Joaquin Buckley has said his next walk to the UFC octagon will be his final fight, after reflecting with his family following his loss to Mike Malott.
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Joaquin Buckley says he plans to stop fighting after his next UFC appearance, calling it a decision influenced by a conversation with his family.
In an Instagram video, the 32-year-old said the knockout loss to Mike Malott in the main event of UFC Fight Night 291 “devastated” him and affected his family, particularly his grandmother.
“That fight right there, it was devastating, and it really affected my family – the people that's closest to me,” Buckley said. “Listening to my grandmother speak and listening to her pray for me over the phone, and really being upset, and her telling me to retire and really kind of get away from fighting and get away from the sport because your mind is your biggest tool and your biggest asset, and you don't want to lose it.”
Buckley, who joined the UFC in 2020, said his grandmother urged him to focus on what matters most and that he took time to process the advice. He added that he slept on it and prayed before deciding to heed her suggestion.
“It took a lot for me to listen and digest it, but I took some time, I slept on it, and I prayed about it, and I realized that my grandmother is right,” Buckley said. “But, with that being said, I just told her to pray for me, and allow me to grace that octagon just one more time, and have the strength to step out there one more time, because I can't leave on a loss.”
Buckley also framed his motivation for continuing against the reason he fights, saying he does it for his “babies” and that he aims to give “110 percent” each time. He said the number of fights he has had in the promotion is part of why he wants to step away.
“Plus, with my babies and everything of that nature – that's the reason I fight so hard. I give 110 percent every single time. So, it's gonna be hard to just literally not be able to give my fullest potential, right? And with me already having 18 fights within the organization within six years, I'm already knowing I'm a workhorse, right? So I really gotta save myself from any more mileage or any more damage.”
Buckley said he does not yet have his next opponent booked, but plans to go out with a win, adding, “This the last one.”
He concluded: “But we're gonna make the last one the best one.”
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