Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Chuck Liddell got back on the horse Monday, as he returned to the San Luis Obispo, Calif. gym that steered him to the crown and four title defenses inside the Octagon, his head trainer John Hackleman said. There, Hackleman said Liddell partook in some light training and discussed his recent loss to Keith Jardine.
Hackleman had been particularly vocal about recent reports that “the Iceman” was calling it quits after his second consecutive loss to fellow striker Jardine (13-4-1) at Sept. 22’s UFC 76 “Knockout” at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. The keeper of “The Pit” said the media had misinterpreted the soft-spoken fighter’s comments at a post-fight conference held that same night. Hackleman has trained Liddell for the last 16 years.
“He laughed when I told him about his retirement. He’s back with a little bruising on his face but nothing as bad as what Jardine had walking away,” Hackleman said.
Last week, Hackleman had intonated his star pupil was in line to fight Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at Dec. 29’s UFC 79 in Las Vegas, Nev., a fight he’d told UFC brass Liddell (20-5) would take. Rua was another casualty of UFC 76, when he was systematically dismantled by Forrest Griffin, succumbing to exhaustion and a rear-naked choke in the third round’s final seconds. Rua has since undergone surgery for a torn knee ligament and has been added to a growing disabled list that also includes current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.
“We though it was going to be ‘Shogun,’” Hackleman said, “but now instead of saying ‘no’ to Wanderlei [Silva], they’re saying maybe.”
Liddell's loss was thought to have extinguished a New Year’s Eve collision with former PRIDE Light Heavyweight Champion Silva (31-7-1), but with the injuries to Rua and Jackson – and Griffin’s rehabilitation time iffy for a sizable cut earned in his most recent masterpiece – the bout may be one of the only options to main event Dec. 29’s mega show.
Like the 37-year-old Liddell, Silva has dropped his last two contests to Dan Henderson and Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic. Silva, 31, recently left Curitiba, Brazil’s Chute Boxe Academy, where he had made his home for 17 years, in favor of the United States; he has not announced an affiliation with an existing team yet. A Silva-Liddell showdown is one for which UFC President Dana White has vehemently campaigned for over five years.
“We’ve wanted Wanderlei all along,” Hackleman said. “When I told Chuck [it was still a possibility], he was almost as excited about it as when he found out he was fighting Tito [Ortiz].”
Hackleman had been particularly vocal about recent reports that “the Iceman” was calling it quits after his second consecutive loss to fellow striker Jardine (13-4-1) at Sept. 22’s UFC 76 “Knockout” at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. The keeper of “The Pit” said the media had misinterpreted the soft-spoken fighter’s comments at a post-fight conference held that same night. Hackleman has trained Liddell for the last 16 years.
“He laughed when I told him about his retirement. He’s back with a little bruising on his face but nothing as bad as what Jardine had walking away,” Hackleman said.
Last week, Hackleman had intonated his star pupil was in line to fight Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at Dec. 29’s UFC 79 in Las Vegas, Nev., a fight he’d told UFC brass Liddell (20-5) would take. Rua was another casualty of UFC 76, when he was systematically dismantled by Forrest Griffin, succumbing to exhaustion and a rear-naked choke in the third round’s final seconds. Rua has since undergone surgery for a torn knee ligament and has been added to a growing disabled list that also includes current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.
“We though it was going to be ‘Shogun,’” Hackleman said, “but now instead of saying ‘no’ to Wanderlei [Silva], they’re saying maybe.”
Liddell's loss was thought to have extinguished a New Year’s Eve collision with former PRIDE Light Heavyweight Champion Silva (31-7-1), but with the injuries to Rua and Jackson – and Griffin’s rehabilitation time iffy for a sizable cut earned in his most recent masterpiece – the bout may be one of the only options to main event Dec. 29’s mega show.
Like the 37-year-old Liddell, Silva has dropped his last two contests to Dan Henderson and Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic. Silva, 31, recently left Curitiba, Brazil’s Chute Boxe Academy, where he had made his home for 17 years, in favor of the United States; he has not announced an affiliation with an existing team yet. A Silva-Liddell showdown is one for which UFC President Dana White has vehemently campaigned for over five years.
“We’ve wanted Wanderlei all along,” Hackleman said. “When I told Chuck [it was still a possibility], he was almost as excited about it as when he found out he was fighting Tito [Ortiz].”
