Tito Ortiz (Pictured) will be giving multiple speeches this July 7th. Just hours before facing Forrest Griffin in his final fight inside the Octagon, Ortiz will be reading his UFC Hall of Fame induction dictation at the Fan Expo inside Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
While the former light heavyweight champ’s inclusion in the exclusive club was reported earlier this month, many assumed the ceremony would take place the day before his UFC 148 bout so he could focus sole on his last foray to the cage on game day. Nonetheless, Ortiz is simply humbled to be officially recognized as one of MMA’s all-time greats.
“It is a huge honor to be recognized as one of the greatest fighters of all time by the UFC,” Ortiz stated. “To be inducted into the Hall of Fame is final proof that all the hard work and dedication, all the pain and sacrifices, were all worth it. To be able to walk to the Octagon one last time as an official UFC Hall of Fame level fighter is going to be humbling and awesome. I’m very grateful to have this opportunity to end my career on such a high like this.
“I want to thank my family for all their love and support and my fans for sticking with me through the bad times when being a Tito Ortiz fan wasn’t the coolest thing to be.”
Ortiz will be joining the likes of Ken Shamrock, Royce Gracie, Dan Severn, Randy Couture, Mark Coleman, Chuck Liddell, Charles Lewis Jr. and Matt Hughes as members of the UFC’s Hall of Fame.
Ortiz has gone just 1-6-1 over his last eight outings. However, the 37-year-old’s recent run pales in comparison to his contributions to mixed martial arts. Ortiz’s 16-10-1 resume includes nine championship fights, 5 consecutive successful title defenses and being the face of the UFC when Zuffa, LLC was just starting to take over the game.
All but one of his scraps took place under the UFC’s banner.
After completing his trilogy with Griffin inside MGM Gran Garden Arena, “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” (forget about “The People’s Champ”) will be given the mic to address his fans for one last time inside the Octagon. He will likely get another opportunity to say his goodbyes during the event’s post-fight press conference.
Original Story:
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June 27, 2012
