New York City — Jim Miller has a number in mind for when he will retire, and it’s not UFC 400. Rather, it’s the big 5-0. 50. Not years, but fights.
Miller, who has more fights inside the octagon than anyone in UFC history, just earned a submission win over Damon Jackson at UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. Somehow, at 41 years young, “A-10” keeps finding ways to turn back the clock.
He’s appeared on the UFC 100, UFC 200, and UFC 300 cards, the only fighter in the promotion to do so. He was already a 10+ fight veteran when he signed on with the company in 2008, and was appearing in his fourth UFC scrap at the centennial event in 2009. Jon Jones, who headlined UFC 309, was also in action that night, in his third UFC fight.
Miller has gone on to fight for the company a grand total of 45 times; Jones, comparatively, has 24 fights under the UFC banner.
“The 50 is the hard stop. Okay, you guys can hold me to that sh*t. 100%. 100%,” Miller (38-18, 1NC) said following UFC 309, speaking with media outlets including Cageside Press. “Unless they’re like, ‘a couple million dollars, 51.’ I’m ready to move on to other stuff. There’s definitely parts of me that are ready to make a commitment to something else.”
Miller admits that the transition away from fighting is not likely to be an easy one. He’s competed as a professional since 2005, and met his wife training at his very first gym, just prior to his second fight.
“It’s going to be difficult. It’s going to be f*cking hard to not get to do this. I’ve never had a real job. I framed houses with my father, when I was in college I worked at Buffalo Wild Wings for a little bit, I was a pretty crappy fry cook for a couple months there. But yeah, I’m a fighter, that’s what I do. And I know that everybody’s road is different, and I’m trying to create my own and be in a good spot to move on to something else. And I want to have some energy left to do other stuff.”
“50 is the hard stop; the goal of mine is to get to 30 wins. So in those five fights, get three more wins and really put that one away,” Miller added. In terms of who he’d like to compete against, “just have some fun fights, fight on some big cards and fight some guys that I’ve been fans of forever. I feel like I’m in a really cool spot, I’m in a different spot than most people and in a different spot than most fighters before me. I want to go out and I want to put on shows, but also I’ve cemented Jim ‘F*cking’ Miller. I’m going to go out, and I’m going to finish people, or I’m going to get my f*cking ass kicked trying to do it.”
And so there will be no push to UFC 400, which by one journalist’s estimation will arrive in 2031.
“No, no, no. It’s not even funny,” Miller said, betraying that comment by laughing while saying it. “50 will be it, yeah.”
Watch the full UFC 309 post-fight press conference appearance by Jim Miller above.
