Luke Rockhold showed off his grappling skills by taking on a bull.
The former UFC middleweight champion is set to mark his return to action against Paulo Costa at UFC 278. Having been out for over three years, Rockhold will step inside the cage opposite a former title challenger. Ahead of his upcoming matchup, we take a look back at a popular video of Rockhold in another setting.
Luke Rockhold wrangles a bull to full mount
In a video uploaded on his Instagram, Luke Rockhold can be seen wrestling a bull in Montana. He started off by gripping the animal’s head from the side before it took off. As the bull tried to get the 37-year-old Californian off its back, Rockhold managed to pin it down and even get to full mount. The whole clip seems reminiscent of the time Rockhold won the promotional gold against Chris Weidman, using a similar setup.
The announcer hyped up the crowd, “UFC middleweight champion of the world. Let’s see how the rodeo arena treats him.”
Rockhold fired shots at ‘mafia’ UFC
During an appearance on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Luke Rockhold did not hold back in his assessment of the UFC. He criticized the promotion for strong-arming its athletes and playing the power game in negotiations.
“After losing the title, you get disrespected,” Rockhold said (H/T MMA Fighting). “This is a mafia, the UFC. … There’s no rhyme or reason in this game, and when you lose your leverage, these people try to step on you, and then you just fight back, and it’s a constant fight. It’s annoying. It’s f****** sick, it’s disgusting. It needs change, and I’m not scared to say it. …
“Everything I’m saying is right, everything I’m saying is true. I’m not going to bite my lip and not tell it like it is because [I should] wait until I get power and position. F*** off. This is exactly how it is, and it turned me sour in the game.”