The UFC announced that Tito Ortiz will join the UFC Hall of Fame with an induction ceremony the same day as his fight with Forrest Griffin on Saturday, July 7th. Thus, Ortiz will be fighting his last bout in the UFC as a current Hall of Famer.
Via UFC Press Release:
Ortiz will be officially inducted at midday on July 7 at the UFC Fan Expo, meaning he will fight the final bout of his 15-year career against old nemesis Forrest Griffin at UFC 148 on July 7 as a confirmed UFC Hall of Famer. Ortiz is the first inductee since 2010, and joins Matt Hughes, MMA pioneer Charles ‘Mask’ Lewis, Mark Coleman, Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock, Dan Severn as well as contemporaries Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture in the pantheon of Octagon immortals.
The release also had comments from Dana White:
“Everyone knows the story of me and Tito and all the things that went on between us. A lot of it wasn’t fun at the time, but all that controversy and craziness is now part of the story of the UFC, and there’s no question that in his prime he was a huge star and one of the greats of his era.”
“You can’t write the story of this era of mixed martial arts without Tito Ortiz, and that’s why he belongs in the Hall of Fame. He’s been in the UFC for 15 years – and sticking around that long is an achievement in itself – and now he’s down to just 15 minutes at UFC 148. Believe me, I know how proud and stubborn this guy is and I expect him to use everything he has left as a fighter to go out as a winner at UFC 148.”
Payout Perspective:
This ending is a good companion piece to the Silva-Sonnen main event. Ortiz has done his part in making the media rounds for his last fight at UFC 148. It seems as though the fans have gravitated toward Ortiz since his upset win over Ryan Bader last July. Call it nostalgia, but even though fans may have grown tired of his antics and excuses in recent years, the last year has been a farewell tour for Ortiz. A classy move by Dana White, or maybe a business move to put Ortiz in the Hall of Fame the same night as his last match. Despite their feuds, it was the right thing for White to do. Not only does it honor Ortiz, it should boost fan interest.
As a side note, does anyone else remember in the early years that Spike or Fox was to air a boxing match between Ortiz and White?
LOL 2006/2007 isnt the early years hahahaha. But yeah i remember but Tito punked out. Dana was filming and training to sell it for charity and Tito pulled out. Dana would have won but it wouldnt have been a land slide and pretty uneventful. He wasnt in good great shape like tito but im sure was quicker and titos striking was very slow and no defense. I think Dana would have edged him on points.
I used to be a huge Tito fan. Tank Abbott was my original favorite and he got Tito into the UFC. So i liked him because he had that cockyness about him. When Tito was on top of the world and when he believe he was the best. He was th emost entertaining fighter in the game at the time. He was the Chael Sonnen of the day. He believed he was the best and he let you know it while basking in his success. I stopped being a fan of his when he lost that confidence. Tito is a weak minded guy. He has to be liked and he loves attention. Once his confidence was shaken he would make a fool of himself. Duck fights, try to convience people of his excuses when he lost. Ever since he spends all his time trying to tell people how great he is. Just today on ESPN i wake up and there is Tito telling why he deserved to be in UFC HOF.I been blessed with great skills, i come from nothing to be a successful businessman, i won the belt with only 18 months of training. He says all the stuff about himself that others are supposed to say about you. A Tito while on top was one of the best fighters. Non Champion Tito has the mind of a child and is unbarable to listen to. He lost his “I dont give a damn” fighters mentality and turned into a businessman who did everything he could to try to make money to avoid fighting. I still root for him becaus ei have a lot of fond memories of his good years. But people who were around when he was champ for all those years knows the tito then and now is like night and day.
Yeah, what an idiot to treat his career as a way to make money and take care of his family instead of letting Dana dictate his life. Loser.
Yeah maybe every fighter or athlete for that matter should not Try to be the best but duck opponents and not honor their contracts. Let’s face it Tito was the biggest fraud in the UFC. His hair color is t real, his nick name was stolen from Tank, his prefight lasso routine was stolen from Tank. The guy never honors an agreement and has a criminal record as a thief. Yeah he is just trying to take care of his family. He dropped his high school sweetheart wife of 5 years like a bad habit once he started making big money for a worn out pornstar. Everything he does is to feed his ego even to the point of being a scumbag most of the time. Dana White made Tito. The 205 division was created for him. Dana was also his manager at one point. But just like Tank who got Tito into MMA and Dana who made him a star in MMA. Tito stabbed both in the back. What a hero!