UFC star Stephan Bonnar has announced that he’s decided to hang up his gloves and retire from the sport of Mixed Martial Arts.
Dana White first revealed the news during a fan Q&A yesterday, and Bonnar has since confirmed the decision on Facebook.
“Huge thanks to every UFC fan out there!” Bonnar said. “All I ever wanted was to bring y’all some fun … hope you were entertained.”
Bonnar had hinted at retirement earlier in the year, but then had his world turn upside down when he found himself being granted the opportunity to compete against the world’s best fighter Anderson Silva in a short-notice headline fight in Rio, Brazil at UFC 153 earlier this month.
It was a dream come true for the veteran fighter and he gratefully accepted it despite knowing that he was entering into the Octagon as a huge underdog.
Unfortunately for him he wasn’t able to produce the ‘Rocky moment’ he had hoped for, being TKO’d by a knee to the solar plexus in the first round.
‘The American’s Psycho’ had already made his mark long before that though, with his seminal fight with Forrest Griffin at The Ultimate Fighter Season 1 Finale which is still considered today to be one of the most important bouts in the history of the sport.
Despite losing by unanimous decision that night ensured that he would forever more be a fan favorite, but he was never able to put together the kind of winning run that could have converted his popularity into a push for a title shot like Griffin was able to.
Instead Bonnar produced a somewhat mixed-bag of wins and losses, going 8-7 in the UFC overall, 15-8 for his career as a whole.
A charismatic character outside of the Octagon, Bonnar appears to have a potential career in broadcasting now that he’s retired, having already served as a color-commentator for the WEC promotion and served as an analyst on ESPN’s MMA live show and some of the UFC’s own programming on Fuel TV.
