Joseph Benavidez was left heartbroken after a brutal first round loss to Deiveson Figueiredo in their flyweight title rematch at UFC ON ESPN+ 30 on Saturday night, but the 36-year-old has now vowed not to retire on a loss.
“My goal in this sport is to be the best, be the champion,” Benavidez told reporters on Fight Island afterwards.
“I knew last fight was my last title attempt. It wasn’t ‘cause of circumstances but this one certainly was. I wasn’t fighting in this sport from the beginning for any other reason than to be the best. I’ve been close. I’ve been lucky. I’ve been in that top-two, -three for 11 years at two weight classes. It’s been a crazy journey. It’s been awesome.
“I’m not going out like that. Nothing’s guaranteed in this sport for sure. But I’m not going to get another title shot and I don’t want to go out on that. I just want to go out with another fight. After that, there’s nothing else for me to do. I’m not going to beat 10 guys again. I know that was my last title shot but like I just said, I don’t want to go out on that.”
“If I lose, fight again until I win. So that’s kind of where I’m at.”
