Carla Esparza, a former two-time UFC strawweight champion, decided to retire after her upcoming fight at UFC 307 due to the physical demands of the sport, the challenges of balancing motherhood, and a desire to leave on her own terms while still being considered one of the top fighters.
Carla Esparza had a feeling her career was nearing its end, even before she defended her UFC strawweight title against Zhang Weili in 2022.
The former two-time UFC champion announced that her return fight against Tecia Pennington at UFC 307 would be her final UFC appearance. But retirement was already on her mind long before she took the past two-plus years off to start a family with her husband.
Esparza’s MMA career dates back to 2010, and her wrestling competitions go back even further. She felt it was the right time to hang up her gloves for good.
“This decision took a lot of thought,” Esparza told MMA Fighting. “I always said that when this sport stopped being fun for me and I lost my passion, that would be the time to hang it up. But that hasn’t happened.
I still go to training hungry to learn. I’m still so passionate about learning and growing in this sport and evolving. It wasn’t that for me. It’s so many things.”
“I wish my body was where my mind is at. I think I’ve heard a lot of my teammates say once you hit 30 in the room, you start to feel it, and that’s definitely true.
I’ll be turning 37 the week after the fight, so it’s definitely put a lot of years on this car. The attention it takes to be a parent for me — and everyone does it differently — but I feel that being a parent is the most selfless thing I’ve ever done.
Being a fighter is the most selfish thing I’ve done. The focus is all on me and what do I need to do to be the best and whatever. That’s the No. 1 for me. Now, priorities have just changed a little bit.”
Esparza always intended to have children, but the birth of her son changed her perspective on fighting.
There was also the non-stop pace required to stay active in the UFC — months in training camp, fight, take a little time off, then start again. That’s harder with a baby at home.
For Esparza, it’s important to be present as a parent. “I’m really enjoying just being home with my son,” she said.
“I feel very fortunate to be able to be here for all the little moments and appreciate them. For me, it’s been a cycle of fight, rest, get back to training — it’s kind of been like a cycle, but a little bit different with pregnancy and everything.”
“Since we decided to start a family, I’ve been like a year-and-a-half in the making for this fight. I never stopped lifting weights, moving around, running.
I was doing my physical therapy because labor and pregnancy are big hits on your body. Just like any big injury, slowly building myself back to being in the best shape and mental place I can whenever I chose to fight again.”
Esparza understood the wear and tear from training and fighting would eventually catch up, more evident after giving birth.
That played a deciding factor in timing her retirement in October.
“It’s been in the works since even before my last fight,” Esparza explained. “I knew that potentially my last fight could have been my last fight ever.
I really wanted to come back, but there’s a lot of stuff that happens with women’s bodies during pregnancy and labor. People can have traumatic experiences.”
“So I didn’t know what the future held, but I had to be mentally ready to let it go if needed. I knew I wanted one or two more fights. Turns out this last fight makes sense for me just to do one more.”
Considering she was a champion in her most recent UFC appearance, Esparza never doubted she could still compete with the best at 115 pounds.
But she also knows fighters often don’t know when to retire — many legends leave on their backs rather than walking out on their own feet.
“We’ve seen it time and time again; the sport forces you out,” Esparza said. “You have devastating loss after devastating loss. Honestly, I’ve seen many heroes fighting over the years; it’s hard to watch.
I never wanted to be that for my fans. We all lose and have bad losses; I’ve been finished and come back. My body isn’t putting me out where I’m plummeting downhill.
I still think I have some fight left in me, but being older means longer recovery times and preparation for each session to avoid injury; it’s a lot.”
“I wish I could show up to training and leave, but commitment at this level demands smart training. It’s a lot.
I don’t want to half-ass this sport. If I do it, I want to be all-in and give this sport the attention and time it deserves.”
After informing UFC she was ready for another fight and about her pending retirement, Esparza appreciated getting the chance at UFC 307 rather than UFC APEX.
Because she announced this as her final fight, Esparza plans on leaving everything in the cage and walking away on her terms.
“I don’t want to get pushed out,” Esparza said. “This is a natural progression. Nobody can stay on top forever, but going out on my terms rather than being forced by injury or bad performance is nice.
“I didn’t want to go out like that. I wanted to go out still seen as one of the top fighters.”