Carla Esparza is closing in on the end of her career in the UFC. The former strawweight champion has already announced that her fight against Tecia (Torres) Pennington on Oct. 5 will be her last with the promotion. Esparza, 36, is finally ready to step down following a successful career.

While Esparza was the inaugural strawweight champion, she unfortunately may be most remembered by the way she won the championship the second time. Esparza and Rose Namajunas put on one of the worst-reviewed championship fights ever at UFC 274 in May 2022.

But is it fair in life to judge anyone by their lowest moment? MMAfighting news shows that Esparza was a solid competitor in a competitive division. When she started in the sport, women’s MMA was still in its infancy, but Esparza developed into one of the pioneers of the UFC’s strawweight division.

Stepping away seems appropriate now for Esparza, who is 37. She has started a family and feels the pain from a long fighting career.

Winning Title in a Unique Way

When the UFC decided to institute a strawweight division, Esparza didn’t go the traditional route to win a championship. While in the promotion’s early days, the promotion staged many tournaments, the sport shifted away from one-night tournaments as regulators forced changes.

But when UFC CEO Dana White decided to add a strawweight women’s division, he used a season of The Ultimate Fighter to crown a champion. Esparza won the 16-fighter tournament, which included wins over future UFC standouts Jessica Penne, Angela Hill, and Torres. The final of the tournament was Esparza’s official debut with the promotion.

Esparza submitted Namajunas in the third round of their fight back in December 2014 to win the championship.

Short-Lived Reign, Struggles in UFC

Success in the UFC seemed like a natural progression for Esparza, who was also a champion in Invicta. But for Esparza’s first title defense, she had the misfortune of running into one of the division’s all-time greats. Joanna Jędrzejczyk knocked out Esparza in the second round of UFC 185 in Dallas, Texas.

It would kick off a dominant run for Jędrzejczyk, who made a record five consecutive defenses. Esparza’s career would head in the other direction following her 92-day title reign. She went 3-3 over her next six fights after losing to Jędrzejczyk.

Esparza would have to take over a year off after the fight due to a shoulder injury. Esparza returned with a decision win over Juliana Lima but struggled to find consistency in several fights that ended by decision.

Following a TKO loss to Tatiana Suarez in the third round at UFC 228, Esparza’s time at the division’s top appeared to be over. But the UFC kept giving Esparza fights against solid, ranked fighters. When she could flip enough results around the other way, she put together an impressive run of victories.

Things Turned Around

Five consecutive victories helped Esparza earn another shot at the belt. But it wasn’t an easy path. And some of the fights were so close it’s hard to say that she won.

But starting with a decision win over Virna Jandiroba, which has aged well, Esparza kicked off a stretch of six straight victories. Three of them — wins over Alexa Grasso, Michelle Waterson, and Marina Rodriguez — were either by split or majority decision. What earned Esparza the shot at the belt was a second-round TKO win over Yan Xiaonan. It was her first win by stoppage in seven years.

Esparza was now set for a rematch with Namajunas. It was an interesting rematch on paper, especially with how the first fight went.

Champion Again

The major disappointment in Esparza’s career is also one of her greatest highlights. The win over Xiaonan earned Esparza a championship rematch with Namajunas at UFC 274. The fight wasn’t either woman’s proudest moment.

The numbers reflect how ugly it was. Esparza couldn’t get her wrestling going and only landed two of her 11 takedown attempts. Each fighter landed four or fewer during the first and second rounds. Before the fight ended, the commentary team mentioned how boring a fight that both fighters were turning in.

Namajunas seemed terrified of Esparza’s wrestling, and Esparza didn’t really want to trade power shots with Namajunas, who could knock out her opponents. Esparza won the belt via split decision and got UFC gold back right before she got married.

Running Into Another Once-in-a-Generation Star

Esparza’s second title reign ended as quickly as her first. Once again, it was a generational talent that took her out quickly. Zhang Weili, who had previously lost the title to Namajunas, quickly submitted Esparza at UFC 281.

Following the loss, Esparza gave birth to her first child. After having her son, Esparza quickly decided that there were other things she should be concerned with besides fighting.

Ending with a Fight Against Pennington is Fitting

Combat sports careers typically don’t end well for fighters. Esparza has said that her body can’t keep up with her mind’s desire to fight anymore. That has been something she has felt for the past few years.

But Esparza didn’t want to end her career on a sour note. Fighting Pennington, who changed her last name from Torres after marrying UFC bantamweight champion Raquel Pennington, fought Esparza during The Ultimate Fighter tournament.

Tecia Pennington is still a capable fighter who can give any ranked fighter a problem with her excellent striking. This upcoming fight won’t be an easy one for Esparza to leave on, but she does have the added motivation of fighting for her son.

Throughout Esparza’s career, she has been able to weather the storm and climb back to the top of the division after having some struggles. Expect a spirited effort from Esparza to close out her career. Having a battle with Pennington should be a fun fight.

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By Dean McHugh.