Hard-hitting MMA veteran Gilbert Yvel has announced his retirement from the sport at the age of 36.
He does so on a two-fight winning streak, with his last victory coming by way of first round knockout against Houston Alexander at RFA 2, though it’s now been over a year since that bout.
A PRIDE and UFC veteran, Yvel made his mark as a ferocious stand-up fighter who claimed 32 of his 38 career victories by knockout.
His career was marred at times by bad behavior at times though, with incidents such as biting and intentional eye-poking in the cage along with attacking a referee inside the ring leading to a series of suspensions between 1998 and 2004.
He eventually cleaned up his act somewhat which lead to him earning a spot in the UFC in 2010, but he wasn’t able to make an impact, succumbing to three successive defeats at heavyweight before being released.
In total he retires on a 38-16-1 (1nc) record, spanning over 16 years in the sport.
Yvel is the latest in a string of MMA veterans who’ve retired in recent months, including the likes of Forrest Griffin, Matt Serra, Renato ‘Babalu’ Sobral, Shane Carwin, Seth Petruzelli and Megumi Fujii.
