Julian Erosa Retires After First-Round Knockout of JeongYeong Lee at UFC Vegas 123

The 37-year-old knocked out “Korean Tiger” with a right hand in the first round at UFC Vegas 123 at the Meta Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. “Juicy J” now walks away with a 32-13 pro record and a 10-9 mark inside the octagon across three UFC stints.

Julian Erosa Announced UFC Vegas 123 Would Be His Final Fight

Julian Erosa's retirement didn’t come by surprise. As he had previously made it clear that his clash with Lee would be the final bout of his career, no matter the result, win or lose.

Ahead of fight week, the Yakima native told Fanatics View that he set a firm end date because he knew he would want to keep fighting either way. He said:

“I haven’t really made it a big deal, but this will be my last fight... The order of things that are important in my life has switched a little bit after having my son.”

In the build-up to UFC Vegas 123, the featherweight veteran also told Cageside Press that he wanted to leave the sport with his health intact for his two-and-a-half-year-old son. He added:

“A huge variable is my son. I wanna be cognitively available for him and my grandkids. When I’m 60, I don’t want to forget what his name is and that kind of stuff."

Darren Elkins’ retirement also played an influential role in this decision. Erosa previously stopped the veteran at UFC 314 in April 2025, and watching Elkins walk away for good on Aug. 8 made him realize he had to make the call sooner rather than later. At the end, it came down to one simple idea for the TUF 22 alum:

"I wanna retire from fighting. I don’t want fighting to retire me."

Julian Erosa Rallies From Early Knockdown for Fairytale Exit

Erosa, 38, went into the bout on a two-fight skid, having dropped a decision to Melquizael Costa in May 2025 before getting knocked out by Lerryan Douglas in March. 

For a moment, it looked like Lee might hand him a third straight loss. The South Korean hurt him early and sent him to the canvas. However, “Juicy J” bounced back. He regained his footing and held his ground during the exchanges. 

Thereafter, he caught Lee with a clean right hand that put him down. The Washington native then swarmed Lee with punches on the ground until referee Chris Tognoni ended the bout at 1:31 of the first round. 

Speaking to Daniel Cormier in his octagon interview, he said:

“You know, it’s not a Juicy J fight without getting hurt beforehand and coming back and getting the win. So, I love it, man. I’m so happy.”

Check out the interview below:

UFC on Paramount+ also paid tribute to the veteran on X. The account wrote:

“Julian Erosa lays down the gloves in the Octagon, surrounded by his family. Congratulations on an incredible career, Julian!”

Check out the post below: