Germaine de Randamie has announced her retirement from mixed martial arts, bringing an 11-year stint in the UFC to an end.
After establishing her name under the Strikeforce banner, a strong start to life inside the Octagon peaked with de Randamie becoming the inaugural UFC women’s featherweight champion in 2017.
Having beaten Holly Holm to capture the title, “The Iron Lady” didn’t make a defense after turning down a fight with Cris Cyborg owing to the Brazilian’s history of PED usage, a move that resulted in the UFC stripping her of the gold.
The Dutchwoman returned to 135 pounds in 2018 and reeled off wins over then-future champ Raquel Pennington and Aspen Ladd before a failed title bid opposite Amanda Nunes in December 2019.
After a win over another future bantamweight queen in Julianna Peña was followed by a hiatus spanning three and a half years, de Randamie was outpointed by Norma Dumont in her comeback fight this past April. Per a recent Instagram post, that result will go down as the last addition to the 40-year-old’s record.
Despite being booked to face Jacqueline Cavalcanti next January following the cancellation of her scheduled clash against Nora Cornolle in Paris last month, de Randamie has ultimately decided to hang up her gloves after being denied a final farewell fight before the close of this calendar year.
“Hey guys, with so many mixed feelings I’m sharing this message with you guys,” de Randamie wrote. “I definitely didn’t plan or envision/dream it this way, but hey it is what it is sometimes. I begged the UFC for 1 more fight. But it had to be this year. I promised myself I would retire from fighting December 31, 2024. Unfortunately the UFC told me all cards are fully booked.
“That’s why I decided that the time is now. I really wished I could have walked the walk one more time. But I guess it was not meant to be. To many people to thank personally so thank you all for being a part of my journey ❤️ Thank you for all the amazing memories. I’m forever grateful for all of them,” de Randamie continued. “Like I always say, ‘DIE WITH MEMORIES, NOT DREAMS'”
In addition to her 15-fight career inside the cage, de Randamie also enjoyed a successful stint in the kickboxing realm, where she amassed an undefeated record of 46-0.
