Jalin Turner offered some insight into his shocking retirement.
Following a second straight loss against Ignacio Bahamondes at UFC 313, ‘The Tarantula’ took off his gloves and called it a career. It was a surprising reaction considering Turner is only 29 years old and was once considered to be the future of the lightweight division.
IGNACIO BAHAMONDES SUBMITS JALIN TURNER IN ROUND ONE 🔥 #UFC313 pic.twitter.com/9ZpqramkgZ
— ESPN (@espn) March 9, 2025
During a MiddleEasy exclusive interview with James Lynch, Turner shed some light on his decision, revealing that his heart simply wasn’t in it anymore.
“The thought [of retirement] popped up a couple of times, like with the split decision losses, but it always happens,” Turner said. “When you lose, you always think, ‘I’m done with this. I’m over it.’ It’s just a low low and I think I just entertained the idea a little bit more and then UFC 300 was the stamp where that thought just wasn’t going away. Like, ‘Dang, I really think that’s probably it for me’ and I just kept trying to fight the mental battle. It just kept sticking.”
Turner added that some significant life changes played a role in his decision, but it sounds like his devastating loss against Renato Moicano at UFC 300 was the straw that finally broke the camel’s back.
“Other things did become more important to me,” Turner added. “There was a significant life change that happened, and going from the performance against Bobby [Green], a lot of people were telling me I should have more self-control—I should have done this, should have done that. Just hearing all this negativity, it really got to me. I’m a nice guy outside of this sport—super friendly and chill, so it weighed heavy on my conscience.
“And then the Moicano fight, everyone thought I was trying to do this walk-off KO. That really messed with me too. That wasn’t my intent. I just thought that was it. I didn’t want to keep hurting the dude so it’s been a battle, and then moving to Florida and trying to work on my grappling. It was a lot.”
While Turner didn’t want to elaborate on the life changes, he did elude to a cross-country move from California to Florida being a big factor. He also suggested that a recent split from longtime coach Ozzy Dugulubgov may have played a role.
“I really felt like he was someone that was going to help me get to the title because of his training and his understanding of [Islam] Makhachev and of grappling,” Turner said. “He’s an amazing coach. One of the best and most knowledgeable in the game.
“But for me personally, the more I trained with him, the more I left my comfort zone. Going across the country to train with him, I started to lose myself because I was so out of place and I had no outlet. I don’t know how to explain it. It just wasn’t for me.”
Jalin Turner Reached Out to ‘Wonderboy’ for Advice
As Turner continued to mull over retirement, he reached out to one of the UFC’s most tenured and well-respected superstars—Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson.
“After the UFC 300 fight, I called ‘Wonderboy’ for some advice,” Turner said. “I’d been struggling mentally with wanting to do this again—can I get some words? He had nothing but positive words, like, ‘Man, it would be devastating if you think you’ve only got two more in you. You’re so good, I love watching you fight.’ I had some support from people I looked up to.”
Even with the support and encouragement of Thompson, Turner revealed that if he’d beaten Bahamondes at UFC 313, it would have only extended his career by one or two more fights before inevitably laying down his gloves.
Of course, fighters feign retirement all the time. Just look at Chris Weidman who ended up signing with the Global Fight League literally days after announcing that he was officially done fighting. However, Turner believes that his retirement will stick, though he did leave the door cracked open for a potential return to the Octagon.
“Honestly, I don’t [see myself coming back],” Turner continued. “It comes and goes. Like, there’s moments where I’m like, ‘Dang, is that it?’ But for the most part, I don’t think I’m coming back. I don’t want to be that fighter who retires on and off. If I ever do feel the fire to that extent where I want to go in there and risk it all, there’s the potential.
“I set out to be the best and it just feels far and in between because my mental [state] isn’t there.”
If this truly is the end, Turner retires with an overall record of 14-9 with all of his wins coming inside the distance.
Watch the full exclusive interview below:
