Published 01/26/2023, 12:07 AM EST
Luke Rockhold has officially retired from the UFC. He negotiated a release from the contract and came out as a free agent. Although the fighter had a couple more fights left in his contract, his injuries have often pulled him back. His match against Paulo Costa was the last match he fought in the Octagon. Sustaining a back injury, he withdrew from the schedule against Sean Strickland. However, his intentions to leave the UFC and become associated with some other promotions became public on the latest episode of ‘The MMA Hour’. Ariel Helwani invited the former UFC middleweight champion to the podcast, where the fighter revealed his next plans. Rockhold declared that he wanted to box. However, he didn’t suppress his desire to grapple in the other promotions. Without a doubt, he wished to earn titles in three of the major MMA promotions in the world.
Rockhold didn’t have a good enough relationship with Dana White. However, he declared that his relationship with Scott Coker was one with good intentions.
Luke Rockhold’s plans for the future
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Rockhold announced his retirement after his fight in UFC 278. In the recent episode of ‘The MMA Hour’, Helwani asked Rockhold the reason for his retirement, since he already had a few fights left in the contract. The fighter replied that he had done his part. Furthermore, he wanted to be free to go and do things elsewhere. Undeniably, the UFC boss granted him his wish. The former champion then revealed his relationship with UFC’s Hunter Campbell, who spoke in support of the fighter to try new things. “There’s interesting innovative companies coming up. And there’s a lot of things to correct in this world”, said the fighter.
Rockhold wasn’t oblivious to the other companies promoting MMA. “There’s PFL. Peter Murray, I think he’s a f**king smart, sharp dude, and they’re doing some cool things with the best fight the best. People not jumping each other,” he said. Additionally, he revealed that it could be a great opportunity for him to let his legs rest every once in a while.
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However, his friendship with Scott Coker was also a strong one. He said, “I’m good friends with Scott Coker and there’s Bellator doing some big things. ONE Championship is doing some f**king cool sh*t, too, to come in here, to the States. They got boxing, they got grappling, they got everything. It’s like… That’s what I want. I’ve done so much. And so I want opportunity to go box, go grapple, go fight. Go win another f**king belt. No man in history has won 3 belts, 3 major belts.”
Luke Rockhold bashed Dana White
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Rockhold was indeed one of those personalities who didn’t find comfort, with White being the head of the promotion. The fighter didn’t back down from stating his belief that the championship would fare way better if White was absent. Furthermore, he declared that it was the UFC president who held the scales for the sport.
PERTH, AUSTRALIA – FEBRUARY 11: Luke Rockhold prepares to enter the Octagon before facing Yoel Romero of Cuba in their interim middleweight title bout during the UFC 221 event at Perth Arena on February 11, 2018 in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Although Rockhold didn’t hold the popular views about White, he wasn’t the only one to think so. Nevertheless, the fighter was wished the best by the fans for his future ventures. Be it PFL, Bellator MMA, or ONE Championship, Rockhold has made a name for himself as a former UFC champion.
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What are your thoughts on Rockhold’s retirement? Let us know in the comments down below.