Ex-UFC featherweight champion Germaine de Randamie has revealed she’s pregnant, and the baby is due in early 2023.
The 38-year-old veteran from Holland made the announcement via Instagram.
“We can finally scream it from the top of our lungs ” WE ARE PREGNANT,” de Randamie wrote. “We are blessed with our little miracle, expected March 2023.”
De Randamie hasn’t competed in the UFC in over two years; her last win was via submission over Julianna Pena in 2020. She was booked for a fight at UFC 268 this past November, but ultimately dropped out of a matchup against Irene Aldana due to injury.
During her UFC career, de Randamie has primarily competed at 135 pounds, but she moved up to 145 pounds to fight for the inaugural UFC featherweight title. With a unanimous victory over Holly Holm, she became UFC’s first featherweight champion.
De Randamie was later stripped of the belt after she refused to defend her title against Cris Cyborg, citing the then-challenger’s past with performance-enhancing drugs. She vowed to fight on and returned to bantamweight, where she posted a 3-1 record in her next four fights with her only loss coming by way of decision against Amanda Nunes.
De Randamie was inactive for much of her UFC career. She missed long periods while she worked full-time in her homeland as a police officer. She was eventually removed from the UFC rankings after dropping out of the fight with Aldana in 2021.
She now takes a much bigger break from action as she prepares to welcome her first child alongside her partner.
