Former UFC fighter Dan Argueta, known for his six appearances in the octagon, has officially announced his decision to retire from mixed martial arts.
The 31-year-old bantamweight fighter made the announcement on Tuesday, confirming his decision to end his fighting career shortly after being released by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) promotion.
Argueta shared his thoughts on social media regarding this difficult decision:
“It`s with a heavy heart that today I`ve decided to hang up my gloves,” Argueta wrote. “After receiving news of the UFC not giving me the opportunity to finish out the final fight on my contract, I`ve ultimately decided to turn the page and start writing my next chapter.”
He reflected further on the impact fighting had on his life:
“With that being said fighting indeed saved my life. I gave it my all every-time I stepped into an Octagon and that`s something I`m at peace with. This opportunity taught me more about myself than anything else. It molded me into the man that can handle becoming the best version of himself, it helped me find my best friend and soon to be beautiful wife, and it showed me that I CAN do anything I set my mind to.”
Argueta began his UFC journey in 2022. His debut resulted in a decision loss to Damon Jackson, but he quickly secured his first promotional victory by defeating Nick Aguirre in his subsequent bout.
This win against Aguirre remained his sole official victory within the UFC. His later fights included two consecutive no contests; one of these was originally a loss to Miles Johns, which was overturned after Johns failed a drug test.
His final appearances in the Octagon were consecutive losses against Jean Matsumoto and Cody Haddon.
Addressing fighting itself, Argueta offered a final, blunt message:
“To the roughest, toughest, most demanding job on earth (Next to being a parent). You`re a cruel son of a b*tch, but I`ll always love what we had,” Argueta wrote. “This isn`t a maybe we`ll get back together. This is a goodbye. Opportunity awaits.”
Argueta concludes his professional MMA career, which began in 2017, with an overall record of 9 wins, 3 losses, and 2 no contests.
