PFL and UFC veteran Stevie Ray announces retirement from MMA

PFL lightweight contender Stevie Ray has decided to hang up the gloves for a second time.

‘Braveheart’ is a name that is recognizable to most MMA fans. The Scottish fighter quickly found success in BAMMA, winning lightweight gold. By 2015, Stevie Ray was in the UFC, and racking up multiple high-profile wins. That year alone, he claimed three victories in the octagon.

While he would suffer his first promotional loss the following year, the lightweight was unfazed. Stevie Ray rebounded with wins over Joe Lauzon and Ross Pearson but suffered back-to-back losses to Paul Felder and Kajan Johnson. The Scottish fighter never recovered from this stretch, parting ways with the UFC in 2019 following a win over Michael Johnson.

In 2020, Stevie Ray retired from MMA after he parted ways with the UFC. While he later signed to the PFL the following year, he’s since retired once again. On Instagram, Stevie Ray announced his retirement from MMA, although he noted his plans to stay active doing seminars and training.

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Stevie Ray’s retirement wraps up his second straight season with the PFL. In 2022, the Scottish fighter debuted with back-to-back wins over Anthony Pettis, fighting his way to the tournament final. However, he came up short in his bid for $1 million dollars, losing to Olivier Aubin-Mercier by knockout.

Sadly, the lightweight didn’t fare much better during the 2023 season. Ray ultimately suffered a unanimous decision loss to Natan Schulte and was knocked out by Clay Collard earlier this month at PFL 6. That loss to ‘Cassius’ will likely go down as the final fight of the Scotsman’s career.

What do you make of this news? What’s your favorite Stevie Ray fight?