Felice Herrig entered the octagon on Saturday against Karolina Kowalkiewicz at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas knowing that it could be her last fight. It all depended on how she felt in the fight.
Herrig was submitted by Kowalkiewicz via rear-naked choke late in the second round. Following the fight, Herrig removed her gloves and left them on the canvas signifying her retirement.
During the event’s post-fight press conference, an emotional Herrig explained her decision to retire form completion.
“I’ve known for a while that maybe my heart wasn’t in fighting anymore,” Herrig said. “I enjoyed the training process. I enjoyed everything about it. I had the two knee surgeries, and that was not the way I was going to go out in the sport. I wasn’t going to let an injury hold me back.
“I wanted to prove to myself, nobody else, just myself, that I could overcome two ACL surgeries and get back to being in the best shape of my life and come back and fight at the top level in the UFC. And I did that, but I also knew in the process that if I didn’t feel what I wanted to feel in the cage that I was going to retire.”
“I just realized this wasn’t for me anymore,” Herrig said. “I don’t know if I ever really loved it.”
Watch an emotional Herrig detail her grueling decision to leave the sport after two decades in combat sports.
Felice Herrig announces retirement following UFC Vegas 56 loss | Video
Felice Herrig UFC Vegas 56 Post-fight Press Conference Video
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An emotional Felice Herrig explains decision to retire: ‘this wasn’t for me anymore’ | Video
