UFC 97 Notebook: Curtain Falls on Liddell
Brian Knapp Apr 20, 2009
It had all the feel of a eulogy.
UFC President Dana White effectively bid adieu to former light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell as a competitive mixed martial artist following his fourth loss in five fights at UFC 97 “Redemption” on Saturday at the Bell Centre in Montreal. Liddell succumbed to opening-round strikes against Mauricio "Shogun" Rua in the co-main event, which appears to have marked the end of his legendary career.
“There was no mystery in this,” White said. “My promotion of this
fight was it’s like [Michael] Jordan’s last game. It’s the end of
an era. He’s been with me since I got into mixed martial arts. He’s
been a loyal friend and partner. I know the media likes to portray
me like this tyrant who terrorizes people, but I care about these
guys.”
Since his second technical knockout victory against Tito Ortiz in December 2006, Liddell has been finished three times in five fights. A brutal knockout defeat to reigning 205-pound titleholder Rashad Evans at UFC 88 in September -- an overhand right left him motionless for several minutes -- preceded his latest defeat to Rua.
Liddell, who turns 40 in December, stopped short of an outright retirement announcement but admitted he had likely put on the four-ounce gloves for the final time.
“That’s probably safe to say,” he said. “I’m not going to make any decisions until I go home and talk to everybody.”
Liddell cemented his status as one of the sport’s all-time greats long ago. In addition to the two times he throttled Ortiz, UFC hall of famer Randy Couture and reigning Strikeforce light heavyweight titleholder Renato "Babalu" Sobral, he also holds victories against one-time UFC heavyweight champion Kevin Randleman and current Strikeforce heavyweight kingpin Alistair Overeem. Wanderlei Silva, Murilo Bustamante, Vitor Belfort and Jeff Monson were also victimized by “The Iceman.”
White was adamant that Liddell had fought for the last time.
“My close friend and somebody who I consider a family member has moved on and retired,” he said. “We’ll figure out another spot for him in the organization. Don’t worry about Chuck Liddell. He’s going to do just fine.”
‘Spider’ Bites
For the second time in as many appearances, middleweight champion Anderson Silva finds himself under heavy scrutiny from fans and the media. Not even White, one of his most ardent supporters, could look past his performance in a lackluster five-round decision win against Thales Leites at UFC 97.
“I wasn’t thrilled with it,” said White, who later hinted at challenging the champion with a return to the 205-pound division. “I did not like the fight at all -- on either side.”
Silva moved into the record books as he passed UFC hall of famer Royce Gracie and welterweight contender Jon Fitch for most consecutive victories inside the Octagon with his ninth. The 34-year-old Brazilian has won 10 straight bouts overall. Still, he wound up on the defensive after his triumph over Leites.
Fans chanted for GSP at UFC
97.
“I go out there and train to try and be efficient and have a
perfect fight,” Silva said. “Not every fight is going to be a
knockout. Not every fight is going to be a spectacular finish. What
I trained to do, I felt like I executed in there. He wasn’t able to
execute his game, and I was able to do mine. I walked away with the
victory and the belt still.”
Silva was visibly flustered by the negative reaction he received but remained diplomatic in the face of criticism.
“I’m comfortable with people’s opinions,” he said. “People have a right to their own opinions. I was unable to finish. Sometimes, I’m able to finish guys; sometimes, I’m not able to. I proved to everybody I can go five rounds and I’m in good shape.”
White addressed a potential showdown between Silva and current welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre, who will defend his belt against Brazilian bomber Thiago Alves at UFC 100 on July 11 in Las Vegas. Chants of “GSP! GSP!” rang out during the Silva-Leites match.
“Everybody’s chanting GSP,” White said. “GSP has probably the toughest fight of his career coming up. Do not overlook Thiago Alves. That’s going to be a very hard fight for him. Georges St. Pierre can’t start looking at Anderson Silva until he gets past Thiago Alves.”
