It's Lights Out for Chris Lytle's Career, and Right On Time

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Chris Lytle, Dan HardyCongratulations, Chris Lytle. Now go away and stay away. I mean that with all due respect. Don't come back from retirement. Don't ruin your perfect ending. Few fighters say goodbye in the way you did, in the way they want to.

Most of them hang on too long, or chase every last dollar. Most of them leave us shaking our heads.

Not Lytle. He won four of his last five, had his biggest paydays, and then said goodbye.




"I've never seen anybody leave the sport on good terms with wins," he said afterward. "Everybody goes when they get knocked out three times in a row. It's like, oh well, that's it. I wanted to be the only guy ever to go out on a good streak. Hopefully I did that."

Yes, sir, you did, even if some people doubt that you're retired for good.

The skepticism is understandable. Few fighters walk away gracefully. Even the great ones have trouble knowing when to hang up their gloves. But there is reason to believe he will keep his word and let this be the last time. For one, Lytle's always been a stand-up guy. Honest with the fans, honest with the media. Remember, years ago, after losing to Matt Serra in a performance he later regretted for his cautiousness, Lytle vowed never to hold back again.

That was the beginning of the Lytle who became the UFC's bonus baby, willing and able to turn any fight into a battle.

"Some people might say, you should try to win more," he said about his gambling style, "but I've got to be me. I've got to fight the way I want to fight."

Win some, lose some, but bore no one. That might as well have been his motto in his later years.

Fighting a motivated Dan Hardy that was essentially fighting for his job, Lytle put on one last inspired performance, out-landing his British opponent 127-61, according to FightMetric.

Then in the third, Lytle closed the show in style. As Hardy shot in for a late takedown in hopes of stealing the round, Lytle attacked his neck and secured a guillotine. Hardy hadn't been submitted since 2005, but Lytle finished him in short order, moving into mount and squeezing the hold until Hardy was forced to tap.

For his efforts, Lytle was awarded Submission of the Night and with Hardy, Fight of the Night. The two awards were his ninth and 10th in his UFC career, giving him the most nightly bonus awards in UFC history. Ahead of Anderson Silva, ahead of Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture, and everyone else who's ever walked into the octagon.

The awards -- all won over the last four years -- add up to $515,000.

But Lytle also shared a moment that was beyond prizefighting, one that will always be priceless to him. After winning the main event, Keegan and Kaylin -- two of his four children -- were let into the cage to celebrate his final moments with him.

Hands raised and children by his side. Is there a better way to go out?

While there may be calls for him to continue onward -- and after his recent run, it's understandable -- Lytle's reasons for walking away resonated on the night where the MMA community lost an important figure, the noted trainer Shawn Tompkins.

For Lytle, it was all about family. After his UFC 127 fight, Lytle said that for the first time, he didn't want to go to the gym. After so many years of grinding away at his craft, he was starting to feel selfish about focusing so much time on himself.

"I just want to tell you guys that I honestly love being a fighter, I love being part of the UFC," he said after winning. "I love it probably more than anything in my life, except for one thing, and that's my family. It's time for me to dedicate more time to them and quit putting myself first."

It's rare to call an octagon moment "touching" or "sweet," but watching him walk out with his kids was one of those times.

As we were reminded on Sunday, we aren't promised the future to spend with our families and loved ones. On Thursday, Lytle turns 37. It is not ancient by any stretch. As a well-conditioned pro athlete, he might even be considered young alongside most people his age. But that was also Tompkins' age at the time of his unfortunate passing.

Hopefully, Lytle has many years to share with the people he loves. Aside from Keegan and Kaylin, he has two other children, Corrine and Jake, with his wife Kristin.

He has earned his right to walk away at the height of his career, even if he leaves us wanting more.

He has given us plenty. We had our turn. So, goodbye, Chris, and thanks for the memories. Now go make some with your family.

