Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Featherweight Francisco Rivera has fought his final fight.
California regional promotion Up Next Fighting (UNF) held its final event of 2024 last night (Sat., Nov. 30) inside Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif. In the main event, Rivera took on fellow UFC veteran Albert Morales for the UNF Featherweight championship. It did not take long, as Morales stopped Rivera in the first round with vicious ground and pound, resulting in a technical knockout (TKO).
Watch the stoppage below:
Following his first-round loss, “Cisco” retired from mixed martial arts (MMA) at age 43.
“Thank you to everyone who came out. This is officially my last fight,” Rivera said. “I had 30 fights in my career. I put my whole life into this fight game. 12 fights in the UFC and fought the top guys in the UFC. I tried to keep fighting, but I can’t do this anymore, guys. I can’t do this no more. I appreciate everyone who supported me throughout my entire career…I just want to thank everyone who knows who I am, where I come from and what I did.
THANK YOU, CISCO!
Los Angeles legend and @ufc veteran, @CiscoRiveraUFC, announces his retirement following loss in main event of #UNF21. pic.twitter.com/7W7bEjKwyR
— Up Next Fighting (@UpNextFighting) December 1, 2024
Rivera ends his fighting career with a 16-10 record. The California-based fighter fought in the UFC from 2012 to 2016 and finished his run with a 4-6-1 record due to testing positive for the banned substance clenbuterol, which resulted in a four-year suspension. He did earn a Fight of the Night with John Lineker at UFC 191. “Cisco’s” biggest UFC highlight was his brutal 21-second knockout of Alex Caceres in 20115, and he is still the only fighter to knock out Bruce Leeroy.
After his UFC tenure and suspension, Rivera returned to the regional scene, fighting in XMMA, Combate Global, and UNF, with mixed success.