The ever-changing Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) roster has shed another layer, including one member of the most famous family in fighting. Kron Gracie, Hakeem Dawodu, and Connor Matthews have each been removed from UFC active’s roster, meaning they have been released from their respective contracts and/or the promotion decided not to extend them.
Social media account Borrachinha Depot broke the news on Thursday night.
Hakeem Dawodu, Kron Gracie, and Connor Matthews removed from the UFC active roster.
— Borrachinha Depot (@FullContactMTWF) June 6, 2025
Though he’s arguably not the most accomplished, Gracie is surely the most famous of the trio. The 36-year-old Brazilian is a legend in jiu-jitsu, and his MMA career started with some promise, defeating the likes of Tatsuya Kawajiri and Alex Caceres. Unfortunately, a one-sided beatdown at the hands of Cub Swanson severely halted his momentum in 2019.
Since then, he competed just twice, losing to both Charles Jourdain and Bryce Mitchell. The latter bout ended in a brutal slam KO and cost Gracie his chance at winning the “Flattest Motherf—ker Belt.”
Dawodu, conversely, fought inside the Octagon 10 times, building up a 6-4 record in that span. There was a moment where “Mean” gathered a serious bit of momentum by winning five straight fights, including solid wins of Zubair Tukhugov and Julio Arce. The Muay Thai specialist really appeared to be on the road to becoming a contender when he ran into Movsar Evloev in June 2021, who thoroughly controlled him on the canvas.
Since then, Dawodu only fought three times, losing two of three to Julian Erosa and Cub Swanson. The latter defeat was an extremely controversial decision loss, but Dawodu’s off the roster anyway. Likely, it has to do with his time outside the cage, as that “Killer Cub” loss came nearly two years ago.
Finally, Connor Matthews fought in the UFC three times and lost all three bouts via stoppage. Most recently, the Contenders Series signee suffered a first round rear naked choke loss to Yadier del Valle.
