Here’s a list of every notable retirement announced by fighters from the UFC, PFL, Bellator, and more in 2024.
(This story was updated to add new information.)
MMA is a constantly evolving sport with a revolving door of athletes entering and exiting. Currently, fighters from the era who helped make the sport so popular are beginning to trickle away from competition and hang up their gloves in order to move on to the next chapter in life.
If there’s one thing that’s well known about combat sports retirements, though, it’s that they often don’t last long. The urge to compete, and perhaps more importantly get a payday, will continue to drive fighters back even well beyond their expiration dates.
2024 has already seen a number of notable fighters announcing they are done with the sport, and we have a list of those who have opted to walk away this year (the list will update as new retirements are announced).
From TBI to mental health hospitalizations to debilitating injuries, 50+ former UFC fighters revealed why they need settlement payout
More than 50 former UFC fighters submitted letters of support for the proposed $375 million settlement agreement in the Le vs. Zuffa antitrust class-action lawsuit.
According to online records, the letters were filed Monday by plaintiffs as part of a memorandum in support of settling. The letters come 12 days after the agreement proposal was filed Sept. 26. News of the filings was first reported by journalist John Nash.
The proposed $375 million settlement comes less than two months after U.S. District Court judge Richard Boulware denied an initial proposal of $335 million, which also included Johnson vs. Zuffa under its umbrella. The current proposal is strictly for Le vs. Zuffa.
The letters
Many fighters who wrote letters painted a grim picture of life after fighting. Reoccurring themes include financial struggles, physical injuries, brain trauma concerns, and mental health problems. The fighters reiterated their preference for immediate financial relief rather than risk the outcome of a trial, which could benefit the fighters more lucratively or leave them with nothing.
“For me, a significant recovery in the near future is much more appealing than the possibility of a larger recovery several years from now, especially in light of the possibility that there would be no recovery at all if this settlement were not approved,” each letter read. “In my situation, a bird in the hand truly does beat two (or three, or even nine) in the bush.”
Among the most notable names is UFC Hall of Famer [autotag]Wanderlei Silva[/autotag], who stated concerns for traumatic brain injury (TBI) and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).
“While fighting for the UFC, I suffered many significant injuries, including concussions,” Silva wrote. “I fear that during my career I have suffered traumatic brain injury (TBI) and am noticing symptoms common with TBI and CTE including depression, mood swings, and irritability. To date, no treatment for CTE has been found. I suffer from sleep apnea and have difficulty sleeping and breathing.”
“The Ultimate Fighter, Season 1” winner [autotag]Diego Sanchez[/autotag] voiced similar worries about his health, including bouts of depression, and financial problems after his UFC career concluded.
“Increasingly, day to day survival is a struggle,” Sanchez wrote.
UFC heavyweight [autotag]Todd Duffee[/autotag] recalled 16 surgeries he had during his career but went into greater detail about the narrative he said the promotion crafted around him, likely referring to 2010 comments made by Dana White.
“Picture yourself at 25 in the most important job interview of your life,” Duffee wrote. “To have the interviewer question why your former employer at a fighting organization, believes you to have a bad attitude and to announce it is publicly causing them to express concern over this characterization— simply because you refused to fight while injured for a second time in a row after previously competing with a torn MCL and shingles in your eye.
“I am sure you can see how this mischaracterization has had quite an economic impact moving through my life. It has continued to haunt me and is weaponized against me in all kinds of business job settings stifling my potential for many opportunities.”
Shane Carwin
Former UFC interim heavyweight champion [autotag]Shane Carwin[/autotag] said he still struggles from the damage sustained during his six-fight stint with the promotion and can no longer focus on his day job.
“Cognitive tests conducted at the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for
Brain Health and Concussion Legacy Foundation at Boston University (among others) are indicating I have suffered damage to the pre-frontal cortex and left hemisphere,” Carwin wrote. “I spend days in bed suffering from bouts of paranoia, fear and anxiety.”
The list of other notables who submitted letters include [autotag]Matt Brown[/autotag], [autotag]Patrick Cote[/autotag], [autotag]Jon Fitch[/autotag], [autotag]Cung Le[/autotag], [autotag]Sage Northcutt[/autotag], and [autotag]Cat Zingano[/autotag], among others.
According to the recent filing, the total sum allotted to the plaintiffs (should Boulware approve) would be $375 million and would be paid in installments.
