by Chris Cella
To sun up the career of former UFC light heavyweight champion, the first thing that comes to mind is “roller coaster.” Over the span of a 14 year career—highlighting several high and low points—The Huntington Beach Bad Boy has enjoyed time atop the light heavyweight division while also experiencing an ill-favored losing streak that almost sent him into an early retirement.
Ortiz went nearly five years without experiencing a victory (0-4-1) before he finally got the ‘W” last month, defeating UFC rising star Ryan Bader via guillotine choke. With the win Ortiz proved to himself that he still had what it takes to win at the top level, but also showed the MMA world that he was back to his old self. At 36, Ortiz can’t have too many strong years ahead of him. With the exception of Randy Couture—who is arguably considered one of the top MMA fighters of all time—not too many fighters have been successful in launching later-in-their-career title runs. Even putting his age aside, the UFC light heavyweight division is the most stacked it’s been in years, with champion Jon Jones sitting atop the weight class.
This Saturday Ortiz steps into the octagon once again to go to battle with light heavyweight contender and former champion Rashad Evans. Evans is walking into the cage with an impressive record of 15-1-1, his only loss being suffered at the hands of Lyoto Machida. Evans and Ortiz battled once before in 2007, a fight which was declared a draw. But an interesting point about that fight is that Ortiz was deducted a point due for holding onto the fence, so if you take that point away, you may be looking at a different outcome.
Following the loss to Machida, Evans has won twice by decision, but hasn’t looked the same since being knocked out. In the past he used his speed and accurate striking to dictate the pace of the fight, but as of late he has fought defensively. Against a fighter like Ortiz this could be dangerous. Ortiz has heavy hands and won’t be shy about standing in front of Evans and going to war.
With a win over Evans Ortiz would earn himself some discussion about a potential title fight against Jones. At this point in his career Tito Ortiz has everything to gain and nothing to lose Saturday night, so expect him to leave it all in the octagon. He is going to battle like the warrior he is once that opening bell rings, and he won’t stop until the closing bell sounds or the referee stops the fight. Fans are going to be in for a treat when the cage closes. Ortiz has the tools to set himself up for another championship fight; it’s just a question of whether or not he can execute.
