UFC bantamweight contender Raul Rosas Jr., the youngest fighter on the UFC roster, has announced a surprising retirement timeline.
At 21, Rosas has been in the UFC since he was 18. But he might not last past 25 years old in fighting, as he’s already looking ahead to what’s next in his life and career.
Raul Rosas Jr. Plans on Retiring at Age 25
Speaking to Full Send MMA ahead of his UFC Vegas 121 main event fight against Raoni Barcelos, Rosas said that his goal is to become the youngest champion in UFC history — beating Jon Jones’s record at 23 years and eight months — defend his belt a few times, maybe swap weight classes, and then leave the sport after accomplishing everything that he wanted by age 25.
“Yeah, (breaking Jones’s record is) the goal. I think right now I’m on a good path. Winning this main event, I think, puts my in a very good position to keep chasing that dream,” Rosas said (via MMAFighting.com).
“Yeah, if by 25 I accomplish everything that I want to accomplish in my career, I’m just going to step back from the sport. The goal is to get the belt and then defend it a couple of times, try to challenge myself, go up a weight class, maybe two, and after I’m done, like, I run out of goals, that’s when I’m just gonna quit. It could be 26, 27, 28, but I’m just saying whenever I’m done with my goals, that’s when I’m gonna step out of the game.”
Raul Rosas Jr. Favored to Beat Raonic Barcelos
With an 18-year age advantage against Barcelos, it’s not surprising to see Rosas favored to win the fight, as he is a -160 betting favorite to win the fight.
Rosas has won his last five fights in a row, and he has a 6-1 UFC record overall, which is incredibly impressive given he is only 21 years old. But he needs to start getting some more finishes if the UFC is going to really push him up the rankings, so if he can go out there and finish Barcelos, it would be absolutely massive for his MMA career.
Raul Rosas Jr. Sets Surprising Retirement UFC Timeline