Former UFC fighter Jimmie Rivera graduates from police academy

Former UFC bantamweight Jimmie Rivera recently announced his graduation from the Passaic County Police Academy, officially becoming an officer of the law in the state of New Jersey.

The 33-year-old made the announcement via a post on Instagram and penned an emotional caption describing his journey to becoming a part of the blue family. Rivera reposted the image with the caption:

"This has been a very tough and challenging journey, working six days a week teaching, training, and going to the police academy. Sunday, the only day of having family time. But the dust has settled and I am officially a police officer. Someone said you want to make a change, you have to be the change. Can’t wait to get out there and be that change!"

Check out the post below:

'El Terror' fought in the UFC's bantamweight division from 2015 to 2021 and managed to achieve top-five ranked status in the promotion. Rivera was last defeated by Pedro Munhoz via unanimous decision and holds a record of 7-4 in the promotion.

Jimmie Rivera signed with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) in 2021 and made his promotional debut at BKFC 26: Hollywood in June 2022.

When Jimmie Rivera stated why leaving the UFC to join BKFC was an easy decision for him

Jimmie Rivera signed with the BKFC in 2022 after spending almost six years competing in the UFC's bantamweight division, where he peaked as a top-five ranked contender.

However, 'El Terror' had no regrets when his UFC contract wasn't renewed and was more than happy to join BKFC due to their attractive contract terms.

In an interview with Danny Segura of MMA Junkie in 2022, Rivera cited two factors that influenced his decision to join the BKFC.

Praising the president of the relatively new promotion, Rivera outlined better fighter pay and flexibility to pursue other combat sports as the clauses that attracted him to BKFC. He said:

"Dave [Feldman] is doing a great job. He’s bringing some big stars in and the paychecks are what fighters want to get paid, so that’s a great plus... At the same time, we have the leniency, too. I can do Bareknuckle, but I can still do MMA and I haven’t stopped for MMA."