‘I Hated Every Minute Of It’

“I hated it. I hated every minute of it. I didn’t want to be there. I didn’t want to fight. I didn’t enjoy [it]. That was the first fight where I legitimately didn’t enjoy a single moment of it.”

Jessica-Rose Clark is moving on to the next chapter in her combat sports career.

A six-year journey in Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) came to an end for Australia’s “Jessy Jess” in May 2023, but she wishes it had been sooner. Suffering a third-consecutive submission loss after she was forced to tap to a rear-naked choke against Tainara Lisboa, Clark had finally fought out her promotional contract.

Australia’s Clark made an instant impression by getting to debut in the Octagon at home on short notice against Bec Rawlings, winning the fight via split decision. The Flyweight return kickstarted a brief run in the division’s top 10 before she ultimately found herself back at Bantamweight where she not only finished her UFC career, but her time in mixed martial arts (MMA) overall.

“It’s kind of mixed emotions about it because I always knew that after the Lisboa fight, I was done,” Clark told MMA Mania of her MMA retirement. “Regardless of how that went. I’ve known for a long time before that that the end of that contract was gonna be it. I obviously was hoping I would be able to close out on a win. I think that’s the only thing that I’m disappointed about was that I didn’t really get to end it the way I wanted to.

“I kind of had the realization after all that happened that had I won and we started talking about a new deal and I got a pay bump, I probably would have taken it and then been stuck and been in the same position I’d been in for the last few years,” she continued. “Which was obligated to do something that I just don’t have any love for anymore.”

Clark, 35, believes in the end that it was for the best for her not to get a win in her final UFC fight. Otherwise, she may not have gotten the opportunity to compete in striking-based matches like her upcoming return bout in her Muay Thai debut against Karen Cedillo at Lion Fight 75 this weekend (Sat., Sept. 23, 2023).

Physically, Clark is feeling healthier than she has in recent years by cutting out her grappling training. After her first Muay Thai match, the Cairns native plans to box at some point. She’s just happy to get back to enjoying her time inside a fight enclosure.

“I hated it. I hated every minute of it,” Clark said of her final MMA fight. “I didn’t want to be there. I didn’t want to fight. I didn’t enjoy [it]. That was the first fight where I legitimately didn’t enjoy a single moment of it.

“I remember being in there in I think the second round and I had her against the cage and I was like, ‘F—k. I’ve got another seven minutes of this,’” she continued. “I’ve had 25 fights and I’ve never felt that before. That also felt like a pretty clear indicator that I was done with that sport. I wanted to retire with the Sarah Alpar fight, but then because I won I was like f—k it, we’ll keep at it.”