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Irene Aldana Retires from Mixed Martial Arts at Age 38
Former UFC bantamweight title challenger Irene Aldana has retired from mixed martial arts. The 38-year-old informed the UFC of her decision in April 2026 and plans to remain involved in combat sports.
Jul 17, 7:01 PM·1m read1 source
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Irene Aldana has retired from mixed martial arts at age 38, yardbarker.com reported. The Mexican fighter informed the UFC of her decision in April 2026. ESPN Deportes later confirmed that Aldana plans to remain involved in combat sports.
Her professional MMA record stands at 15 wins and 8 losses. She recorded 1,028 significant strikes in UFC women's bantamweight history, second only to Raquel Pennington's 1,148. Aldana's final UFC bout came at UFC 306 in September 2024, when she lost a decision to Norma Dumont.
Two bouts earlier she challenged Amanda Nunes for the bantamweight title and lost by unanimous decision, with at least one judge scoring a round 10-8 for Nunes. "Hablé con Irene Aldana, quien me confirmó su retiro de las MMA. En abril de este año informó al UFC su intención de retirarse y enfocarse en su salud," Carlos Contreras Legaspi of ESPN Deportes stated.
Aldana scored UFC wins over Ketlen Vieira, Yana Santos, Macy Chiasson and Karol Rosa.
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