But what about Tito?
I don’t mean to call out UFC President Dana White, but he did state something about Tito Ortiz and Rashad Evans following a press conference at UFC 73 that went “we have to see a rematch between Tito and Rashad. It was a good fight…The rematch will happen almost immediately. They will not fight anyone else in between.” Since we now know that Evans will be facing Michael Bisping and not Tito Ortiz at UFC 78, obviously things have changed a little since Whites infamous quote.
Regardless of how Matt Hamill, the fans, or anyone else feels about the current match up of Evans and Bisping, the fate of one Tito Ortiz remains open. At 32 years old, Tito Ortiz is by no means at retirement age, but is still no spring chicken in the world of mixed martial arts. It’s important to remember that while stars like Randy Couture continue to put on great shows, most MMA competitors simply don’t have that kind of shelf life due to injuries (which Tito seems to get plenty of) and management politics. Speaking of which, unless Ortiz has negotiated a new deal with Zuffa, then he only has one fight remaining on his current UFC contract. Since that fight is no longer the rematch we thought would happen, Tito’s next and potentially final bout in the UFC comes with significant extra baggage.
Unfortunately on paper, Tito Ortiz does not look like someone on the rise, but on the decline. Repeatedly unable to reclaim his light-heavyweight title after losing it in 2003, Tito’s only non-split decision wins in the last three years come from his fights with Ken “Over The Hill” Shamrock, and one majority decision over Patrick Cote back in 2004.
Given his reputation for “ducking” certain fights in the past, Ortiz might have more confidence in facing the recently defeated Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. This could be an ideal match for both fighters since Tito claims he needs more time to fully recoup from injuries, and Shogun definitely needs significant recovery time after his knee surgery. Ortiz might also consider the proven yet lackluster Ryoto Machida since Machida recently made news by calling out Keith Jardine. However I personally discourage Machida against Tito since Ryoto Machida just doesn’t produce very exciting fights, though Ortiz may feel differently.
For the long time MMA fan, the rematch between Tito Ortiz and Wanderlei Silva would probably be the most rewarding, and highly entertaining at the least. Unfortunately this option is far from a reality since speculation still heavily favors Silva fighting Chuck Liddell in December. I’d also like to throw Dan Henderson into the mix, but something tells me that Ortiz wants nothing to do with that kind of match up.
While Ortiz remains a favorite among countless MMA fans, the fans unfortunately do not get to pick his opponents. So as long as Tito’s stamp of approval is required, then fans will likely never get to see the match up they had in mind. It would definitely be great to see Tito against a Dan Henderson or Mauricio Rua, but it could just as easily be Keith Jardine, or maybe even a rematch with Forrest Griffin. Whoever Tito ultimately faces off against, the MMA community will be expecting one hell of a show since we were denied his anticipated rematch with Evans, and since it just may be Tito’s last performance inside the octagon.
Tags: Tito Ortiz
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I think maybe in Tito’s contract negotiations with Fretita, he may have asked for time to heal, and Evans might have been given the option of taking the fight with Bisbing. I think this fight is better anyhow, seeing how Tito had the win escept for the lost point which made it a draw. This will give Bisbing and Evans a chance to make a better showing than either of their last apperences.
Tito is one of the top fighters in the UFC and he brings fans to the sport that is MMA. There are so many fights out there fot Tito that will sell PPV’s. If he fought Machida, Jardine, Silva, Alexander or Griffin again; those fights would be huge and sell a lot of PPV’s.
I totally agree. Tito will get back to 100%, and be a top 5 contender again. He will fight ANYONE and make it worth watching, (at 100%)
P.S. EXCEPT(sp-on me)lol
Let Alexander kick the **** out of gorilla head~!
tito doesnt want to fight a nobody. he wants to fight a top teir fighter to boost his career if he wins and have a fall back if he looses
tito hasnt been at his best for some time now and needs to prove that he is more than just a name these days.i think he needs the big fights then we will know just what he has left.he is still a draw for the fans but he needs to be impressive in his next showing.
not dana’s fault if ortiz wants to pretend he is not ready so that he can get an easier match down the road. there are too many at this point who can take his lunch money!
[...] Wondering who Tito may face in his return bout? Check out our earlier article “But what about Tito?“ [...]
EveryBody’s on here acting like every fight that Tito has won has been a split decision, thats Bull in his whole mma career he has only had 2 count em 2 split decisions and at least they were wins…. but Chuck flat out LOST to a TUF contender not a finalist but a TUF contender and nobody said sh*t…. Well at least He hasnt lost to a TUFer Hahahaaa!! Can’t wait to see Tito back in there in ‘08
nobodys sayin titos not a good fighter just that he hasnt been at his best a while now.if hes at his best hes a handful for anyone but he needs to improve on recent showings.
I thank dana should put brock larson up against tito brock would put him out of the sport for good.
I too am looking forward to his return. I am pretty netural when it comes to Tito but with the state of the UFC right now I think Tito’s return is only for the better. He always puts on a good show and draws in fans so the UFC definitely wants him back as soon as possible.
Tito is a fighter who i enjoy watching he brings a lot of character to the sport and i hope to see him get back to the top