UFC Vegas 100 fighter shuts down retirement speculations after back-to-back defeats: "Losing fights is part of the sport"

Karolina Kowalkiewicz was unable to get back in the win column on Saturday as she suffered a unanimous decision loss to Denise Gomes at UFC Vegas 100. It marked her second consecutive loss and led to speculation that the former women's strawweight title contender could retire from mixed martial arts.

The 39-year-old took to Instagram the day after the loss to share that she doesn't have any plans to retire. Kowalkiewicz shared a photo getting her gloves taped on Instagram, captioning the post:

"If you work hard for something and you don’t achieve your goal, you have the right to be sad and angry. I’m sad but I’m also happy and grateful that I can do what I love. Losing fights is part of the sport. I won’t look for excuses... @deegomes_ was better, congratulations on her win and good luck in her future career. UFC thank you from the bottom of my heart for letting me be a part of it ❤️ 🙏 I hope you will see me in the octagon again sooner than you think ❤️"

Check out Karolina Kowalkiewicz's Instagram post below:

Kowalkiewicz has lost each of her past two bouts via unanimous decision. That follows a four-fight winning streak, which was preceded by four consecutive losses. Despite speculation that she will retire, the former women's strawweight title contender plans to continue fighting.

Carlos Prates makes a statement with knockout win at UFC Vegas 100

Carlos Prates entered UFC Vegas 100 with the biggest opportunity of his mixed martial arts career. The card marked the first main event bout of his UFC career and his first opportunity to face a ranked welterweight opponent.

'The Nightmare' lived up to his nickname as he defeated Neil Magny via first-round knockout to earn a place in the rankings when they get updated later this week.

It marked his fourth consecutive knockout since making his promotional debut at UFC Fight Night 236 in February. Prates also earned a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus for his show-stopping knockout, marking his fourth time earning the bonus in just as many fights.

Following the bout, he was able to get Jon Jones, Aljamain Sterling, Caio Borralho, Khalil Rountree Jr., and Ode Osborne all in on the Fighting Nerds celebration. Championship Rounds shared a picture of the fighters wearing the glasses, captioning the post:

"Jon Jones, Khalil Rountree, Aljamain Sterling, Caio Borralho and Ode Osbourne pose for a picture with Carlos Prates rocking the Fighting Nerds glasses 😭🔥 #UFCVegas100 #UFC #MMA"

Check out the post from Championship Rounds below: