Raphael Assuncao was perhaps mere seconds away from winning a decision against Davey Grant at UFC Fight Night 221.
That all changed when Grant rocked him with a spinning back fist, setting the stage for the Englishman to finish the contest with an inverted triangle at the 4:43 mark of Round 3. Prior to that finish, Assuncao had banked two rounds two of the three cageside judges scorecards. Instead, the Brazilian veteran left his gloves in the cage and announced his retirement following a heartbreaking defeat.
“This sport is so crazy, you know. Anything can turn around in a flick of a second,” Assuncao said in a backstage interview with the UFC. “It feels like it happened to me today. I have never been in that type of situation. Either I lose or win, or I control the fight. It’s a mix of emotions right now. Crazy job.
“I’ve had a great career. I don’t feel super accomplished. You can always do more. I’m very critical of myself. I was able to put my game plan in the Octagon tonight. In the flick of a second everything turns around, but hey, that’s the sport of MMA, right? That’s why people love it.”
Assuncao admits that he might not have called it a career had he defeated Grant on Saturday night.
“I wanted to finish on top and maybe see how things progress. Obviously with the win, you’re happy, you probably want to extend your career a little bit longer,” he said. “I was planning to retire on top or maybe do a couple extra superfights. But it doesn’t always go the way you planned. This sport is so crazy.”
The 40-year-old Assuncao exits the sport having lost five of his last six UFC appearances. At one point, he was one of the UFC’s top bantamweight contenders, as he compiled an 11-1 mark in the promotion from 2012 to 2018. As much as he enjoyed his career, Assuncao won’t mind not dealing with the uncertainty that accompanies the sport.
“There’s so many factors that you don’t have control of that can alter the result [of a fight],” he said. “I’m kind of tired of that, not having full control of your career. A lucky shot or the referee makes a mistake and everything goes down the drain, I think I’m kind of tired of that right now.”
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