UFC Issues Nearly $300K in Bonuses
Lightweights Matt Wiman and Sam Stout picked up matching $70,000 “Fight of the Night” bonuses after their heated and competitive three-round tug-of-war at UFC 97, according to White.
Stout punished Wiman with kicks and punches to the body, and he delivered the only knockdown of the bout with a second-round shot to the liver. The aggressor for much of the fight, Wiman took down Stout in the third round and had him briefly on the brink, as he searched unsuccessfully for a rear-naked choke. Still, his efforts did not sway the judges, who sided with the Canadian kickboxer by matching 29-28 counts.
Rua and “The Ultimate Fighter 8” alum Krzysztof Soszynski also reaped rewards from the post-fight windfall.
The 27-year-old Rua, who knocked Liddell into apparent retirement, banked a $70,000 “Knockout of the Night” bonus. Soszynski, meanwhile, pocketed a $70,000 bonus for “Submission of the Night” after he coaxed a tapout from former World Extreme Cagefighting light heavyweight champion Brian Stann with a first-round kimura.
“These were the biggest bonuses we’ve ever done,” White said.
This & That
UFC 97 drew 21,451 fans for a $4.9 million gate, White reported … Heavyweight Cheick Kongo has the attention of UFC brass. The 33-year-old French kickboxer posted his third victory in a row at UFC 97, as he stopped Antoni Hardonk with some patented ground-and-pound in the second round. “He’s in the mix. Is he getting the next title shot? I can’t answer that, but he’s definitely in the mix,” White said. Split decision losses to Heath Herring and Carmelo Marrero remain the only blemishes on his UFC ledger … One-time middleweight title challenger David Loiseau has lost three consecutive fights inside the UFC. He has not tasted victory in the Octagon since he defeated the late Evan Tanner in October 2005 … Fast-rising Canadian T.J. Grant, 25, extended his current winning streak to five with his split-decision win against Pride Fighting Championships veteran Ryo Chonan … Before he entered the UFC in 2008, Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt David Bielkheden had never been finished. The Swede has lost two of his three fights in the Octagon by first-round submission -- one to strikes from Diego Sanchez and another by rear-naked choke to fellow BJJ black belt Mark Bocek at UFC 97 … During his historic nine-fight run in the UFC, Silva has beaten opponents with a cumulative record of 144-41-2 (2 NC).
UFC President Dana White effectively bid adieu to former light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell as a competitive mixed martial artist following his fourth loss in five fights at UFC 97 “Redemption” on Saturday at the Bell Centre in Montreal. Liddell succumbed to opening-round strikes against Mauricio "Shogun" Rua in the co-main event, which appears to have marked the end of his legendary career.
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Since his second technical knockout victory against Tito Ortiz in December 2006, Liddell has been finished three times in five fights. A brutal knockout defeat to reigning 205-pound titleholder Rashad Evans at UFC 88 in September -- an overhand right left him motionless for several minutes -- preceded his latest defeat to Rua.
“I don’t want to see anybody stick around too long,” White said. “I
don’t want to see anybody get hurt. You’re never going to see Chuck
Liddell on the canvas again.”
Liddell, who turns 40 in December, stopped short of an outright retirement announcement but admitted he had likely put on the four-ounce gloves for the final time.
“That’s probably safe to say,” he said. “I’m not going to make any decisions until I go home and talk to everybody.”
Liddell cemented his status as one of the sport’s all-time greats long ago. In addition to the two times he throttled Ortiz, UFC hall of famer Randy Couture and reigning Strikeforce light heavyweight titleholder Renato "Babalu" Sobral, he also holds victories against one-time UFC heavyweight champion Kevin Randleman and current Strikeforce heavyweight kingpin Alistair Overeem. Wanderlei Silva, Murilo Bustamante, Vitor Belfort and Jeff Monson were also victimized by “The Iceman.”
White was adamant that Liddell had fought for the last time.
“My close friend and somebody who I consider a family member has moved on and retired,” he said. “We’ll figure out another spot for him in the organization. Don’t worry about Chuck Liddell. He’s going to do just fine.”