According to the proposed notice of class action settlement, each fighter’s payout will depend on two factors: the number of fights they had and the amount of money they earned from the UFC during the class window.
“The proposed Plan of Allocation can be summarized as follows,” the notice states. “Each Claimant will be allocated his or her share of the Net Le v. Zuffa Settlement Fund based upon two pro rata factors: (i) the total compensation each received from the UFC for participating in UFC bouts (i.e., the fighter’s Event Compensation) during the Class Period; and (ii) the total number of UFC bouts each fought during the Class Period. All Claimants will receive a minimum recovery amount of $15,000.”
What’s next?
Upon receiving the previous settlement proposal, Boulware denied it based on factors, including what he perceived to be a low payout, particularly given the initial asking amount by the plaintiffs.
It’s not yet known if Boulware will sign off on the new agreement. If Boulware denies the settlement and the case goes to trial, plaintiffs would need a unanimous jury verdict to win. Even with victory, the plaintiffs could be looking at years worth of appeals before seeing compensation.
Should Boulware approve this new agreement, the Johnson vs. Zuffa case will continue separately. The class in that case includes all fighters who competed in one UFC bout from July 1, 2017, to the present and seeks injunctive relief.
After a 28-fight career with the UFC, Matt Brown has retired from MMA. How will he be remembered? We discuss on “Spinning Back Clique.”
On this week’s episode of “Spinning Back Clique,” the panel reacts to [autotag]Matt Brown[/autotag]’s retirement from MMA.
Last week, the long-time UFC welterweight announced that he was hanging up the gloves – at least in terms of MMA. He later spoke to MMA Junkie where he explained the reasoning behind his retirement and left the door open for potential fights in BKFC, boxing or Karate Kombat.
MMA Junkie’s Matthew Wells, Dan Tom, Mike Bohn, and host Danny Segura react to Brown’s retirement, the likelihood of seeing him fight again, as well as the legacy he leaves behind in MMA.
Watch their discussion in the video above and also don’t miss this week’s complete episode of “Spinning Back Clique” below on YouTube or in podcast form.
On “Spinning Back Clique,” our panel discusses the results from UFC on ESPN 56, Matt Brown’s retirement in MMA, and much more.
Check out this week’s “Spinning Back Clique,” MMA Junkie’s weekly live show that takes a spin through the biggest topics in mixed martial arts.
This week’s panel of Matt Wells, Danny Segura, and Mike Bohn will join host “Gorgeous” George Garcia live at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) to discuss and debate the following topics:
UFC on ESPN 56 is in the books. It was a great night of fights in St. Louis that saw Derrick Lewis bounce back from defeat with a vicious knockout over Rodrigo Nascimento in the headlining act. The event also featured Joaquin Buckley’s fourth consecutive win at welterweight, Robelis Despaigne’s first professional loss, and much more. What do these results mean, and what’s next for the winners and losers? We break it all down.
Saturday’s event was one of the few UFC Fight Nights hosted outside the UFC Apex in 2024. There’s been a total of 16 UFC events this year and half of them have been hosted at the Apex – something that’s received criticism due to the lack of audience and atmosphere, along with the quality of the events themselves. UFC CEO [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] said at the UFC on ESPN 56 post-fight press conference the promotion plans to cut down on the amount of events it hosts at the Apex and looks to get on the road more. But will it happen, or more importantly, can it happen? We discuss.
[autotag]Matt Brown[/autotag], one of the most seasoned and beloved fighters today, decided to hang up the gloves this past week. The longtime UFC welterweight said he leaves with no hard feelings toward the promotion, but did admit it wasn’t the way he hoped to walk away from MMA. Brown also indicated he’s done with MMA, but wouldn’t rule out competing in combat sports.
Another weekend, another set of fights. They might not be the biggest cards, but the two best MMA promotions today are hosting events this weekend, with PFL’s Bellator Championship Series: Paris going down Friday and UFC Fight Night 241 on Saturday. We break down the main events for each card, along with other standout matchups.
Matt Brown thought he was going to a get dream MMA retirement scenario at UFC 300. Unfortunately, it didn’t happen that way.
[autotag]Matt Brown[/autotag] thought he would get a dream retirement scenario to end his MMA career. Unfortunately, it didn’t happen that way.
