Tito Ortiz:The Last Laugh?

Let’s go back eight years ago to July, 2003. Randy Couture had just defeated Chuck Liddell for the interim UFC Light Heavyweight Championship, while Wanderlei Silva hadn’t lost in over three years and was in the midst of a long, successful run as the Pride Middleweight Champion (of course, Pride’s middleweight division was comparable in weight to the UFC’s light heavyweight division). Meanwhile, Tito Ortiz, the last man to beat Silva at that time, had seen a long run as the UFC’s poster boy and a fan favorite come to an end.

For ducking Chuck Liddell and finding every reason from their past friendship (which Liddell still says wasn’t that big of a deal) to injuries to movie commitments to settling the score with Ken Shamrock, the fans had begun to turn on Ortiz. Liddell and Couture were the talk of the UFC’s light heavyweight division, while Ortiz was an afterthought of sorts, despite still being the official champion of the weight class.

In the years to come, the sport would not be very kind to Ortiz. While his contemporaries experienced even greater levels of success, Ortiz floundered through injuries and underwhelming performances. Couture would win the title from Ortiz later in 2007 and go on to win the UFC Heavyweight Championship again, as well. Liddell would take the light heavyweight strap from Couture and go on to have more successful consecutive title defenses than anyone in the history of the division, including Ortiz. Silva would win the 2003 Pride Middleweight Grand Prix, beating Quinton “Rampage” Jackson brutally in the final round, then defeating him again the following year in an official title defense.

Meanwhile, Ortiz would win five straight after consecutive losses to Couture and Liddell, but they weren’t the most impressive wins. One was against Patrick Cote, an inexperienced true middleweight; two more were against an aging Ken Shamrock. His two wins against reputable competitors were both by narrow split decisions, as he got the nod over Vitor Belfort and Forrest Griffin. After that? He went five straight years without a win as a second TKO loss to Liddell kicked off a long slide.

Fast forward to last Saturday night. Tito came in as a heavy underdog against Ryan Bader, a top ten light heavyweight who appeared to be better than Ortiz at most facets of MMA. With greater athleticism, a better wrestling pedigree and heavy hands, the fight seemed to be a bad matchup for Ortiz from the get-go. However, we all know what happened, as Ortiz cracked Bader with a short right hand and tapped him out with an arm-in guillotine in just a couple of minutes.

Meanwhile, the formerly dominant Silva competed on the same card and was knocked out by Chris Leben in just 27 seconds. Couture and Liddell? They’re both retired now and watched from the audience as Ortiz soundly defeated a very talented young light heavyweight fighter.

Who would have thought that of those four current or future Hall of Fame light heavyweights, Ortiz would be the last to have any sort of relevancy? Who would have thought that when Ortiz was struggling with multiple back surgeries and lethargic performances? Who would have thought that when Ortiz was losing decisively to the likes of Matt Hamill at UFC 121?

Love him or hate him, you have to admit that Ortiz has fought through a lot to get to this point. I don’t know of any fighter of his stature that has probably gone through more in the late stages of his career and rebounded to this level. From having the fans turn on him and becoming one of the most-jeered fighters in MMA to going five long years without having his hand raised, Ortiz has had a lot to fight through in recent years. Let’s not forget the multiple surgeries and even the personal issues with former girlfriend Jenna Jameson, as well.

Sure, a lot of the stuff Ortiz has gone through has been because of his own actions and decisions, but it’s still a lot to come back from. I think that’s why there’s a resurgence right now in his popularity, as many fans have gotten caught up in Ortiz’s improbable win last Saturday night. Maybe for many of us, it’s just fun to see one of the last guys from that old era of MMA actually enjoying a little success. No matter what though, even those who aren’t Tito fans should agree that he’s got a little more in the tank than we had thought. And even if his win last Saturday turns out to be his last in the UFC, it was both surprising and impressive to see that he had outlasted some of his fellow greats, after all.

E-Mail Jon Hartley

Tags: Chuck Liddell, Pride, Randy Couture, Tito Ortiz, UFC, Wanderlei Silva