What’s the story?
Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) veteran Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger has announced her retirement from the sport of MMA.
Lybarger, who faced fellow Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Strawweight (SW/115 pound) contender Nina Ansaroff at UFC Fight Night 103, got finished for the first time in her professional MMA career.
Lybarger is a veteran of both Invicta Fighting Championship (Invicta FC) and the UFC, having fought 3 times inside the Octagon.
Lybarger thanked her entire team at the MMA Lab including her coaches and her nutritionist Mike Dolce, among others. Lybarger stated that after almost a decade of pro MMA competition, she was now excited to announce her retirement from the sport.
Furthermore, she thanked the MMA fans for the support that they have shown her over the years. She went on to state that she was extremely excited for the next chapter in her life.
In case you didn’t know:
Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger (6-4 pro-MMA) has also competed as an amateur in MMA. She has amassed an amateur MMA record of 4 wins with 2 defeats. Lybarger is a proud step-mother to two of her partner, Jana Jones-Lybarger’s children.
Lybarger has a twin sister named Jillian, who also competes as a Mixed Martial Artist. She is the younger sister of popular adult-film actress Dylan Ryder.
Also read: UFC News: Nina Ansaroff cites Nunes TKO of Ronda Rousey as inspiration for victory
Lybarger faced Nina Ansaroff at UFC Fight Night 103. It was a fight in which Ansaroff caught Lybarger in a rear naked choke towards the end of the third and final round of the fight. Ansaroff trains at American Top Team (ATT) with her partner and current UFC Bantamweight (BW/135 pound champion) Amanda Nunes.
Ansaroff is a savvy grappler and is good at catching her opponents in ground scrambles.
The heart of the matter:
Lybarger had decent striking and grappling throughout her MMA career. Although she wasn’t an expert at any one avenue of MMA, her well-rounded game helped her stay competitive against her competition in Invicta FC and the UFC. She posted a letter addressing her retirement on her Instagram page.
Here are a few excerpts from her letter:
“I have been doing what I love for almost 9 years now and I can promise you I gave it everything I had. Tonight I'm so excited to announce my retirement from fighting.
I'm ready for what's next. I'm ready to be with my wife and kids, to be the best wife and most of all to be the best step mom to our girls. Kennedy and Ellie I love you both so much.
I want to thank my coach John Crouch for always supporting me in and out of the cage. Thank you coach Eddie, Wil and Jarret! Thank you Mike Dolce for always being on my team.
I owe everything to my brothers and sisters at the MMA LAB thank you. #mmalabelite #dolcediet #onepercentbetter #teamJJL"
Although Lybarger was never been much of a threat for the elite of the SW division, her well-rounded MMA style served as a good test for the up-and-comers in the division.
What’s next?
As of now, Lybarger can move forward with her head held high. She lived her dream of competing at the highest level in the sport of MMA. She made it to the big leagues and tested herself inside the Octagon.
She is gifted with a beautiful family and has a great future waiting for her. She has hinted at transitioning to MMA coaching in the past. Whether or not that happens remains to be seen.
On the other hand, her opponent Nina Ansaroff is a mid-tier fighter in the stacked UFC 115-pound division. Although she trains with UFC champ Amanda Nunes, she hasn’t imbibed Nunes’ fluidity in striking.
However, Ansaroff’s grappling is decent and will serve her well against the lower tier of the top 15 in the UFC SW division.
Sportskeeda’s Take:
Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger is yet another example of hard work and tenacity paying off in the sport of MMA. Although she retired from MMA on a three-fight losing streak, she did so whilst giving every opponent the best that she could.
She wasn’t an exceptionally skilled fighter, so to speak, but her will to fight is what brought her to the big leagues in MMA. She seems to have a future in the coaching aspect of MMA, and our view is that she should go for it.
She made it so far despite lacking traditional martial art skills, owing to her toughness and tenacity. As an MMA coach, she can inculcate these very qualities into her pupils.
Regardless of what path she decides to take moving forward, she can do so with pride. We wish good luck to the Invicta FC and UFC veteran, wife, mother, sister and much more - Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger.
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