Tito Ortiz admits he would’ve advised Chuck Liddell to stay retired had he not been his opponent.
Ortiz went one-on-one with Liddell a third time. The bout headlined Golden Boy Promotions’ mixed martial arts debut. This time, “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” emerged victorious via first-round knockout.
Tito Ortiz Talks Chuck Liddell’s Decision To Return
Ortiz told reporters during the post-fight press conference that if he were Liddell’s manager, he would’ve advised “The Iceman” to stay away from active competition (via MMAFighting.com):
“If I was his manager, then no. I would have told Chuck, ‘No, let’s get you an ambassador job. Let’s promote your name and get you to signings and do other means of making money.’ You can’t hold someone back,” said Ortiz. “If they feel something they want to do and they want to fight and continue to fight, then you’ve go to let them walk out on their own. So, If he still wants to fight, then let’s find him an opponent. Let’s find him someone that isn’t a Tito Ortiz. I don’t want to take anything away from Chuck. If wants to compete, then let him compete. Maybe not as a main event, of course. But let’s find him someone that’s a tune-up for him, because I’m not a tune-up fight.”
MMA News provided live coverage of Liddell vs. Ortiz III. You can peep the homepage for results, highlights, and post-fight tidbits from Golden Boy Promotions’ first MMA event.
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