The UFC has released Ismael Bonfim. SB Nation reported the move on Monday, October 12, two days after the Brazilian lightweight missed weight at UFC Vegas 122 in Las Vegas and lost by first-round stoppage to Francisco Prado. It was the third time in his UFC career that Bonfim failed to make weight.
A weigh-in miss of more than seven pounds
On Saturday, October 10, Bonfim stepped on the scale for UFC Vegas 122 at 163.5 pounds (74.2 kg), 7.5 pounds (3.4 kg) over the 156-pound (70.8 kg) non-title lightweight limit. Francisco Prado agreed to take the fight at a catchweight rather than see it scrapped. Under UFC rules, Bonfim forfeited 25 percent of his purse to his opponent for missing his contracted weight.
Two other fighters on the card, Ketlen Souza and Brendson Ribeiro, also missed weight and each gave up 20 percent of their purses to their opponents, according to the promotion’s official weigh-in results. In all three cases, the UFC let the bouts proceed at a catchweight rather than scrap them, as long as the affected opponent agreed to the new terms.
A quick finish for Prado
The fight did not last long. Prado took Bonfim down, got on top, and landed a string of ground strikes, mostly left hands. Bonfim turned toward his knees and curled up without escaping. The referee stepped in at 4 minutes, 23 seconds into the first round.
The loss extended Bonfim’s skid to four straight stoppage defeats inside the Octagon, following three consecutive losses by finish that had already put his roster spot in question. For Prado, the win snapped a four-fight losing streak, an immediate turnaround sparked by his opponent’s missed weigh-in.
A pattern of missed weigh-ins
Bonfim had missed weight twice before this latest miss. In November 2023, at UFC Sao Paulo, he weighed in 3.5 pounds (1.6 kg) over the limit against Vinc Pichel, who declined a catchweight, forcing the bout to be scrapped entirely. In November 2025, at UFC Vegas 111, he came in 5 pounds (2.3 kg) over the limit against Chris Padilla, who agreed to fight anyway and went on to win by decision.
Each missed weight came with a different consequence, from a cancelled bout to a forfeited purse, yet none of them stopped the promotion from continuing to book him until this past weekend in Las Vegas.
Bonfim entered the UFC after earning a contract on Dana White’s Contender Series, carrying an 18-3 record into the promotion. He leaves the UFC at 2-5, having won two of his first three fights in the organization before dropping four in a row. His brother, Gabriel Bonfim, remains ranked fifth in the UFC welterweight division, with a record of 20 wins and one loss.
Bonfim vows to come back
Before his release was confirmed, Bonfim posted a message on social media. “My story doesn’t end here,” he wrote, adding there were “no excuses, no shame, and certainly no reason to give up.” He said a fighter’s worth is not decided by one result and that he is keeping faith in what comes next.
The UFC has not issued an official statement on the release, which SB Nation reported before several other combat sports outlets picked it up. It remains to be seen whether Bonfim lands a contract with another promotion or returns to the Brazilian regional circuit, where he built most of his record before joining the UFC.
A departure few found surprising
By the time Saturday’s weigh-in results circulated, fan comments collected by EssentiallySports were already calling for Bonfim’s release. “He needs to be cut asap!” one comment read, while another called the pattern “wild,” noting it was his third missed weight. Others questioned why he kept getting booked despite the repeated incidents.
Bonfim’s brother, Gabriel, had described a much smaller weight discrepancy in a video posted on social media, a figure that does not match the 3.4 kg gap recorded at the official weigh-in. The UFC has not publicly addressed that discrepancy, and the promotion based its financial penalties for all three fighters who missed weight that night on its own official scale figures rather than on any account offered by a fighter’s camp.
