UFC Vice President of Public Relations, Athlete Marketing and Development Dave Sholler has confirmed that he’s leaving the promotion for a new job with the Philadelphia 76’ers.
Dana White first revealed the news last night during an episode of ‘TUF Talk’ on Fox Sports 1, stating that, ““Dave Sholler just announced that he’s leaving – another guy who I love and respect and loved working with – so yeah, it’s going to be different, but there’s a lot of good things going on.”
Sholler initially served as the WEC’s PR manager back in 2009 and was later absorbed into the UFC, where he began to take on an increasingly prominent role in the company, leading to him taking the lead role in place of Dana White at many press conferences in recent times.
However, he’s perhaps best remembered for being the unfortunate UFC official who was left with the unenviable task of trying (and failing) to keep Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier apart when their UFC 178 press conference staredown turned into an all-out brawl.
“As Dana just announced on @FS1, I’m heading home,” Sholler said on Twitter. “I’ve accepted a job w/ my hometown team, the @Sixers. This has been the ride of a lifetime.
“It’s time to go home, to the organization I grew up rooting for. Will miss fight game very, very much, but excited for the new challenge.
“Thank you ALL for the kind words. Amazing. Truly. Thank you. I’m closing this chapter with one final event: #UFC205.”
Sholler’s departure comes just a little over a month after WME-IMG officially took the reigns from Zuffa as the UFC’s new owners.
