Episode 271: The Ultimate Fighter - an interview with Jim Miller

Jim Miller is a 38-year-old professional mixed martial arts athlete from Sparta Township, New Jersey. He currently holds the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) records for the most wins, most bouts, most submission wins, and most fight time (6:03:59) in the lightweight division. He has been awarded Fight of the Night 7 times and Fight of the Year.

In 2016, after losing a unanimous decision, he decided he would announce his retirement after a final bout at UFC 200. Because he believed that 11 years of MMA had taken a physical toll, he planned to stand in the middle of the Octagon, “thank his fans, and call it a career.”

Prior to his retirement bout, he visited his doctor and described the ever-widening array of symptoms that began in 2013, the same year he suffered a tick bite. His doctor diagnosed him with and began to treat him for Lyme disease.

Initially, he treated with 6 months of doxycycline and followed a disciplined exercise, diet, and mindset strategy he developed for MMA bouts. When his symptoms returned, his doctor prescribed an additional 2 years of antibiotic treatment.

After treatment, Mr. Miller returned to the Octagon and defeated Ultimate Fighter Champion Joe Lauzon on Fox in Vancouver and then put on his best performance of the year by defeating Thiago Alves at UFC 205 in New York.

If you would like to learn how Lyme disease landed a near career end blow to a UFC mixed martial arts legend, then tune in now!