Longtime UFC fighter Edson Barboza revealed that a serious eye injury is what led to his retirement from mixed martial arts.
Barboza left his gloves in the center of the Octagon following his second-round TKO loss to Esteban Ribovics at UFC 330 last Saturday in Philadelphia. It was an emotional moment for Barboza, who spent 16 years in the UFC, thrilling MMA fans all over the world with his highlight-reel knockouts.
But at age 40 and having lost four straight fights, it was time for Barboza to end things. On top of the losing skid, Barboza also had a serious eye injury that was one of the main reasons for him to step away.
Edson Barboza Details Eye Injury
Speaking to MMAjunkie.com, Barboza revealed that an eye injury suffered in his fight against Lerone Murphy in May 2024 was one of the main catalysts for why he walked away from the sport.
“I knew (it was my final fight). I was talking to my wife, and especially my wife and my kids, the only person I talked about with, ‘I think it’s over.’ It’s my wife and my kid. I tried to say, ‘No, it’s not the end’ to keep my focus. But I know. Inside, I know it’s going to be the end. It didn’t matter the result. If I won, I was gong to retire. If I lost, I’m going to retire because I feel I am not the same guy anymore physically,” Barboza said.
“I realized in my fight against Lerone Murphy, in the main event, I had a really bad injury in my eye. I almost lost my vision in my right eye. Most people have no idea about that. I can’t see out of this side. That’s the first time I really started thinking, ‘Oh my God, this sport is hard and dangerous.’ I started thinking about, ‘OK, maybe it’s time to stop.’ Imagine if I lost my vision? I started to think about it and talk to my wife and she said, ‘Stop right now. I don’t care.’ I said, ‘No, let me try a couple more fights and see how I feel.’
Edson Barboza Transitioning to Coaching
Although his time as an active fighter in MMA is done, Barboza says that he will remain part of the game as a coach, helping to train the next crop of fighters, as he says that he wants to share the knowledge he gained over the years with other athletes.
“I’ve been training since I was 8 years old. I don’t think it’s fair to myself, to my fans or other fighters to hold this for myself. I learned against the best coaches in the world and can’t hold this to myself. I need to share with other people. I really want to share everything that I know and everything that I see about the striking game of MMA. I’m very excited for the future because I’m going to share with the people. I want to be a coach,” Barboza said.
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