What kind of suit goes best with a mohawk? MMA has lost one its icons as Chuck Liddell officially announced he's retiring as an active fighter and moving into an executive role with the UFC. The former light heavyweight champ will serve as one of the company's top six or seven officials in the position of executive vice president of business development.
Does the trademark mohawk stay or go? The UFC is anything but a traditional business, so the guess here is that you may see a gray haired mohawk pitching the sport some 20 years from now.
The 41-year-old announced his retirement at Wednesday's UFC 125 prefight press conference. The usually jovial, relaxed Liddell got a bit emotional. From the Las Vegas Review-Journal:
"Most of all, I want to thank my fans and my family. I love the sport, and I'm excited to go into a new stage in my life and keep promoting the best sport in the world, the sport I love," the UFC Hall of Famer said as he choked back tears.
Lorenzo Fertitta, the UFC owner, was also present at the presser. For the most part, the casino mogul lays low but felt it was important to show his support for promotion's biggest star during its key growth period.
"This is a big deal to us as a company," UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta said. "Chuck Liddell has contributed so much to the UFC over the years. He's literally seen this sport evolve from a very small niche sport to what it has become today. We continue to grow here in the North America, but we've got so many more things to do around the world, so we welcome Chuck Liddell to the UFC executive team."
UFC president Dana White has a strong friendship with Liddell. It dates back to the days before White was part owner of the promotion.
"Chuck Liddell has been with us from day one," White told ESPN.com. "And before that I managed him. We've been together for like 13 years."
White gave a few details about the legend's new role with the company.
"He's probably going to be doing a lot of stuff with the legislation, the sanctioning end and other forms of business development. And he will be traveling to other countries with [UFC CEO] Lorenzo [Fertitta]."
Making a transition from the world of kickboxing, Liddell debuted in 1998 at UFC 17, where he beat Noe Hernandez in Mobile, Ala.
He finished his career with a 21-8 record, that included 13 knockouts. The slugger held the UFC light heavyweight title for most of 2005 and 2006. His presence was huge in the UFC's development as a pay-per-view juggernaut. His fight against Tito Ortiz and two more against Randy Couture helped pull in 1.73 million buys. He fought Vernon White at UFC 49. That show sold only 80,000 PPVs. Thirty months later at UFC 66, with the help of Liddell, the promotion eclipsed the one million mark.
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