Photo via UFC.com
Former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar stepped into the Octagon for the last time as a fighter Friday night (Dec. 30, 2011), retiring after his loss to Alistair Overeem at the UFC 141 event.
In the first round of their bout, Lesnar took a kick to the liver sending him to the mat clutching his side. Overeem would swarm in for the finish with Lesnar covering up, forcing referee Mario Yamasaki to end the fight at 2:26 of the first round.
During the post fight speeches, Lesnar told color commentator Joe Rogan and the fans, that this was officially his last fight.
“My hat’s off to Alistair Overeem. I want to take my hat off to all my training partners, my wife, my family. I’ve had a really difficult couple of years with my disease and uh…I’m gonna officially say that tonight will be the last time you’ll see me in the octagon. I wanna thank everybody…the Fertittas, Dana White. Brock Lesnar is officially retired. I promised my wife and my kids that if I won this fight I would get a title shot and that would have been my last one but if I lost tonight I’d retire. Everyone you’ve been great. Alistair, it’s been a pleasure.”
Lesnar retires from mixed martial arts with a record of 5-3 pro bouts, having earned the UFC heavyweight title in his fourth match by defeating Randy Couture at UFC 91 back in November 2008. He would go on to defend that title twice more by defeating Frank Mir, at UFC 100, and Shane Carwin, at UFC 116. Lesnar would lose to Cain Velasquez over a year ago at UFC 121 and finally to Alistair Overeem tonight at UFC 141.
UFC 141 took place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.