Tyson Pedro has fought his last fight for now.
The light heavyweight veteran announced his retirement Saturday following a unanimous decision loss to Vitor Petrino in the co-main event of UFC Vegas 87.
It was a disappointing performance for the 32-year-old Australia native, who was given a chance to address viewers following Petrino’s post-fight victory interview.
“Thank you to all the fans, I want to say thank you very much to the UFC for everything they’ve done on this journey,” Pedro said. “Especially thanks to my team, anyone that’s helped me get to this stage of my martial arts career. It’s been amazing but it’s always been my intention to show my daughter that as long as you work your ass off and grind towards what you love, you can do anything you can dream of, and I think my dream has just changed at this point, so that’s it for me.
“Thank you to all the fans from the bottom of my heart. I don’t think it’s goodbye, just see you later, so until then, thanks everyone.”
Watch video of Pedro’s retirement speech below.
Pedro elaborated on his decision to retire while speaking to the media backstage at the UFC APEX, putting an emphasis on spending more time with his family and the financial challenges that come with training in New Zealand.
“It’s been on my mind a little bit lately,” Pedro said. “Mainly just being away from my daughter, it’s being away for probably 12 months in the last two and a half years from my wife and baby, so that’s obviously my choice going over to New Zealand. I know that’s where I’m going to be the best martial artist.
“You put in all the costs, you put in the cost to my family — I probably just can’t do it anymore. With the deductions and the loss of the fight, tonight I’m probably going to have to rob someone in the car park. If anyone’s got any money on them — who’s got the most on them?”
“It’s more a family thing,” Pedro added. “I’ve just got a change of the dreams, so if I’m going to do that I might as well spend it with my daughter. Who knows? You might see me on the Australian circuit, but that’s it for me for MMA.”
Pedro puts a halt to his fighting career with a 10-5 pro record, which includes a 6-5 mark in the UFC. The City Kickboxing product emerged as a prospect early in his UFC career, scoring first-round knockouts of Paul Craig and Khalil Rountree, but was hampered by inconsistent results and injuries. Following a TKO loss to Mauricio “Shogun” Rua in December 2018, Pedro didn’t fight again for more than three years.
His last win took place at UFC 293 this past September in Sydney, where he thrilled the hometown crowd with a first-round knockout of Anton Turkalj.
