At 48 years of age, Chuck Liddell staged a comeback on Saturday night but the result was probably worse than anything he could have imagined as he suffered a first round knockout to Tito Ortiz.
In the lead up to the fight, Liddell was constantly questioned about his motivation to return as well as his health after eight years away from competition and a retirement in 2010 that ended after several brutal knockouts.
Immediately after the event ended, Liddell still wasn’t ready to address his immediate future while seemingly leaving the door open on another possible fight.
“I don’t want to think about that right now,” Liddell said at the post fight press conference. “I’m not in the right state of mind to talk about whether or not I’m done or not.
“I felt good out there and I had fun. So we’ll see.”
Liddell will turn 49 in December and following his performance on Saturday night, most believed that he probably shouldn’t have returned in the first place much less contemplate taking another fight.
Still, Liddell was insistent that the entire process of getting back into shape and preparing for the fight was a great experience for him.
Liddell did say that there might be an option for him to coach younger fighters and work with up and coming athletes so he could stay in training camp but not specifically get ready to fight.
That said, Liddell isn’t ready to close to door on anything, especially just minutes after suffering the knockout loss to Ortiz.
“You’ve got to understand, I love fighting,” Liddell said. “I never did this for money or fame, that’s not why I started. I do this because I love being out there, I love fighting. I wish I had done a few things different obviously but it happens.”
Should Chuck Liddell consider another fight or call it a career for the second time? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
