 Last night was perhaps the final time we will see the legend Chuck Liddell grace the Octagon canvas. "Yeah, that's probably safe to say, I had a great camp. I was in great shape and ready to go” stated chuck after the fight. While most fight fans have longed to see a UFC fighter like Chuck take on a former PRIDE star, this is not how most would have imagined. To see ‘The Iceman’, a once long feared opponent, be put to the canvas yet again by what was thought to be shell of himself, Shogun Hua, is very unsettling. Just a few years ago, Chuck was dominating his weight division and dishing out 2 defeats to Hall of Famer Randy Couture. Now we have witnessed him viciously KO’d by Rashad Evans, battered by Keith Jardine, and now TKO’d by Shogun Hua. This was the same Shogun who couldn’t finish a lagging veteran of Mark Coleman and also was exhausted after one round with Forrest Griffin. Perhaps this is what Shogun has become, a first round sensation. He gave Liddell his dues when asked after the fight about his performance: "Liddell is a legend in MMA." Chuck on the other hand, has always been able to go past the first round and maybe that was his strategy for this fight. Shogun was extremely aggressive and was all over Chuck, which gave fight fans something they hadn’t seen in awhile, a Chuck Liddell takedown.
Dana White gave a statement about Chuck’s future in the UFC: "At the end of the day, I care about these guys. I don't want to see anybody stick around too long. You're never going to see Chuck Liddell on the canvas again."
While surprising to see the promoter decide someone’s future, Chuck has always been Dana’s pride and joy. When Chuck lost to Rampage back in Pride, you could tell how upset he was to see Chuck lose, especially in the manner in which he did.
The Iceman has always been a crowd favorite and if this is the end, it is a real shame to see him go out like this. Most fighters don’t end their career while they are winning and everyone knew this day was coming, but he will be missed by this writer and definitely by thousands of fans around the country. It is time to pass the torch now to the younger fighters and while it may or may not be Shogun that becomes the new face of this division, fans will always remember The Iceman as the dominate 205 Champ.
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