Misha Cirkunov wasn’t out of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) for long, but the process wasn’t easy.
Last month, UFC President Dana White said that Cirkunov had “flaked” on a deal and therefore would not be brought back to the promotion. Less than a month later, White announced the UFC re-signed Cirkunov.
For the Latvian bruiser, the short time away from the UFC was tense. He told TSN (via MMAJunkie.com) that his inexperience in dealing with the UFC brass played a part in the initial turmoil:
“It was a rough couple weeks in terms of re-signing and all that. There were no hard feelings; it was business. I was dealing with it as a manager and not a fighter. … It’s a little bit nerve-racking in terms of you don’t know what to expect. It was my first time dealing with Dana White and (UFC matchmaker) Mick Maynard, and they’ve been in the game for a really long time. I’ve been in the game a long time, but as an athlete. I’ve never really seen the managing side. I still had an idea what to expect because I did have deals before. I used to own my own gym, I’m running a couple gyms now myself. I knew what to expect a little bit, but it was a nervous couple weeks because I didn’t have a job.”