‘Spider’ Bites
For the second time in as many appearances, middleweight champion Anderson Silva finds himself under heavy scrutiny from fans and the media. Not even White, one of his most ardent supporters, could look past his performance in a lackluster five-round decision win against Thales Leites at UFC 97.
“I wasn’t thrilled with it,” said White, who later hinted at challenging the champion with a return to the 205-pound division. “I did not like the fight at all -- on either side.”
Silva moved into the record books as he passed UFC hall of famer Royce Gracie and welterweight contender Jon Fitch for most consecutive victories inside the Octagon with his ninth. The 34-year-old Brazilian has won 10 straight bouts overall. Still, he wound up on the defensive after his triumph over Leites.
Photo by
Sherdog.com
Silva was visibly flustered by the negative reaction he received but remained diplomatic in the face of criticism.
“I’m comfortable with people’s opinions,” he said. “People have a right to their own opinions. I was unable to finish. Sometimes, I’m able to finish guys; sometimes, I’m not able to. I proved to everybody I can go five rounds and I’m in good shape.”
White addressed a potential showdown between Silva and current welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre, who will defend his belt against Brazilian bomber Thiago Alves at UFC 100 on July 11 in Las Vegas. Chants of “GSP! GSP!” rang out during the Silva-Leites match.
“Everybody’s chanting GSP,” White said. “GSP has probably the toughest fight of his career coming up. Do not overlook Thiago Alves. That’s going to be a very hard fight for him. Georges St. Pierre can’t start looking at Anderson Silva until he gets past Thiago Alves.”
UFC Issues Nearly $300K in Bonuses
Lightweights Matt Wiman and Sam Stout picked up matching $70,000 “Fight of the Night” bonuses after their heated and competitive three-round tug-of-war at UFC 97, according to White.
Stout punished Wiman with kicks and punches to the body, and he delivered the only knockdown of the bout with a second-round shot to the liver. The aggressor for much of the fight, Wiman took down Stout in the third round and had him briefly on the brink, as he searched unsuccessfully for a rear-naked choke. Still, his efforts did not sway the judges, who sided with the Canadian kickboxer by matching 29-28 counts.
Rua and “The Ultimate Fighter 8” alum Krzysztof Soszynski also reaped rewards from the post-fight windfall.
The 27-year-old Rua, who knocked Liddell into apparent retirement, banked a $70,000 “Knockout of the Night” bonus. Soszynski, meanwhile, pocketed a $70,000 bonus for “Submission of the Night” after he coaxed a tapout from former World Extreme Cagefighting light heavyweight champion Brian Stann with a first-round kimura.
“These were the biggest bonuses we’ve ever done,” White said.
This & That
UFC 97 drew 21,451 fans for a $4.9 million gate, White reported … Heavyweight Cheick Kongo has the attention of UFC brass. The 33-year-old French kickboxer posted his third victory in a row at UFC 97, as he stopped Antoni Hardonk with some patented ground-and-pound in the second round. “He’s in the mix. Is he getting the next title shot? I can’t answer that, but he’s definitely in the mix,” White said. Split decision losses to Heath Herring and Carmelo Marrero remain the only blemishes on his UFC ledger … One-time middleweight title challenger David Loiseau has lost three consecutive fights inside the UFC. He has not tasted victory in the Octagon since he defeated the late Evan Tanner in October 2005 … Fast-rising Canadian T.J. Grant, 25, extended his current winning streak to five with his split-decision win against Pride Fighting Championships veteran Ryo Chonan … Before he entered the UFC in 2008, Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt David Bielkheden had never been finished. The Swede has lost two of his three fights in the Octagon by first-round submission -- one to strikes from Diego Sanchez and another by rear-naked choke to fellow BJJ black belt Mark Bocek at UFC 97 … During his historic nine-fight run in the UFC, Silva has beaten opponents with a cumulative record of 144-41-2 (2 NC).
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