Mark Munoz will make a quick return to the Octagon at UFC: Manila, and according to the aging middleweight, this fight will be his last.
After Munoz was brutally choked unconscious in the first round at UFC 184 against Roan Carneiro, many fans and critics wondered where he would go. Was it the end? Should it be the end?
Despite his three-fight losing streak (all via first-round finishes, no less), Munoz is making one last run inside the cage. According to a news blast posted to the UFC’s website, Munoz will take on English middleweight Luke Barnatt on May 16 at UFC Fight Night: Edgar vs. Faber in Manila.
Munoz, a Filipino-American, has long expressed his desire to fight in his family’s homeland, and now he looks to capitalize on that opportunity and finish his career on a winning note against Barnatt.
While this moment could translate nicely to the silver screen and paint an intimate, emotional scene, MMA doesn’t follow a script, and Munoz’s decision is perhaps a bit hasty.
His performances of late have been downright scary, and he’s lost four out of his last five bouts in brutal fashion, two via knockout and two via submission.
Still, it’s nice on some level to see him achieve his goal of fighting in the Philippines. Maybe this is what he needs to sit back, focus and squeeze out one more vintage Filipino Wrecking Machine victory via brutal ground-and-pound.
Or maybe this is where he gets wrecked for the last time. Maybe this final thrashing is the one that ends his career and severely affects his later years.
It’s a dramatic thought, sure, but there’s no doubt this potentially romantic and happy ending to Munoz’s career could turn into a horror story in an instant.
Munoz famously employed a mental-health coach in early 2014 to help with his depression, and repeated concussions have been linked with depression. The warning signs are already there.
But Munoz is giving it one last shot. He’s seizing one more chance at glory in front of a packed crowd of adoring fans. Against a rangy, lanky, technical striker in Barnatt, Munoz will need to overcome a physical disadvantage and piece together a smart, safe game plan to secure victory, something he hasn’t come close to doing in his past three tries.
Go get ’em, Mr. Munoz.
But please don’t get hurt.
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