(Props: Heavy.com)
We’re just one day away from the return of UFC legend/unbearable heel Tito Ortiz at UFC 106, and the former light-heavyweight champ promises to go out guns blazin’ against Forrest Griffin: "I gotta put on a show, I gotta win, I gotta stop him, I gotta do what I need to do in my game to make Forrest quit." Though Ortiz claims to have improved his striking for this fight, he also won’t be giving up his bread and butter. "Every time he kicks he’s gonna be taken down. A lot of fighters don’t take advantage of that when they see Forrest kick, they try to check all the kicks. The hell with that. I’m putting him on his back. Back to the old Tito Ortiz, man, my ground and pound where it’s lethal…they’ll be carrying him out on a stretcher."
Later, Ortiz says that he doesn’t have a problem with the way that the UFC has used his name to build the careers of Griffin and Lyoto Machida, and regarding the rash of injuries and illnesses in the UFC as of late, he’d fight Forrest with a broken leg (which he clarifies he doesn’t have, but still). The only thing that matters to him right now is becoming a world champion again, one match at a time. And if that gets in the way of roles in Mark Wahlberg flicks, so be it.
And yes, he’s wearing the shades again. There’s a reason for that…
Ortiz is nursing a nasty black eye that he caught when he was head-butted in practice. Plus, the sunglasses make him feel like David Caruso.
Related: In Sherdog’s Ortiz vs. Griffin 2 Pros Pick column, 17 out of 28 fighters polled predicted that Forrest will win the fight. One notable Griffin-supporter was Mac Danzig:
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Ironically, if forrest does leave the ring on a stretcher, it would be a step up from running out like a little baby vs A. Silva.