The Two Will Fight on Pay-Per-View At The Forum
UFC Hall of Famers Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz will fight for a third time under a new MMA organization headed by former boxing star Oscar De La Hoya. The fight will take place November 24th at The Forum in Inglewood, CA.
Liddell (21-8), who will be one month shy of turning 49-years-old by the time the fight takes place, hasn’t fought since he was knocked out by Rich Franklin at UFC 115 in June 2010. Franklin had broken his arm earlier in the fight but was still able to get the finish. That loss for Liddell was his fifth in six fights. In those five losses, Liddell was knocked out in four of them and of those four knockouts, three of them were in the first round.
In his prime, Liddell was a five-time light heavyweight champion and one of the most popular fighters in the UFC. He is one of the pioneers responsible for the growing popularity of the sport. His rivalry with Ortiz is also responsible for spiking popularity in the UFC.
Ortiz and Liddell used to train together years ago before they ever fought. Many said Ortiz was ducking Liddell before they fought so he could keep the belt. Before fighting Liddell, Ortiz was a six-time light heavyweight champion. Ortiz lost the belt at UFC 44 to Randy Couture.
Ortiz (19-12-1) then fought Liddell at UFC 47. Liddell knocked Ortiz out 38-seconds into the second round. Both fighters went on winning streaks and Liddell defended his belt for the last time when he fought Ortiz for a second time, TKOing him in the third round.
The two were scheduled to fight a third time in 2010, but Ortiz was forced to pull out of the fight due to injury. Ortiz was replaced by Franklin and after losing, Liddell retired from the sport. Or so we thought.
The 43-year-old Ortiz has fought nine times since Liddell last fought, going 4-5 in those nine fights. The last four of his fights were outside of the UFC, in Bellator.
Ortiz also retired from the sport, but in May announced a possibility of a third fight with Liddell saying he would “give the fans the fight they have been waiting for.”