Brown announced Saturday that he was hanging up his UFC gloves after a 28-fight stint with the promotion in which he went 15-13 and racked up a number of notable records, including most knockout wins in the storied history of the welterweight division.
“The Immortal” hadn’t fought since May 2023 and was seriously mulling walking away for some time. However, he hung onto the idea that he could have one last dance on the monumental UFC 300 card last month in Las Vegas. Brown said he was expecting to get a contract to fight Jim Miller in what would be his retirement fight, but the promotion decided to book Miller against Bobby Green instead, and that marked the nail in the coffin for Brown’s decision.
“The only thing I was really holding off for was I thought I was going to get on UFC 300 and fight Jim Miller, and I was going to use that for my sendoff,” Brown told MMA Junkie Radio on Monday. “I was pretty dead set on that: I’m going to fight Jim Miller at UFC 300, this would be the most badass sendoff ever fighting such a legend like Jim Miller on the biggest card in UFC history, and they didn’t make it happen. So I was like, ‘Well, f*ck it then.’
“I’m not bitter by any means, but if there’s anything that rubbed me the wrong way it’s that I wasn’t able to get on 300, because that’s how I wanted to end it. I begged to get on 100. I begged to get on 200. I begged to get on 300. I was like, ‘Dude, haven’t I earned something yet.’ I tried everything I could, and I thought it was set in stone. I was literally training to fight Jim Miller. He said he wanted to fight me; I said I wanted to fight him. I thought all the cards were in place, and I thought it was going to be an easy call, and then it didn’t happen. It would’ve been the perfect sendoff for me. I’m sure UFC has their reasons, whatever they are.”
‘No bitterness’ toward UFC
Brown clarified that he has “no bitterness whatsoever” toward the UFC brass and emphasized he was treated well throughout his nearly 16-year tenure with the company. In fact, he was offered a fight against Max Griffin recently for an upcoming event, but by the time the proposal came through, he’d already mentally exited from the idea of competition.
“The UFC did make me an offer a few months ago for a fight,” Brown said. “I remember I woke up one morning and I saw the email, and my d*ck didn’t get hard. I didn’t get a feeling down my spine. I wasn’t excited. I was like, ‘Man, I could use that money. That’d be cool.’ But I just didn’t get fired up about it. That was probably the first thing. Then, secondly, (I’ve been) flipping houses and running a gym now. I have a good crew of people and staff in my gym. I really feel like I’m selling these people short because I’ve been fighting, and these businesses are not growing to the extent they could because I’m not putting that kind of energy into it.
“I’m just going for that quick buck, going and making money fighting. My guys in my gym have been with me for the six years I’ve owned it. They’ve gotten very small raises the whole time. I feel like I can make a lot more money, not only for myself but for them also. We have a lot of customers I don’t really get to hang out with and speak to. I just feel like I’m feeling a lot of people short, including my family. My children – the ability to be present with them and the ability to spend more time with them, things like that.”
May 13, 2023; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Matt Brown (red gloves) celebrates after defeating Court McGee (blue gloves) in a welterweight bout during UFC Fight Night at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports
Fighting outside of MMA?
At 43, Brown struggles to see a path back to fighting in his future, though he didn’t completely rule it out. The idea of fighting in the UFC is over, he said, and he’s already been withdrawn from the Drug Free Sport drug-testing pool.
Brown said he’s open to offers from non-MMA entities, but the dollars have to make sense.
“It’s not out of the question,” Brown said. “I’ve talked a little bit with those people (at BKFC). It’s not completely out of the question. Bareknuckle doesn’t excite me a ton because it’s just boxing with the hands, which doesn’t excite me a ton. But obviously I’m not going to turn down a big payday. I wish there was like a muay Thai promotion that would pay that kind of money, like a ONE Championship or something. That’s what makes me fired up the most is muay Thai. That’s what I love doing the most. I wouldn’t say it’s completely out of the question. But my mindset is not really in the fighting mindset right now. It’s really in the business mindset.
“If the number was right, and I don’t think any of these places will give me that number. If it was Floyd Mayweather or something and get $5 million, $6 million like, of course, I’m not going to turn that down. But anything under $1 million doesn’t even really make sense to me.”
UFC welterweight Matt Brown is hanging up the gloves after 30 career octagon appearances.
UFC welterweight [autotag]Matt Brown[/autotag] is hanging up the gloves after 30 career octagon appearances.
