Tito Ortiz is ready and willing to take on the third fight with his longtime rival Chuck Liddell.
The history between former UFC champion Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz is lengthy and chock-full of bad blood. Liddell defeated Ortiz twice by way of knockout, first at UFC 47 back in 2004, and then two years later at UFC 66.
Rumors about a possible Chuck Liddell MMA comeback have been making headlines for a while now. Even last year, “The Iceman” suggests locking horns with Ortiz for the third time. However, Tito Ortiz turned down the offer of Liddell for a trilogy.
Now it seems Ortiz have a change of mind and recently speaking with TMZ Sports, said he has “a lot of interest” in the third fight with fellow champ Chuck Liddell.
“I have a lot of interest level,” said Ortiz (transcript courtesy of MMA Fighting). “Actually, on New Year’s, I asked the matchmakers for the UFC if they’d ever want to do a Chuck Liddell-Tito Ortiz III and he kind of looked at me and laughed and said, ‘Chuck couldn’t pass to fight again. He’s been knocked out, unconscious, five times.’ I guarantee you the doctor won’t give him a license.”
Liddell hasn’t fought since falling to Rich Franklin via first-round knockout at UFC 115 on June 12, 2010.
Meanwhile, Ortiz retires after scoring a submission win over Chael Sonnen at Bellator 170 last January. He is a UFC Hall of Famer and has fought the biggest names in MMA.
“It’s up to them,” said Ortiz. “I thought of it just because I was pumped because of the UFC in general, being back in the house, but I don’t know. I would like another go at it. I left on a high stool of choking Chael within two-and-a-half minutes.
My body’s fine. I know Chuck Liddell’s been knocked out unconscious to the point where they had to give him the smelling salts to make him feel better but he’s looking to be a paycheck. I understand it. I have other businesses, and it’s not a hurry for me to fight. I don’t want to fight, I don’t need to fight, but if Chuck needs to, I’ll be a good friend like he was once and give him a payday.”
Both rivals comeback is still in the air until anything is made official and said by UFC.
