UFC Flyweight Jimmy Flick Makes Surprising Retirement Announcement

Jimmy Flick announced his retirement from fighting earlier today. pretty upset we won’t get to see his grappling anymore, the man was a monster on the ground. pic.twitter.com/ZefRYTlK1Y

— ricky (@mysticcrick) April 11, 2021

In just a few weeks, Jimmy Flick was supposed to square off against Francisco Figueiredo at UFC on ESPN 24.

Instead, the 30-year-old flyweight is calling it a career. Flick made his retirement announcement on Saturday at a Freestyle Cage Fighting event in Tulsa, Okla., an organization where he was once 125-pound champion.

“A lot of people keep asking me where I see myself in 10 years. ‘Where do you see yourself in the UFC?’ To be honest, everybody, the UFC is not my dream no more,” Flick said. “A lot of people won’t understand why. It’s hard to explain and it does bring tears to my eyes, but the UFC is not looking out for me. My wife is looking out for me, my kids are looking out for me and that’s what I want. I want to be their father. I want to go to work every day, come home and be with my family. I want to spend time with my little girls, I want to spend time with my wife.

“And I’ve found out I don’t want to be the next Conor McGregor, or the next Demetrious Johnson. So I step in this cage tonight and telling everybody that I’m retiring from mixed martial arts. I’m gonna pursue the other goals in life that make me more happy than fighting ever did.”

Flick, who has won his last four professional fights, earned a UFC contract with a submission of Nate Smith on Dana White’s Contender Series in September 2020. He then impressed in his Octagon debut with a flying triangle choke victory over Cody Durden at UFC Fight Night 183 this past December. If his retirement holds up, the 30-year-old Sand Springs, Okla., native exits the sport with a 16-5 career mark that includes 14 triumphs by way of submission.