Dana White Supports Dominick Cruz’s Retirement After Injury
Dominick Cruz announced his retirement after a shoulder injury.
Dominick Cruz’s retirement was not announced after a fight or a new loss inside the Octagon. On February 6, 2025, Cruz said he was stepping away after suffering a separated shoulder for the second time in eight months. The former UFC and WEC bantamweight champion had hoped to compete once more, but the injury ended those plans.
The video above discusses Cruz’s retirement. Its title uses sensational language; the video is not an official UFC announcement and should not be treated as the source for the medical details below.
A planned final walk that never happened
Cruz was scheduled to face Rob Font on the February 22, 2025, UFC Fight Night card in Seattle. The matchup would have given Cruz an opportunity to compete again after a long career interrupted by injuries. UFC reported that the separated shoulder was his second in eight months. After Cruz announced his retirement, the promotion removed him from the bout and announced that Jean Matsumoto would replace him against Font.
In his retirement statement, Cruz said he had put a year into preparing for the fight, including work on his conditioning and body, but that his body did not cooperate. That account provides a clear, attributed explanation for the decision.
A career defined by adaptation
Cruz built his reputation through movement, timing and unusual angles. His footwork and feints made opponents adjust constantly, while his wrestling and ability to change levels helped him control exchanges. He became the WEC bantamweight champion before the division moved into the UFC, then became one of the defining champions of the UFC’s 135-pound class. The long gaps caused by injuries made his career unusually stop-start, but he returned to win the title again in 2016, defeating T.J. Dillashaw by split decision.
He later lost the belt to Cody Garbrandt at UFC 207 and continued competing after that defeat. Cruz’s final fight was his knockout loss to Marlon Vera on August 13, 2022; Cruz had beaten Pedro Munhoz by unanimous decision. His last scheduled appearance was the canceled Font fight; it did not take place. Keeping those milestones distinct matters, because the retirement announcement followed an injury withdrawal, not a final bout.
His record and influence are reflected in more than championship results. Cruz was widely recognized for his analytical approach to fighting and later worked as a broadcast analyst. In 2026, UFC announced him as an inductee into the Modern Wing of the UFC Hall of Fame. That later honor provides additional context for his legacy, while the retirement itself remains a decision he announced in February 2025.
