Former UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie Edgar Announces his Retirement
Frankie Edgar is currently competing in the bantamweight division of UFC, where he is scheduled to face Chris Gutierrez at UFC 281. However, Frankie Edgar surprised his UFC fans by announcing his retirement after this fight.
Former UFC lightweight champion Edgar started his UFC career in 2007 and has participated in 35 MMA bouts in his whole MMA career so far. He won 24 bouts and lost 10, with one being a no result. He shared the UFC Octagon with many veteran UFC fighters like B.J. Penn, Charles Oliveira, Jose Aldo, and Ujirah Faber, to name a few.
Edgar won UFC lightweight title on UFC 112 by defeating B.J. Penn. He held the title for almost two years before losing it at UFC 144 to Benson Henderson. The MMA veteran Edgar was known to be taking the fights longer that's why 50% of his wins came through decisions.
Edgar will compete against Chris Gutierrez, who is on a three-fight winning streak and is one of the most formidable opponents in his division. The UFC veteran Frankie Edgar said in an interview,
"I never wanted to be a guy to announce anything, I was just going to walk away. That was my goal. But I realized if I don't say it, I probably won't walk away. So that's why I'm saying it and making me hold myself accountable and finally closing that door."
He announced his retirement in the same interview with CBS by saying,
"It's weird retiring. I'm 41 years old and retiring, so I have a lot of life to live. I'm excited about that... I'm an all-or-nothing guy. I've always tried to prepare for the future, but my sole focus is fighting always. I never wanted to get a gym or get something that took my focus away from that because I wanted to focus on the fight itself."
Frankie Edgar has to lace his boots, but it does not mean he would stay away from fighting for a long time. He is focusing on another career path in his life and hint of which he disclosed on the UFC media day of UFC 281. He told,
"This is my last UFC fight, MMA fight for sure, I'm most likely, 100 percent, it's my last fight. But if there's some boxing, maybe (Manny) Pacquiao wants to do an exhibition – I know he's doing exhibitions now. I can be open to something crazy like that, but it would really, really have to be a good one."
It has yet to be confirmed, but it is a strong possibility that Frankie Edgar might follow in his fellow UFC fighter Anderson Silva's footsteps and start a boxing career. Let's wait for the final call by Frankie Edgar.
