“I’d love for it to be Demian’s retirement match. I know he’s looking for a retirement match, so I would love that out of respect for him.”
UFC veteran Matt Brown has nothing but respect for Demian Maia but he’d love to avenge his loss to the Brazilian following his highlight-reel knockout of Dhiego Lima at UFC Vegas 29.
Brown was submitted by Maia in a welterweight bout back in 2016 and ‘The Immortal’ would love nothing more than to rematch the BJJ legend in his last fight under the UFC banner.
“I’d love for it to be Demian’s retirement match,” Brown told the media following his stunning KO of Lima at UFC on ESPN 25 (h/t BJPenn.com). “I know he’s looking for a retirement match, so I would love that out of respect for him. He’s a true legend, and just like I fought him the first time, I was like, ‘He’s the worst matchup in the division for me.’ And I like that challenge. I think I’m more up for it now than I was before.”
Maia, 43, is on a two-fight losing streak and has pleaded with the UFC for one last fight before closing out his career. Brown may also be nearing the end of his UFC tenure after thirteen celebrated years with the promotion but the 40-year-old proved on Saturday that he is still very much a force to be reckoned with.
Brown is, as of writing, unranked at welterweight while Maia, a former title challenger at middleweight, is ranked #11.