The Tito Ortiz and Forrest Griffin story came to a close at UFC 148. The match would be Ortiz’ last as he had announced his retirement in the lead-up to the fight. The fight had a nostalgia factor as Ortiz claimed to be healthy for the first time and in the opening round, he looked to be in vintage form.
Unfortunately, both fighters faded pretty fast and the fight went from being exciting to losing some steam midway through the third round. UFC President Dana White was critical when addressing the fight.
“Both Tito and Forrest looked old tonight. Anybody who thought that those guys looked good tonight is out of their f***ing mind. They both looked old. Tito barely beat Forrest the first time. Forrest barely beat Tito the second time. And Forrest barely beat Tito tonight,” White told Bleacher Report after the UFC 148 post-fight press conference.
“All three of those fights looked the same except this was the slowest and sloppiest of the three that they’ve had. And my point in saying that isn’t to beat up on Forrest and Tito. That’s what you see when a guy starts to get closer—and they’re younger than Anderson, you know what I’m saying?”
With Tito’s retirement, it truly is the end of the Golden Age of the UFC. His compatriots Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture had already called it quits, leaving only Ortiz to represent the older generation of UFC light heavyweights.
“That’s what happens in this business and not just this business but all sports. There’s always an end to an era man. Your heroes, your guys. F***ing Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys died. Beastie Boys were supposed to be young forever man. I’m just saying, that’s my generation.”
He’d go on to add, “I seriously haven’t been impacted by a death in a long time like I was with the Beastie Boys. It’s life. It’s the way that it happens. It’s the end of an era. It’s the way that it goes. The old guys go out and the new guys come in. Especially in this sport, it’s a young man’s game.”
He’s right, it’s the end of an era. And we witnessed history.
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