MrPerfect
MuscleChemistry Guru
Tito Ortiz laughed it off at first. Then he realized they were serious.
Not long after Matt Hamill handed him his third consecutive loss at this past October's UFC 121 event, he got a call from UFC executive Lorenzo Fertitta and UFC president Dana White.
They told him he should retire. After the initial surprise, he pleaded with them.
"I said, 'You guys have got to give me a chance, man,'" Ortiz told "Look at my last fights. I fought Forrest Griffin last year with a ruptured disk in my neck, and I still fought to a split decision. I come back a year later after neck surgery, and I fight a guy who's on a five-fight win streak, and I lost a couple of takedowns.
"You guys think I should retire? It's just crazy."
He eventually convinced them to give him one last shot. White later called him back, and Ortiz (15-8-1 MMA, 14-8-1 UFC) asked for a fight with Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (19-4 MMA, 2-1 UFC), the twin brother of former PRIDE and UFC champ Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. "Little Nog" had most recently lost a unanimous decision to blue-chip prospect Ryan Bader.
The two are now set to meet in the headliner of the recently announced UFC Fight Night 24 event, which takes place March 26 at Seattle's KeyArena and airs live on Spike TV.
"I probably could have gotten an easier fight, but I wanted to challenge myself," Ortiz said. "Do I fight someone who I'm supposed to beat, or do I fight someone that's supposed to beat me? I like these terms better."
This past Saturday, White said Ortiz will "probably retire" if he loses to Nogueira.
Not long after Matt Hamill handed him his third consecutive loss at this past October's UFC 121 event, he got a call from UFC executive Lorenzo Fertitta and UFC president Dana White.
They told him he should retire. After the initial surprise, he pleaded with them.
"I said, 'You guys have got to give me a chance, man,'" Ortiz told "Look at my last fights. I fought Forrest Griffin last year with a ruptured disk in my neck, and I still fought to a split decision. I come back a year later after neck surgery, and I fight a guy who's on a five-fight win streak, and I lost a couple of takedowns.
"You guys think I should retire? It's just crazy."
He eventually convinced them to give him one last shot. White later called him back, and Ortiz (15-8-1 MMA, 14-8-1 UFC) asked for a fight with Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (19-4 MMA, 2-1 UFC), the twin brother of former PRIDE and UFC champ Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. "Little Nog" had most recently lost a unanimous decision to blue-chip prospect Ryan Bader.
The two are now set to meet in the headliner of the recently announced UFC Fight Night 24 event, which takes place March 26 at Seattle's KeyArena and airs live on Spike TV.
"I probably could have gotten an easier fight, but I wanted to challenge myself," Ortiz said. "Do I fight someone who I'm supposed to beat, or do I fight someone that's supposed to beat me? I like these terms better."
This past Saturday, White said Ortiz will "probably retire" if he loses to Nogueira.
