During the UFC 297 pay-per-view (PPV) stream last Sat. night (Jan. 20, 2024) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, it was announced that former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Lightweight champion, Frankie Edgar, would be inducted into the Modern Wing of the UFC Hall of Fame for the upcoming 2024 ceremony.
“Frankie Edgar is one of the greatest athletes in UFC history,” UFC CEO Dana White said in a recent press release. “Frankie had an amazing career and consistently fought the best athletes in the world across multiple weight classes for more than 15 years. He is a legend, and it will be an honor to induct him into the UFC Hall of Fame as part of International Fight Week this summer.”
Following the announcement, UFC’s Megan Olivi caught up with “The Answer” to get his reaction to his latest accomplishment in his storied mixed martial arts (MMA) career.
“I was floored, I really was. It’s a special moment, I got a million texts. It feels like I just fought so it is really cool,” said Edgar, who also appreciated the outpouring of love he got from his fellow UFC colleagues. “That is the best, to get it from your peers. So to get it from these guys … we are all in the same pursuit, so to get the acknowledgement of these guys is amazing.”
“Winning the championship always stands out, but probably Maynard three,” Edgar said about his top career highlights. “It was a good ending to the whole trilogy. But yeah, I am ecstatic.”
Edgar, now 42, initially won the 155-pound title by defeating B.J. Penn at UFC 112 in April 2010, just eight fights and three years into his UFC career. He went on to defend his belt twice, once against Penn and then against Gray Maynard, knocking “The Bully” out at UFC 136 to put an end to their rivalry once and for all (recap here).
“The Answer” went on to lose his belt to Benson Henderson shortly thereafter, and failed to reclaim the strap against “Smooth” in their immediate rematch. Six months later, Edgar made his Featherweight debut against Jose Aldo, but ultimately came up short in his bid to win a second title. Edgar earned two more tries after that against Aldo and Max Holloway, but lost both fights.
Edgar eventually made a drop down to Bantamweight where he went 1-3, losing the last three fights of his UFC career via knockout before he decided to retire for good following his loss to Chris Gutiérrez at UFC 281. “The Answer” left UFC with an 18-11-1 record inside the Octagon, 24-11-1 overall as a pro.