UFC Contender Confirms Retirement On IG, Leaves Door Open For Return

Jalin Turner had some time to think about his decision to retire, and he’s sticking with the announcement he made in the Octagon at UFC 313 following his first-round submission loss to Ignacio Bahamondes.

Turner could be heard saying, “That’s it for me,” and he told multiple people cageside that he was done. On Tuesday evening, he followed that up with a confirmation post on Instagram, thanking supporters in a heartfelt message that was accompanied by a montage of photos from his MMA journey.

Thank you for all the love and support!

I started training mma at 18 in 2013 I started training in my backyard, a SoCal, LA born, IE raised kid with no path and a big dream. God opened the door to MMA when I didn’t know where else to go.

I gave myself 4 years to fight in a big promotion and I did then the 5th year I got to the UFC in 2018

Made it to the top 10 in the toughest division.

I made it in a video game.

Looking back It doesn’t feel real.

I love you all.

I’m sorry I lost my focus and fire earlier than ever expected. 29 years young time is on my good side.

I wish I could reply to everyone’s messages.

Just know all the positivity has helped me more than you all know I appreciate it all!

Things can change …We’ll see what the future holds 🕷️👊🏾

Turner left the door open for a potential return, saying, “Things can change… we’ll see what the future holds.”

Turner’s retirement came as a bit of a shock. He’s still only 29 years old, and while he is undoubtedly in a rough patch, few question his skill and potential.

At 6-foot-3, Turner enjoyed extraordinary length advantages over most of his opponents at 155 pounds. Still, he has lost four of his last five fights, with the last two coming by stoppage.

On March 8, Turner got off to a solid start against Bahamondes before he carelessly found himself trapped in an arm-triangle that forced him to tap out. You could immediately see the disgust on Turner’s face, and in that moment, I wasn’t surprised he decided to hang up the gloves.

In his previous loss, Turner had Renato Moicano beaten in the first round of their April 2024 scrap at UFC 300. Turner dropped Moicano with a right hand and simply needed to land one or two more shots on his grounded opponent to get the TKO victory.

Instead, Turner failed to show the necessary aggression, allowing Moicano to escape the predicament. In the next round, the tough and rejuvenated Moicano wound up on top of Turner. Unlike his opponent, he did not hesitate to finish the fight, handing Turner a painful loss.

Unfortunately for Turner, the only thing that may be separating him from being one of the top contenders for a title shot at lightweight is a few mental mistakes. Imagine if he had finished Moicano and had been a bit more defensive-minded on the ground with Bahamondes.

We might be discussing Turner as a potential opponent for Justin Gaethje on an upcoming pay-per-view or in the main event of a major Fight Night event.

As it is, Turner is out of the sport for now, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if this was more of a hiatus than a permanent absence from the UFC.