Former strawweight world champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk has officially notified the UFC of her retirement from mixed martial arts.
Jedrzejczyk ultimately fled from the sport in 2022 following a second-round knockout loss to Zhang Weili at UFC 275. Despite making her intentions to retire clear, Jedrzejczyk remained in the USADA testing pool in case she experienced a change of heart. That was nearly the case as Jedrzejczyk was toying with the idea of a return, but those plans were scrapped after a shoulder injury forced her to seek surgery.
Jedrzejczyk ends her MMA career with a record of 10-5 under the UFC banner, 16-5 overall. During her run, Jedrzejczyk captured the strawweight title and defended it an impressive five times. She also holds the distinction of being the promotion’s first-ever Polish world champion and is a three-time Fight of the Night winner.
In 2020, Jedrzejczyk competed against Zhang Weili in what many consider to be the greatest fight in women’s mixed martial arts history. UFC 248 saw the two women go to war with one another for 25 incredible minutes with Zhang walking away the victory via a closely-contested split decision.
Ian Heinisch Hopes to Be Back Inside the Octagon One Day
Also announcing his exit from MMA is middleweight standout Ian Heinisch. After competing in seven fights under the UFC banner, ‘The Hurricane’ revealed that he will be walking away from the promotion to focus on healing his body.
“I’m making the decision right now to take a step back and get out of the USADA pool, do some peptides, and some other treatments and heal,” Heinisch said on Instagram in July. “That’s what I’m trying to do right now. Yeah, it’s tough, but it’s been a long journey and I have to do this. I can’t keep making my head worse. I know I can’t.”
Heinisch ends his run at 14-5 with a 3-4 record inside the Octagon. ‘The Hurricane’ has dropped four of his last five bouts, but perhaps some time away to properly heal will allow him to one day return and reap the benefits of his talents.
Like Heinisch, Joanna Jedrzejczyk could one day choose to make a return to the Octagon by re-enrolling in the USADA testing program. Until then, the strawweight division will be forced to move forward without its Polish princess.
