Matt Brown scored himself another performance bonus — just not the kind you’re thinking of.
After 43 fights and nearly 20 years as a professional mixed martial artist, ‘The Immortal’ announced his retirement in March.
“Not doing it again. I’m out,” Brown wrote on X. “That’s the announcement. My life will now be dedicated to serving others. Growing others in the martial arts and building businesses that can help the community and the world.”
While Matt Brown was content with a no-frills announcement, the UFC still chose to pay tribute to ‘The Immortal’ courtesy of a highlight-reel that aired during Saturday’s event in St. Louis. As it turns out, Brown was on a date at the time and just happened the video package moments after arriving at his restaurant of choice.
Matt Brown confirms receipt of his ‘bonus’ on the MMA Hour
In addition to his posts on social media, Brown offered some extra insight during an appearance on Wednesday’s episode of The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani.
Matt Brown says he got the "Performance of the Night bonus" after his career montage played while he was on a date.
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— MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) May 15, 2024
“It actually wasn’t a first date. It was a second date, but we went to this restaurant and I had no idea that this restaurant would be playing the UFC. I didn’t even know there was a UFC going on. We sat down and it wasn’t even two minutes later they started playing the montage and she knew nothing about the UFC. When I first told her I was a UFC fighter, she was like, ‘Do you mean a boxer or WWE?’
“And then they started playing the montage and I struggled between having that heartwarming feeling and wanting to shed a little tear and then turning around, looking at her, and just flexing. She was actually pretty cool about it. She was a mature enough lady that she was nice about it and had respect for it, but she wasn’t crawling under the table right then like some girls would.”
Brown’s final appearance inside the Octagon came in May 2023 when he scored a first-round knockout against Cub Swanson at UFC on ABC 4.
Overall, he went 24-19 in MMA with 17 of his wins coming under the UFC banner.