UFC veteran Liddell retires
Chuck (The Iceman) Liddell helped build the UFC. Now he's going to help run it.
The UFC Hall of Famer and former light-heavyweight champion announced his retirement Wednesday to become the mixed martial arts organization's executive vice-president for business development.
The 41-year-old Liddell acknowledged it was a title he never expected to precede his name.
"Definitely not, but if I'm going to be a vice-president of something, have a real job, this is the one I want," Liddell said.
Liddell (21-8) talked of retirement in April 2008 after a string of poor performances culminated in a TKO loss to Mauricio (Shogun) Rua at UFC 97 in Montreal. UFC president Dana White, who once managed Liddell, was more definitive before and after the Rua fight, saying it was time for his friend to quit before he got hurt.
But Liddell missed the sport and — after rededicating himself to training — returned to the cage in June at UFC 115 in Vancouver, where he was knocked out by Rich Franklin.
That loss was his third straight and fifth in his last six outings.
"Listen I can't even imagine what it's like to walk out into an arena with 20,000 people screaming your name and all the things that go along with it — and the money and the fun and the fame," said White.
"The reality is he was the king, man. And it's tough to walk away from that."
Emotional
Liddell, who made his pro debut at UFC 17 in May 1998, was emotional in a short visit to the podium at the pre-fight news conference for UFC 125.
The event was in the lobby of the MGM Grand, where he and Tito (The Huntington Beach Bad Boy) helped set the UFC gate record of more than $5 million when they fought at UFC 66 in December 2006.
But later he called he was happy at the new direction, saying he had taken time in making the decision and then asked the UFC to delay making the announcement so he had time to come to grips with it.
"It's hard," he said. "It's all I've done for ever. Shoot, between kickboxing and MMA, I've been fighting for almost 20 years."
Liddell exits as an icon in the sport — the man with the mohawk and a tattoo on the side of his head. The Iceman's reputation extended well beyond the borders of MMA.
Fight fans will remember Liddell's loping style of movement, drawing opponents towards him like a giant spider beckoning a fly. When the time was right, Liddell would strike with a devastating punch or kick.
Prior to Jackson, Liddell had been on a roll. He had won 15 of his 17 UFC fights, with the last loss to Randy (The Natural) Couture at UFC 43 in June 2003.
Liddell still remains a draw and clearly likes drawing a hefty paycheque. Liddell's purse has been listed at $500,000 US for each of his last four fights and that doesn't include a cut of the lucrative pay-per-view revenue.