One of the greatest welterweights of all time left his gloves in
the cage on Saturday night.
In the co-main event of Bellator 246 on Saturday night, former
Bellator MMA and Ultimate Fighting Championship title challenger
Jon
Fitch (32-8-2-1NC) clashed with Neiman
Gracie. After being forced to tap to
a nasty heel hook in the second stanza, the 42-year-old veteran
announced his retirement from MMA after a run that lasted more than
18 years.
Speaking at the Bellator 246 post-fight press conference, Fitch
revealed that he is still having a lot of fun fighting, but
admitted that time is catching up with him.
“I had a lot of fun, but at the same time, the body doesn’t react
the way I want it to anymore. The recovery’s not quite the same,”
Fitch said. “I don’t want to go down a dirty road, so I think it’s
a great time. 32-8-2-1, it’s pretty good. I’ve got the titles I’ve
won. Neiman is a great fighter and a great guy and a total class
act, I hope he keeps moving forward and hopefully becomes the
champ. That would be great.”
Fitch added that overall, “it was a good, good run,” before opening
up about the most significant moments in his career.
“[The] two biggest moments were the Georges St.
Pierre fight, and when I got to fight in Brazil, just because
all everything around those fights, the build-up, the experiences,
it was all awesome,” he confessed. “The [World Series of Fighting] final title fight was
amazing. Jake Shields
and Madison Square Garden was amazing. It’s a list of hits.”
Fitch’s professional career started in 2002. After suffering a
first-round submission defeat against fellow future standout
Mike
Pyle in his debut, he bounced back and put together a record of
11-2 with one no-contest before signing with the UFC. Fitch made
his Octagon debut at UFC Fight Night 2 in October 2005, edging out
Brock
Larson. He then went on to win his first eight fights in the
UFC, earning a title shot against St. Pierre at UFC 87, where he
lost by unanimous decision.
Shortly after his stint in the UFC ended, he captured the vacant
WSOF belt at the expense of Joao
Zeferino, defending the championship a couple of times before
vacating it and joining Bellator MMA. He took part in the 2019
Bellator Welterweight World Grand Prix, where he faced welterweight
champion Rory
MacDonald at Bellator 220 in a back-and-forth battle that ended
in a majority draw. Due to the fight ending in a tie, the defending
champion retained the strap.