UFC fighters who won't retire despite their long winless streaks × Follow Us Create Notifications New User posted their first comment this is comment text Link Approve Reject & ban Delete Log in Manage your profile Editing Story Queue Video Queue Editing Stats Writer Home SEO Redirection Admin Gaming Wiki Edits Taxonomy Home Edit Site Menu Mapping Dashboard Tag Pages Community Social Feed Queue Feed Center Notification Center Affiliate Home Manage Pages Bottom Tagline Dash Timeless Stories Logout MMA UFC Listicle 5 UFC fighters who won t retire despite long winless streaks By Ricardo Viagem Modified 24 Sep 2022 Follow Us Comment Share Renan Barão, Tony Ferguson and Héctor Lombard The UFC is home to some of the greatest combat sports athletes in the world. Unfortunately, they are often the last person to realize when they should retire. Whether it's due to their egos being unable to stomach the thought of no longer being elite competitors, or outright delusions, athletes often forge on in search of greener pastures even after repeated failures. While athletes remaining active well past their prime is commonplace, the consequences are more severe in MMA. Fighters who refuse to walk away from the sport overexpose themselves to CTE. Mixed martial arts is dangerous by default. However, once a fighter is no longer capable of staying competitive against their foes, the danger becomes more pronounced. UFC fighters like Khabib Nurmagomedov and Georges St-Pierre, both of whom retired without sustaining much damage, are rarities. What is more common is a fighter suffering back-to-back losses until either a family member or the UFC itself intervenes. In recent memory, Donald 'Cowboy' Cerrone was on a winless streak that included 6 losses and 1 no-contest. While 'Cowboy' eventually retired after surrendering to a guillotine choke against Jim Miller, other fighters were more stubborn. This list explores 5 UFC fighters who are still active in mixed martial arts but refuse to retire despite their long losing streaks. #5 Sam Alvey Before 2018, Sam Alvey was a serviceable MMA fighter with a respectable 33-10 (1) record. Unfortunately, his matchup against Antônio Rogério Nogueira at UFC Fight Night 137 was the beginning of the end. Rather, it should have been. Alvey underwent a downward spiral unlike any other. MMA On Point@OnPointMMASam Alvey has the longest stretch in UFC history without securing a win. Will he retire or fight somewhere else? ?195568Sam Alvey has the longest stretch in UFC history without securing a win. Will he retire or fight somewhere else? ? https://t.co/lJbpimMPPN Over the next two years, 'Smile'n' found himself lost. He was on a 4-fight losing streak and on course for a fifth consecutive loss. However, a draw against Da Un Jung spared him the humiliation. Following the draw, 4 more losses followed to bring Alvey's winless run to 0-8-1. The promotion released him sometime this year. But 'Smile'n' is yet to retire and seems intent on plying his trade in a different promotion. #4 Héctor Lombard Héctor Lombard entered the UFC with a fair amount of hype behind him. The limited success he enjoyed in the promotion coincided with Ronda Rousey's rise as an MMA superstar. Thus, the Cuban phenom's background as an Olympic judoka led to a surge of interest in his skill-set given 'Rowdy's' own past in Olympic judo. Alas, Lombard wasn't nearly as successful as Rousey. His first matchup in the promotion was a loss to Tim Boetsch. While the 44-year old's subsequent bout was a knockout win over feared leg-lock specialist Rousimar Palhares, it didn't herald what came after. MMA mania@mmamaniaThales Leites defeated Hector Lombard via unanimous decision. #UFCSaoPaulo2Thales Leites defeated Hector Lombard via unanimous decision. #UFCSaoPaulo https://t.co/ThRmpVvruD Héctor Lombard lost his next bout against Yushin Okami. The loss was followed by back-to-back wins over Nate Marquardt and Jake Shields, and they remain the last wins of Lombard's career. The Cuban then embarked on a seven-fight winless streak that led to his departure from the Dana White led promotion. Unfortunately, Héctor Lombard refused to retire. Now, he is signed with Khabib Nurmagomedov's Eagle FC promotion. His debut was anything but successful after an illegal knee left the 44-year old unable to continue against Thiago Silva. #3 Antônio Silva Brazilian heavyweight Antônio 'Bigfoot' Silva is a 265'er from yesteryear. His MMA debut was in 2005 and his career peaked in 2013 when he faced Cain Velasquez for the UFC heavyweight title. A large and imposing presence, 'Bigfoot' owns victories over legendary foes like Alistair Overeem, Andrei Arlovski and Fedor Emelianenko. Heavyweight Thanos@MMAThanosBigfoot Silva, it’s time to call it quits man 145440Bigfoot Silva, it’s time to call it quits man https://t.co/8116xLDVxL However, his career will not be remembered for any of those upsets. Instead, Silva's legacy is being challenged by his own decision to compete well past his prime. After going on a 1-6-1 run after his win over Overeem, Silva was released from the UFC. His last win was against Soa Palelei at UFC 190. Since then, the Brazilian has lost 8 consecutive fights, 7 of which were by knockout. Despite not having tasted victory since 2015, Silva last fought 14 days ago. 'Bigfoot' lost to Zabit Samedov at Mix Fight Championship via first-round knockout. #2 Tony Ferguson While the previous three entries had longer winless streaks than Tony Ferguson, none of them ever reached the career heights that he did. Thus, his fall from grace is prominent, and his continued refusal to retire is even more disheartening. 