A Closer Look At UFC 132: Tito Ortiz vs. Ryan Bader

It’s that time again, fans and friends: the second day of “A Closer Look At ufc 132” is about to get underway. UFC 132 is quickly shaping up to be the big can’t-miss event of the summer, and I’ll be much of today covering the remaining three fights of this star-studded card. If you want to look back on the first day’s worth of posts, the first part of the series can be seen here. Part 2 is available here, with part 3 right here. Now it’s time to focus on a match-up that could very well see the retirement of a UFC legend: Tito Ortiz vs. Ryan Bader.

Ryan Bader stepped into the UFC on the heels of a seven-fight win-streak and a highly successful run on the eighth season of “The Ultimate Fighter”. Bader would go on to fight in the finals and ultimately win the eighth season of TUF, thrilling fans with a first-round KO. Bader would then fight to a decision for three out of his next four fights, all of them wins, most of them dominant. In the middle of that run came a KO win over Keith Jardine. After beating the tough and very, very experienced Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Bader was given a man that, like him, was considered a can’t-miss prospect and one of the UFC’s biggest potential stars: Jon Jones.

In a career that’s seen him already dominate countless opponents, Jon Jones would go on to dominate Bader and ultimately finish him. Of course, Bader could take solace in the fact that while he couldn’t beat Jon Jones, no one else could either: Jones is now the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. Bader could also take solace in the fact that the loss to “Bones” was the first of his professional career. And finally, Bader can also take solace in the fact that his upcoming opponent knows a lot about losing.

That opponent, Tito Ortiz, was once thought of as one of the baddest men on the planet. He was, still is, and probably always will be one of the most-controversial, most outspoken fighters that have ever stepped into the Octagon. Ortiz was one of the first true UFC mega-draws, everyone wanted to see him get his head kicked in but he just kept dominating people left and right. The highlight of Ortiz’s career remains his run as UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, which saw Ortiz win the championship and defend it five times with four stoppages, with three first-round stoppages.

Ortiz remained active and even dominant until 2006, when a loss to Chuck Liddell sent his career into a freefall that it has never recovered from. Ortiz has lost four out of his last five fights, with the other fight being ruled a draw. After taking a break for over a year and making his shocking return to the UFC, squashing the rivalry with UFC President Dana White that had defined both men for years, Ortiz promised that he was a new man and was hungry for a championship. He has since lost twice, and was even dominated at times by his most recent opponent, Matt Hamill.

I hate to say this, since I’ve actually grown to like Tito Ortiz to a certain extent throughout the years. But as a realist first and an optimist second, I just can’t see how Tito Ortiz beats Ryan Bader. Nothing short of a complete career resurrection will save Ortiz now, and with all that’s happened since he returned, that looks very unlikely. What I do think will happen is that Ortiz will make the same mistakes he made against Hamill and Bader will ultimately out-wrestle him for three rounds. This very well might be Tito Ortiz’s last fight, both in the UFC and as a professional Mixed Martial Artist. I don’t think he’ll win, but I do hope that no matter what happens, he decides to give his all and goes out on a high note.

Stay tuned fans and friends, there’s only two entries left into “A Closer Look At UFC 132″.