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10 UFC Stars Whose Next Fight Could Be Their Last
UFC stars. Photo via USA Today Sports
MMA is a young man’s game. Like it or not, the UFC roster has a bunch of popular fighters that are on the brink of retirement.
No one can be certain, but here’s 10 UFC stars that are likely to retire after their next fights!
Dustin Poirier
Photo via YouTube
- Age: 35
- Record: 30-9-1
- UFC title: Former lightweight interim champion
Lightweight fan-favorite Dustin Poirier has hinted at retirement for quite some time. After his recent loss in the title fight against Islam Makhachev ”The Diamond” claimed he didn’t know if he would ever fight again.
Jon Jones
Jon Jones. Photo via YouTube
- Age: 37
- Record: 27-1-1
- UFC title: Heavyweight champion, former light heavyweight champion
Perhaps the greatest MMA fighter to ever do it, Jon Jones really has nothing more to prove. If the fight against Stipe Miocic materializes he will most likely retire afterwards – win or lose – because he probably has no wish to face interim champion Tom Aspinall.
Nick Diaz
Nick Diaz. Photo via Instagram: (@nickdiaz209)
- Age: 40
- Record: 26-10-2
- UFC title: No
Few MMA fans and experts expected Nick Diaz to come back after his loss to Robbie Lawler in 2021. Diaz was scheduled to face Vicente Luque on August 3 at UFC on ABC 7, however, due to travel issues, the bout has been postponed to a later date.
If the fight in fact will be rescheduled, it’s very likely the last we will see of the legendary UFC fighter.
Israel Adesanya
Israel Adesanya med sin mästartitel. Foto: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
- Age: 35
- Record: 24-3
- UFC title: Former two-time middleweight champion
Israel Adesanya’s loss to Sean Strickland was one of the biggest upsets in the past few years. On August 18, he will rebound to take on Dricus du Plessis for the middleweight strap.
Since the once so dominant champion has hinted that he will retire sooner rather than later, it’s very likely that he will hang up his gloves for good if he loses against du Plessis.
Stipe Miocic
Photo: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
- Age: 41
- Record: 20-4
- UFC title: Former heavyweight champion
The only fight Stipe Miocic is likely to ever return for is a superfight against Jon Jones. If not, he’s already more or less retired.
Conor McGregor
Conor McGregor. Photo: Gary A. Vasquez – USA TODAY Sports
- Age: 36
- Record: 22-6
- UFC title: Former featherweight champion, former lightweight champion
Global superstar Conor McGregor was scheduled for his highly anticipated return in July, however, a broken toe stopped the comeback in its tracks. As for now, there is no word on a potential return to the cage.
The former two-division champion claims he wants to be active, but it’s uncertain if we will ever see McGregor back in the octagon again.
Valentina Shevchenko
Photo: via Instagram (@bulletvalentina) och Jerry Lai – USA TODAY Sports
- Age: 36
- Record: 23-4-1
- UFC title: Former flyweight champion
The once so dominant flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko will fight Alexa Grasso for the third time on September 14. If she fails to win back her belt, it’s not unlikely that the MMA pioneer will call it a day.
At this point of her career, Shevchenko might be unmotivated to fight for anything other than a UFC title.
Tony Ferguson
Tony Ferguson. Photo via YouTube
- Age: 40
- Record: 25-11
- UFC title: Former interim lightweight champion
Going from 12 straight wins to eight straight losses, the career of 40.year-old Tony Ferguson should probably have ended a few years back.
The welterweight loss against Michael Chiesa this past Saturday was most likely his final UFC fight. But never say never!
“I don’t want to retire. But I love the UFC and I don’t want to go anywhere else. So, I’m not going to put both gloves down. I’m going to put one. I’m going to keep the other one just in case,” Ferguson said after the fight.
Stephen Thompson
- Age: 41
- Record: 17-7-1
- UFC title: No
Striking specialist Stephen ”Wonderboy” Thompson has been around for more than a decade. Going 1-3 in his last couple of fights, we are probably seeing the final stage of an entertaining and successful career. At the moment, Thompson has no fight coming up.
Kamaru Usman
Kamaru Usman. Photo via UFC (Twitter)
- Age: 37
- Record: 20-4
- UFC title: Former welterweight champion
Besides three straight losses, former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman is still a top dog in the UFC’s stacked division. However, with five title defenses and a long run as an undefeated UFC fighter, what’s left to prove for the 37-year-old? If he decides to fight again, it might be the last we ever see of Usman.
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