Brown (24-19 MMA, 17-13 UFC) took to social media on Saturday and announced he’s retiring from MMA competition following a nearly 19-year career that began with his October 2018.
According to “The Immortal,” who turned 43 in January and hasn’t fought since a first-round knockout of Court McGee at UFC on ABC 4 in May 2023, he is leaving active competition to focus on other ventures in his career (via X):
Not doing it again. I’m out. That’s the announcement. My life will now be dedicated to serving others. Growing others in the martial arts and building businesses that can help the community and the world. pic.twitter.com/lWxE1RLEK2
Not doing it again. I’m out. That’s the announcement. My life will now be dedicated to serving others. Growing others in the martial arts and building businesses that can help the community and the world.
Thanks to @danawhite and @ufc for giving me a platform to express myself and my brand but it is time to move on to bigger, better things!
Thanks to @danawhite and @ufc for giving me a platform to express myself and my brand but it is time to move on to bigger, better things!
Brown exits the sport with 13 career UFC knockouts, which are second-most all-time in company history behind Derrick Lewis (14).
The American also has 15 stoppage wins under the UFC banner, which are most in welterweight history and tied with Dustin Poirier for fourth-most in promotional history behind only Charles Oliveira (20), Jim Miller (18) and Donald Cerrone (16).
Brown, who joined the UFC roster in June 2008 following a stint on Season 7 of “The Ultimate Fighter” reality series, has notable wins on his resume including Stephen Thompson, Mike Swick, Tim Means and Diego Sanchez.
Check out a full recap of 2023’s most significant footnotes and milestones from the events, the fights and individual performances.
Now that the year has come to a close, and with a major assist from UFC research analyst and live statistics producers Michael Carroll, here are some of 2023’s most significant milestones from the events, the fights and individual performances.
That UFC 189 war between Robbie Lawler and Rory MacDonald was something else, wasn’t it?
Although the welterweight class in MMA is decently heavier than its contemporaries in other combat sports, it keeps in the tradition of offering a rich history of memorable battles.
Japanese organizations like Shooto have typically referred to fighters between 156-171 lbs. as “middleweights,” while the UFC’s 170-pound division dates back to the late 90s when the organization anointed its first welterweight champion, [autotag]Pat Militech[/autotag], at UFC 17.5 in Brazil.
Since then, the division has produced a slew of great fights and Hall of Fame fighters alike.
It’s impossible to properly pay homage to all the best bouts that have gone down at 170 pounds, so I’ll instead widdle down my list to my favorite welterweight wars.
Whether we’re talking about back-and-forth battles or brutally bloody affairs, I thought it would be fun to revisit some of my favorite fights from the weight class.
As usual, these lists reflect my personal tastes and biases and are not meant to serve as some ultimate authority. That said, I feel very strongly about not only my list but also my honorable mentions at the end – which are more than strong enough to serve as their own top five.
Matt Brown says it’s hard to respect Conor McGregor when he’s “drinking and getting coked up, or he’s juiced out of his mind.”
[autotag]Matt Brown[/autotag]’s opinion of the biggest star the MMA world has ever seen has dwindled in recent years.
Speaking on Michael Bisping’s YouTube channel, the UFC veteran Brown (24-19 MMA, 17-13 UFC) had some harsh words for Conor McGregor. Brown recognizes the heights McGregor has reached, but is confident in stating his best is now in the past – and perhaps by McGregor’s own doing.
“He’s a nobody, in my opinion,” Brown said. “He was amazing, I give him props for all that he did, but at this point he’s a bum.”
[lawrence-related id=2645449,2645162]
During the interview, Bisping and Anthony Smith stayed clear from criticizing the Irish superstar, but Brown doubled down.
“You can headline that, and it won’t be bullsh*t,” Brown said. “Conor, I think he’s lost like four or his last five. He hasn’t f*cking done nothing.
“Everything you see, it’s him drinking and getting coked up, or he’s juiced out of his mind. That’s f*cking bum life to me. All that money don’t make you not a bum. You’re still a bum to me, bro. When you step in the cage, you’re still a bum to me.”
Brown and McGregor have never been linked to fight, but they did have a recent in the interaction online.
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best knockouts from May 2023.
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best knockouts from May 2023: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Knockout of the Month award for May.
At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting for your choice.
