After being dispatched by Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at UFC 134, Forrest Griffin looked like a broken man.
There was a lot going through the mind of Griffin weeks prior to his bout, including his desire to remain fighting in the UFC. But just moments before the post-fight press conference, it was learned that Griffn’s wife was about to give birth to their baby daughter.
UFC President Dana White sympathised with Griffin and understood the situation he was in, and despite the loss, White praised Griffin for his courage to fight.
“Forrest is a warrior. He wears his heart on his sleeve. I have so much respect for him for coming and taking this fight in this situation,” White told MMAJunkie.com.
Griffin stepped in to face Rua in a rematch from UFC 76, where Griffin had submitted the Brazilian in the third round. However, the rematch didn’t go his way, and Griffin was laid out in two minutes by the former Pride FC star. He didn’t look like the same fighter.
“I had a lot of opportunities to go, and I didn’t go. The gameplan was to get off after he missed. He missed a couple of times big, and I just stood there and let him off the hook,” Griffin said.
Griffin’s record falls to 2-3 in his last five bouts, but White stands behind him with full support. He said Griffin still remains relevant in the light heavyweight division, even though he’s had a poor showing as of late.
“There’s no doubt Forrest is top-10,” White said.
“He can go out and beat anybody on any given night. you never know with him. He’s tough.”
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