Raphael Assuncao fought Davey Grant in the prelims of UFC Las Vegas. The bout took place in the co-main event of the prelims. Although he was coming off a win against Victor Henry, Raphael lost 4 fights prior to that. Hence, there were a lot of questions marks if Assuncao was good enough to continue at the UFC level any longer or not.
Fans seemingly found out their answer as Raphael lost to Davey Grant via submission at the 4:43 minute mark of the third round. Grant landed more significant strikes than Assuncao and scored the only knockdown of the fight. As per UFC Stats, Grant landed 65 significant strikes and 80 strikes in total. The 40-year-old, on the other hand, landed 42 significant strikes and 67 total strikes.
SPINNING BACK FIST to REVERSE TRIANGLE! WHAT IN THE WORLD 🤯
— UFC (@ufc) March 11, 2023
What a performance by @DaveyGrantMMA! #UFCLasVegas pic.twitter.com/T1dRSAPjhH
Although it was the Brazilian who landed 5 takedowns, Davey Grant ultimately won the fight via reverse triangle choke. It looked like Assuncao had enough and announced his retirement from MMA as he dropped his gloves inside the Octagon.
During his post-fight interview with the former UFC double champ, Daniel Cormier, Raphael added, “I was able to do this for 19 years as a professional. But I think my time has come now. You know, I put a lot of effort into this training camp away from the family. And I think that’s it for me.”
Fans react to Raphael Assuncao retiring after UFC Las Vegas
Raphael Assuncao made his MMA debut against Chris Clark on January 23, 2004! In his almost 20-year career, Assuncao has beaten some elite-level fighters. On his 5th pro fight, he beat the UFC BMF champ, Jorge Masvidal. At the time, he used to fight at lightweight as opposed to bantamweight where he finished his career.
But not just Masvidal, Raphael has beaten fighters like Joe Lauzon, T.J. Dillashaw, the current bantamweight champ Aljamain Sterling, and Rob Font. Although he never fought for the UFC title, Raphael had 19 fights in the promotion and was highly ranked for most of his run. So what did the fans and UFC community say about Assuncao’s retirement? Let’s find out!
Here are some fan reactions on the matter
Legend 👏🏼
— Javid Basharat (@JavidBasharat) March 11, 2023
Bro has a victory over Masvidal😭😭
— Will Kelly (@WillKelly34) March 11, 2023
God bless awesome shows u put on for us. Thank u
— Steve…Ok (@bishopWyatt5) March 11, 2023
Thank you for all those fights!
— Nathan Blades (@NathanBlades3) March 11, 2023
Your a Legend 👏
Great fight. Great career!
— David Scott (@DavidSc32614135) March 11, 2023
Definition of a Perennial contender. Amazing resume. Even with the recent skid he has a good record.
— Haiden Wicks (@rancidlatte) March 11, 2023
There is a history of UFC fighters coming out of retirement and competing in other promotions. Fans recently saw Marlon Moraes announce his comeback against Shane Burgos in PFL. So it will be interesting to see if Raphael Assuncao walks a similar path or not. If the retirement is for good, fans would definitely hope that he has a happy retired life ahead of him. He ends his career with a record of 28-10.
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