UFC 148: Forrest Griffin to retire if he loses to Tito Ortiz?

Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Forrest Griffin (18-7) spoke candidly to UFC.com about his upcoming fight with Tito Ortiz at UFC 148.

It’s clear that Griffin is past the climax of his career as he is (2-3) in the UFC, including his UFC 92 TKO loss to Rashad Evans as he attempted to defend his title for the first time. He missed all of 2010 due to injuries, and only fought twice in 2011 while not having his first fight in 2012 until July. That’s a lot of inactivity for a guy that’s only 32 years old.

Griffin recently got married and the couple had their first child last year, and those two chapters in a fighter’s life can certainly change perspective. Griffin spoke on his future and thoughts on Ortiz here:

“A good wrestler that comes down low, that comes with pressure, he’s a tough guy to fight. He’s still got a good overhand right, good shovel hook, he’s got good punches, good knees, he’s got a good Thai clinch. If you can stop him from coming forward, he’s not so hard to fight. But when he’s coming forward in that good stance, you can’t tell if he’s gonna throw a big bomb or shoot…that’s tough to deal with.”

“A lot of people ask me. They say ‘Forrest, it’s Tito’s retirement fight. If you lose to Tito, are you going to retire?’ If I lose to Tito, I’m going to retire from life…seriously.”

Griffin is known for his self depreciating humor, but one must wonder that there’s at least a hint of truth in that statement. He may not retire with a loss to Ortiz, but he’s certainly entertaining the thought. The fact that Ortiz is a shell of his former self, especially in their second fight in 2009 when Ortiz was a punching bag for Griffin for the entire final round, yet Griffin couldn’t even come close to putting him away told us that Griffin’s better days were behind him.

Do you think Griffin should retire if he loses to Ortiz at UFC 148? Sound off in the comments.