Mark Muñoz excited to see life after UFC

 

MANILA, Philippines – It has been said that nothing is forever because everything comes to an end.

In every race, there is a finish line. A curtain call signifies the culmination of a stage act, while a regular student’s academic life conclude in a graduation. It can also be noted each sentence finishes with a punctuation mark.

The end of the road is referred to as retirement in the world of sports. Most athletes shudder at the thought of calling it a career. Unfortunately, neither degree of success nor pinnacle of achievement will prevent and exempt any sportsperson from getting to this chapter in life.

Life under the klieg lights may be fascinating, and deluge of cheers may be overwhelming. However, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fighter Mark Muñoz does not seem to have any plans of changing his mind in hanging his gloves for good after his bout at UFC’s first Philippine live event numbered as “Fight Night 66” on May 16.

Muñoz (13-6) is booked to square off with Luke Barnatt (8-2) in a three-round middleweight tussle and expressed he is retiring from mixed martial arts (MMA) regardless of the outcome of his homecoming match against the English combatant.

As others dread to face retirement, Muñoz remains optimistic  there are other things in store for him following his prizefighting career.

Muñoz plans to return to his bread-and-butter, which is wrestling, and help young aspirants in achieving their dreams on the mat or inside the cage.

“I’d love to coach wrestling. That’s my bread and butter. Actually, [that is] my rice and adobo. That’s what I want to do. I like to coach wrestling, but I like to coach fighters alike. That’s something that I thought I’d always be doing,” he told Rappler.

The 37-year-old grappler began wrestling at the age of 13 and went on to be a two-time state champion and a member of the Asics First Team All-American.

Muñoz represented Oklahoma State University in college, where he compiled 121 wins overall, was hailed as a two-time All-American, and won a NCAA national championship in 2001 as a senior.

“I believe that’s what I was meant to be on this earth for. There is so much talent that’s yet to be tapped. And I want to continue giving back to a sport that’s given me so much. Whether it’s through UFC or on my own, I will continue to work with other fighters and help improve their craft,” Muñoz said.

While the lifelong competitor in him will miss the sport that he has loved intensely for eight years, Muñoz admitted that his family played a pivotal factor behind his decision to walk away.

“I have precious treasures at home with my kids and my wife. Those are the things I look forward to leaving my legacy with first and foremost before I think about anything else. So I made the decision. I made this decision on my own. I hold it very near and dear to my heart,” he shared.

Many cageside observers assumed his downward trajectory drove him towards retirement, but the large influence in this choice was his will to reassume the father figure that he sees to have neglected for quite sometime.

Since his dominating performance against Tim Boetsch in July 2013, Muñoz has lost three fights in a row, suffering excruciating defeats in the hands of Lyoto Machida, Gegard Mousasi and Roan Carneiro.

In his last Octagon outing, it only took Carneiro under two minutes to render Muñoz unconscious with a rear-naked choke.

“I know this is where God wants me to be. This is the exact spot where I need to be, not only as a fighter, but as a father, a husband, a friend, a son and the other many roles I play in my life. Life doesn’t end when your fighting career is over. I’ll continue to have victories and I’ll continue to go down. But no matter what, I’ll always get up, dust myself off and get back to it,” Muñoz stated.

Muñoz recently took another step in his process of stepping away from MMA by selling his gym in order to concentrate full time on his family and focus on coaching wrestling.

It was not an easy decision for the Filipino-American as the Reign Training Center, which is located in Lake Forest, California, served as a home for many fighters, including underprivileged kids.

The last hurrah

If Muñoz is excited about what the future has for him beyond competitions inside UFC’s famed Octagon, it can be conveyed that he is ecstatic over his final bout under the promotion’s banner.

Arguably the most well-known MMA fighter with Filipino heritage, Muñoz stressed that it is fitting to have his farewell fight in his family’s homeland.

“I’m looking forward to being at UFC Manila, putting on a good fight and being with the people who have supported me no matter what,” he mentioned.

According to Muñoz, he made necessary adjustments in training camp due to his desire of putting himself back on the winning track for the very last time.

“Last time, I was way too big. So during the last camp, I wasn’t eating too much because I was trying so hard to lose weight. Now, I’m back where I need to be and I’m eating again,” he said. “Going into this fight, my weight is good and preparation has been going great. I have a lot of the same coaches with me and a lot of training partners in camp.”

As he stands on the threshold of his retirement, Muñoz unflinchingly pointed out that he has no regrets whatsoever in his career even if he was not fortunate to taste a world title.

“The Filipino Wrecking Machine” has been a staple of the organization’s middleweight division and once emerged as a potential 185-pound title contender with seven triumphs in his first nine UFC appearances, scoring notable victories over the likes of Kendall Grove, CB Dollaway, Demian Maia and Chris Leben.

“I had a goal to become a world champion. Obviously, that’s no longer in sight. And that’s okay. There have been plenty of fighters who never became champion but were very successful. And there are a lot of successful businessmen out there who weren’t able to achieve all of their goals,” Muñoz asserted.

Muñoz promises not to disappoint his Pinoy fans as he vows to pummel Barnatt with his signature “Donkey Kong” ground-and-pound and walk out of the 20,000-seater SM Mall of Asia Arena with his hand raised in triumph.

“I truly believe that this fight is playing to my strengths. So you know I plan to take it there,” he ended. – Rappler.com