diff --git a/common/network-common/src/main/java/org/apache/spark/network/client/TransportResponseHandler.java b/common/network-common/src/main/java/org/apache/spark/network/client/TransportResponseHandler.java
index 2f143f77fa4ae..3aac2d2441d2a 100644
--- a/common/network-common/src/main/java/org/apache/spark/network/client/TransportResponseHandler.java
+++ b/common/network-common/src/main/java/org/apache/spark/network/client/TransportResponseHandler.java
@@ -188,6 +188,7 @@ public void handle(ResponseMessage message) throws Exception {
       if (listener == null) {
         logger.warn("Ignoring response for RPC {} from {} ({} bytes) since it is not outstanding",
           resp.requestId, getRemoteAddress(channel), resp.body().size());
+        resp.body().release();
       } else {
         outstandingRpcs.remove(resp.requestId);
         try {