Dana White gives Tito Ortiz one last chance with UFC
Following his loss to Matt Hamill on 23 October, it looked as if Tito Ortiz’s time with the Ultimate Fighting Championship would be coming to an end. Ortiz has not won a UFC fight since
2006, but he will get one more chance to keep his UFC career alive when he faces Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at UFC 128, scheduled for March 2011.
“I thought I was going to cut him,” UFC president Dana White said. “I talked to Tito, me and Tito had a conversation, and Tito said ‘I’m not done, I feel healthy, I feel good’, and he
asked me for one more chance. So I’m going to do it. I’m not the evil b*****d everyone thinks I am, (but) this is definitely his last chance. And he knows that too.”
The loss to Hamill at UFC 121 put Ortiz’s UFC record over his last five fights at 0-4-1. Ortiz's last victory inside the Octagon was a technical knock-out victory over Ken Shamrock on
10 October 2006. Ortiz was awarded “Knockout of the Night” and a $30,000 bonus for that win.
It is very rare for a fighter to stay with the UFC after losing four fights in a row. As White said in an interview after Ortiz’s loss to Hamill, “I think we know what happens when you
lose four in a row in the UFC.” In fact, two fighters were released after adding to their losing streaks following UFC 121. Patrick Cote was released after losing three fights in a row while Gabriel Gonzaga was released after a two-fight losing streak.
After his loss to Hamill, Ortiz said he was, “Not even close to the end of my career. Decision wise that’s in Dana’s hands, but I’ve gone through some surgeries that people don’t come
back (from). I feel great.”
Even though he is mired in a losing record, Ortiz is a big drawing name for the UFC, with all but one of his mixed martial arts fights coming with the organization. That fact surely came
into play when White decided to give the “Huntington Beach Bad Boy” another UFC fight.
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