UFC ring girl Brittney Palmer Opens Up About Retirement and Future Plans

02 February 2024

MMA icon and artist, Brittney Palmer, recently shared insights into her retirement from the role of UFC ring girl, revealing her multiple revenue streams and future artistic projects. Palmer, 36, who had served as a ring girl since UFC 125 in 2011, announced her retirement at the 15th Annual Fighters Only World MMA Awards in December 2023.

Beyond her contributions as a ring girl, Palmer has established herself as an accomplished contemporary artist and model. She has collaborated with the UFC and Topps trading cards, creating notable works for International Fight Week and featuring fighters like Conor McGregor and Jon Jones. Palmer emphasized her ongoing commitment to art and revealed an upcoming mural project.

“I paint for the UFC now,” Palmer stated. “That’s going to be something that I want to continuously do. I’m working on a mural project right now, hopefully as long as everything goes as planned, I’ll be painting it during UFC 300. I will always kind of be in that world of painting with the fighters, just because I have such a good relationship with UFC.”

Discussing her retirement announcement at the awards show, Palmer explained that she tried to inform UFC CEO Dana White beforehand but received no response. She eventually broke the news to him backstage. Despite the initial surprise, White expressed excitement for Palmer and recognized the inevitability of transitions in life.

Palmer admitted that stepping away from live UFC events is an adjustment, describing an initial sense of identity crisis. However, she expressed no regrets and acknowledged the need to establish resilience to change and focus on her artistic endeavors.

“To be completely transparent, there is an identity crisis,” Palmer said. “It’s not a crisis, but this is what I’ve known for so long. Who am I without this? I have to start establishing this resilience to change and what my next path is and how I’m going to balance everything.”

Reflecting on her career, Palmer noted that she always considered retiring when her art career reached a level comparable to her UFC career. At 36 years old, she felt it was the right time to make the decision. Despite the initial adjustments, Palmer looks forward to dedicating more time to her art and exploring new opportunities.

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“I’m not going to force myself to do something if I don’t feel like doing it,” Palmer affirmed. “Now that I have more time to create my art, what am I going to do with my time? I think that’s what’s my focus right now rather than just jumping in and starting everything new and complicating things. I need to kind of declutter and settle in and then push forward.”