New Delhi: Former two-time bantamweight champion announced his retirement from fighting on Thursday after suffering a shoulder injury. Dominick Cruz was expected to fight one last time and had booked his retirement fight. He was scheduled to face Rob Font at UFC Fight Night on Feb. 22 but was forced out of the bout due to the injury. The news of his latest injury came on Wednesday and a day later the 39-year-old announced his retirement from fighting.
He posted a tweet on X stating that He has poured every ounce of himself into this sport for the last 25 years and was really hopeful for one final fight but unfortunately, two shoulder dislocations in 8 months calls an end to his career.
“I gave everything I had and put it into preparation and training for this fight —focusing on my cardio and my body for the past year. But sometimes, the body just doesn’t cooperate. This sport has been everything to me—it’s helped to shape who I am. ” he wrote on X.
He further stated that the pain isn’t that bad now as his shoulder is back in place but the second dislocation was far more complicated than the first one.
To the fans worldwide,
I have poured every ounce of myself into this sport for the last 25 years. I was really hopeful for one final fight but unfortunately, two shoulder dislocations in 8 months calls an end to this guy’s career.
I gave everything I had and put it into… pic.twitter.com/2X5fB6NXnZ
— Dominick Cruz (@DominickCruz) February 6, 2025
Dominick Cruz’s career
He will be remembered as a pioneer in MMA specifically in the lower weight classes. He won the 2010 WEC 135-pound championship and also became the UFC’s first bantamweight champion in 2011. He was known for his trademark style and volume striking. Cruz defended his UFC title twice against Urijah Faber and Demetrious Johnson. He suffered a knee and groin injury which forced him to vacate his title in 2016.
Injuries became part of Cruz’s career and his ability to win the title in 2016 became his best achievement. He also earned one final shot at UFC gold against Henry Cejudo in 2020 but fell short of the title. He is one of the greatest bantamweight of all time along with Merav Dvalishali, Aljamain Sterling and TJ Dillashaw.
Former two-time bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz announced his retirement from fighting on Thursday after suffering a injury. UFC Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