'El Cucuy' was once the boogeyman of the UFC lightweight division. At UFC 216, he captured the UFC interim lightweight title. It remains the greatest achievement of his career alongside his legendary 12-fight win streak. However, Tony Ferguson's run came to a brutal end at the hands of Justin Gaethje. At UFC 249, 'El Cucuy' lost for the first time in 8 years. Doctor MMA @DoctorMMA_He is done man. Sadly Tony Ferguson needs to retire.4He is done man. Sadly Tony Ferguson needs to retire. https://t.co/PmrJ09QfeO While he hoped to rebound from the loss, his subsequent matchup with Charles Oliveira was a one-sided defeat. The 38-year old looked uncharacteristically timid. His third bout since his loss to Justin Gaethje was a repeat of his loss to 'do Bronx'. The former interim champion was outgrappled by Beneil Dariush. What followed was a brutal knockout loss to Michael Chandler, and then a fourth-round submission loss to Nate Diaz in a bout where Tony Ferguson finally looked his age. At 38 years old with a five-fight losing streak, 'El Cucuy' was called on to retire by Daniel Cormier. The former interim champion remains defiant, however, vowing to continue fighting. #1 Renan Barão is a former UFC bantamweight champion At one point, Renan Barão was on a 32-fight unbeaten streak with 31 wins and 1 no-contest. His dominance and explosive Muay Thai skill-set drew comparisons to fellow Brazilian and all-time great José Aldo. At UFC 165, 'The Baron' flattened Eddie Wineland with a spinning back-kick to defend the interim bantamweight title he had captured a year prior. After Dominick Cruz's recurring injury issues kept him sidelined, Renan Barão was promoted to undisputed champion. His first official title defense as the undisputed champion was a rematch with Urijah Faber. The Brazilian crushed his foe and Dana White declared him the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. Front Page MMA@FrontPageMMABREAKING: Former UFC bantamweight champion Renan Barão (@RenanBaraoUFC) has been released from the UFC following a five-fight losing streak.Let’s hope this legend hangs up the gloves after an incredible career.#UFC #MMA #FPMMA5117BREAKING: Former UFC bantamweight champion Renan Barão (@RenanBaraoUFC) has been released from the UFC following a five-fight losing streak.Let’s hope this legend hangs up the gloves after an incredible career.#UFC #MMA #FPMMA https://t.co/zBqvHWN83T Alas, Urijah Faber's then teammate T.J. Dillashaw soon ended his reign. At UFC 273, Dillashaw styled on Barão in one of the most dominant title-bout performances in the promotion's history. While Barão lost the championship, he rebounded with a win to earn a rematch. His second loss to Dillashaw was just as brutal as the first. Barão struggled to recover, losing his subsequent bout. While he briefly snapped the first losing streak of his career with a win at UFC Fight Night 95, it led to nothing. Instead, Barão lost his next 5 bouts and was released from the promotion. While he has not fought since 2019, he has been scheduled to fight multiple times in other promotions. However, those matchups were canceled for one reason or another. Most recently, he was booked to fight at ARES FC 7 in June but withdrew. Poll : 0 votes Quick Links More from Sportskeeda Edited by Virat Deswal × Feedback Thank You! Be the first one to comment Follow Us Share Show More Comments GIF Comment in moderation 0 0 Reply x Edit Delete Delete the comment? No thanks Delete GIF Cancel Update GIF Cancel Reply ❮ ❯ GIF Comment in moderation 0 0 Reply x Edit Delete Delete the comment? No thanks Delete GIF Cancel Update GIF Cancel Reply ❮ ❯ Be the first one to comment on this story More from Sportskeeda Fetching more content... 1 Manage your profile Editing Story Queue Video Queue Editing Stats Writer Home SEO Redirection Admin Gaming Wiki Edits Taxonomy Home Edit Site Menu Mapping Dashboard Tag Pages Community Social Feed Queue Feed Center Notification Center Affiliate Home Manage Pages Bottom Tagline Dash Timeless Stories Logout No Results Found Get the free App now Manage notifications Popular ‍ Sports (30+) CricketCricket HomeCricket NewsScheduleIND vs SAAUS vs WIENG vs PAKLegends LeagueECC T10County ChampionshipBukhatir LeagueNZ T20 Tri-SeriesWomen's Asia Cup 2022Japan Cricket LeagueWI-W vs NZ-WECT10T20 World Cup FootballFootball HomeNewslettersSK Experts ScheduleEPLNations LeagueLa LigaLigue 1Champions LeagueFIFA WCMLS Bundesliga Serie A WWEWWE HomeNewslettersRumor RoundupRAWSmackDownResultsRosterChampionsWWE Extreme Rules 2022PPV ScheduleAEW EsportsEsports HomeMinecraftOverwatch 2RobloxGenshin ImpactFortniteGTAStreamersFree FirePUBGValorantBGMIPop CultureAnimeGaming TechWiki Guides TennisTennis HomeTennis calendarChina OpenTennis Results TodayATP RankingsWTA RankingsRoger FedererRafael NadalNovak DjokovicSerena Williams MMAMMA HomeUFC NewsONE ChampionshipUFC Fight NightScheduleRankingsResultsUFC Fights TonightONE Championship ResultsONE Championship ScheduleONE Championship Rankings KabaddiKabaddi HomePKL 2022PKL SchedulePKL Points TableKabaddi Rules WikiWiki HomeMinecraft WikiNaruto WikiTikTok WikiYoutube WikiGTA WikiTerraria WikiOne Piece Wiki MoreSportsBasketballIndian FootballNFLMinecraftFormula 1NascarPop CultureCollege FootballHockeyGolfAthleticsBadmintonGymnasticsWrestlingSwimmingTennisShootingBoxingArcheryWinter SportsRobloxSkateboardingKho KhoLifestyle LINKS About Us Write For Us Policies Editorial Standards Journalism Awards Fact Check Affiliate Program Careers CSR Privacy Policy Contact Us Edition: English हिन्दी