Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
On Saturday night, at UFC 137, two MMA legends called it quits. Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic and BJ “The Prodigy” Penn have both had illustrious careers in mixed martial arts: Filipovic won the Pride Open Weight Grand Prix in 2006 and is one of the most decorated strikers in the sport’s history; Penn is only one of two men to win a UFC title in two weight classes. Despite their respective accomplishments, both of these gifted pugilists have fallen upon hard times as of late, and Saturday night in Las Vegas may have been the last time we see either of these two men compete in the UFC’s octagon.
Leading up to UFC 137, Filipovic hinted that his fight against Roy Nelson would be his last, regardless of the outcome. Before Saturday, he had lost two straight fights by knockout, and was 2-3 in his last five contests.
“I wish you could see the new Cro Cop, 15 years younger,” he said at a pre-fight press conference. “I wish it’s possible, but unfortunately I’m 37 and this could easily be my last fight in the UFC. It has nothing to do with the result, if I win or lose.”
Mirko Cro Cop (left) has one of the best highlight reels in the sport.
Unfortunately for the Croation striker, his swan song was one of defeat. Despite performing well early and having Nelson on the ropes in the second round, he succumbed to a right hand and flurry of ground punches from his opponent shortly into the third stanza.
“I wanted to say goodbye with a victory, but Roy was better tonight,” said Filipovic in his post-fight interview, basked in applause from revering fans. “I want to thank you all guys, especially UFC fans. I was treated like a king.”
Filipovic leaves behind an unwavering legacy and an incredible highlight reel to the sport of MMA, and he will be missed. But he wasn’t the only MMA mainstay to step away from the sport on Saturday.
Read the rest of the article at: http://www.chatsports.com/mma/a/2011-and-the-Fading-of-the-Old-Guard-10-196-64
Yeah, it sucks. Some guys epitomize the sport for us and I never want to see them leave. But it has to happen.
Ghetto-Top-Team - Yeah, it sucks. Some guys epitomize the sport for us and I never want to see them leave. But it has to happen.
Yeah, watching guys like Big Nog, Hughes, Penn, and Wandy kind of slow down and lose is pretty sad. Lots of new exciting guys coming up, but it's hard not to get nostalgic for those fights. Nog's KO against Schaub was on the best MMA moments in recent memory for me though.
heroder - not really
HW division is filled with old guard
Barnett, Mir, Werdum, Big Nog, and even AO
but other then that other divisions seem to be getting fresher I agree
That seems to be the division with the most longevity for the older fighters, for some reason. For some reason I didn't think of Mir as "old guard" because of how rapidly he's still improving, but yeah, he's been fighting for awhile now.