Former Invicta featherweight champion Felicia Spencer is calling it a career.
Felicia Spencer is getting ready to move on away from the fighting life. After six years as a professional fighter, Spencer has decided to announce her retirement from MMA. Spencer cited family and taking care of her mental health as some of the reasons when she spoke in an interview with Fight Bananas (h/t MMA Junkie).
“I have decided to stop pursuing this opportunity and have no intention to continue fighting,” Spencer said. “I felt as good as I’ve ever been in my last fight and know I could have more great performances. But after 18 fights, including a few wars, I know in my heart for my future mental health that I shouldn’t be in more of those wars.
“In the fight game, that isn’t guaranteed, and I’ve shown myself that I won’t give up in the cage, so I need to protect myself by just not stepping in there. I’m thinking about myself and family 25 years from now. Mental health is an important consideration in my family.”
Spencer came to the UFC in 2019 and added some much-needed talent to the small featherweight division. After a loss to Cris Cyborg, she earned her way back up the ranks and eventually got a title shot against champ Amanda Nunes. That fight didn’t go Spencer’s way but she did take the Nunes to the distance. Spencer’s last bout in the UFC was a win over Leah Letson just a few weeks ago.
Spencer was a staple of the featherweight division. The featherweight division is by far the smallest in the UFC, so much so that there are not even a top 15 listed in the rankings. With the departure of Spencer, this already minuscule division has shrunk and perhaps could be eliminated in the future. After the past few years, many of the ladies in the division have been released or moved down to bantamweight.
What was your favorite moment of Felicia Spencer’s MMA career?
