody’s time, energy and money. We expect guys to be professional, do what they’re supposed to do, show up. The matchmakers were done. They had it.”
Lineker (31-9) was coming off a loss but had won eight of his past 10 fights. Known for his exciting style, “Hands of Stone” was a three-time Fight of the Night winner in the UFC. Lineker, 29, was also a top contender at flyweight before moving up to bantamweight due to weight-cutting issues.
ONE Championship, based in Singapore, has made waves over the past few months, adding the likes of former UFC champions Demetrious Johnson and Eddie Alvarez and former blue-chip prospect Sage Northcutt, in addition to legend Vitor Belfort.