The UFC Vegas 26 card for next Saturday received a sizable shakeup in the co-main event yesterday, when Diego Sanchez was forced to withdraw from his scheduled bout against Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone.

This fight was meant to be his final UFC bout after being on a downward spiral in recent fights, with the lone win in his last three bouts being a disqualification victory against Michel Pereira where Sanchez did not live up to his typical form.

This news was followed by Sanchez taking to his Instagram stories to state “FREE AT LAST, FREE AT LAST” and tagging basically every other major MMA promotion.

Not surprisingly, Dana White confirmed the news that Sanchez was released from the UFC.

This is apparently due to his incredibly controversial coach, Joshua Fabia. The self-proclaimed guru has a number of “unorthodox” practices, from chasing his students with a knife inside a locked cage and repeatedly criticizing the UFC broadcast team for not giving him a fair opportunity, in his opinion.

The specific incident that leads to Sanchez’s release involves him not being medically cleared for the event, as Sanchez did not meet the necessary protocols to compete.

This is a disappointing end to one of the most legendary UFC fighter’s career after sixteen years in the UFC. Sanchez won the inaugural season of the Ultimate Fighter and was the last remaining fighter from that season still competing. He challenged for the Lightweight title opposite BJ Penn and holds a place in the Hall of Fame for his war opposite Clay Guida.

Hopefully Sanchez can get back on the right track, whether that means retirement or finding another promotion to fight for.