 

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First Shots: 2012 Yamaha YZR-M1

With yesterday’s race out of the way, MotoGP’s riders spent their Monday back at the Cardion AB circuit in Brno, testing their 800cc & 1,000cc machines. While we’ve already seen the 2012 Honda RC213V and the Ducati Desmosedici GP12, making its first public appearance was the 2012 Yamaha YZR-M1. Both Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies tested the new M1 at Brno; and additionally, the duo also put in laps on their current M1 machinery, which ...

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Hardy misses, then makes weight at UFC on Versus 5 weigh-ins

MILWAUKEE -- Dan Hardy, one of the main eventers for Sunday night's UFC on Versus 5 card, missed weight by a half-pound on his first try during weigh-ins outside the Harley Davidson Museum. He made weight an hour later.

The rest of the fighters made weight:

MAIN CARD (Versus)
?    Dan Hardy (171.5)* vs. Chris Lytle (170.5)
?    Ben Henderson (156) vs. Jim Miller (155.5)
?    Donald Cerrone (156) vs. Charles Oliveira (155)
?    Duane Ludwig (170.5) vs. Amir Sadollah (170)

PRELIMINARY CARD (Facebook)
?    C.B. Dollaway (186) vs. Jared Hamman (185)
?    Joseph Benavidez (135.5) vs. Eddie Wineland (136)
?    Ed Herman (186) vs. Kyle Noke (185)
?    Ronny Markes (205) vs. Karlos Vemola (205.5)
?    Alex Caceres (146) vs. Jim Hettes (145.5)
?    Cole Miller (155) vs. T.J. O'Brien (155.5)
?    Danny Castillo (156) vs. Jacob Volkmann (156)
?    Edwin Figueroa (136) vs. Jason Reinhardt (135)
* - Missed weight on first attempt

Other notes from the weigh-in:

-- T.J. O'Brien and Cole Miller got in each other's face and jawed, continuing even as Miller walked off the stage. UFC president Dana White told the two to save it for tomorrow night.

-- Charles Oliveira and Donald Cerrone also appeared to engage in smack talk while facing off, which is interesting considering that Oliveira speaks Portugese and Cerrone speaks English.

-- Jacob Volkmann started his campaign today, wearing a "Volkmann for President" shirt. I wonder what the Secret Service will have to say about that.

-- Several fighters tried to earn the award for best weigh-in wear. Eddie Wineland wore underwear that resembled denim shorts for a Tobias Bluth Funke look, while Amir Sadollah wore brightly colored shorts that caused UFC commentator to quip, "I hope no one is on acid out there." [Ed. note -- an earlier version messed up the joke on one of my favorite shows of all time. All apologies.]

Thanks to MMA Junkie for results, and Combat Lifestyle for pictures.

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Gurgel interview: Slugfests are in his blood

Jorge Gurgel's record may look a little pedestrian at 14-7, but he has nothing to be embarrassed about. Just about every fight with UFC, and now Strikeforce, has been a slobberknocker. It's kind of amazing considering Gurgel is best known around MMA as a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt.

"There's a business conception that people always say I fight to entertain the fans, I fight stupid because I fight for the fans. No disrespect to all my fans, I love you guys very much, but that was never the case," Gurgel told ESPNRadio1100/98.9 FM's DC and the Sunshine Man Show. "When the cage door shuts and the bell rings, I just see red."

Gurgel's original gameplan of using his striking to set up a takedown and twist up his opponent the ground goes out the window.

"The guy punches me, I want to punch him harder. The guy kicks me, I want to kick him harder," Gurgel said. "And at the end of the fight, it's usually me looking at my coaches saying 'did I win? Did I win?'"

Gurgel won't apologize for his fighting style. He simply loves to stand and bang.

"I've lost a lot of fights I shouldn't have, but I live with no regrets," Gurgel said. "I fell in love with Muay Thai the day I stepped into this country in 1998. In my first professional fight, I opened up with a head kick and broke his nose."

Gurgel went on to win his debut via triangle choke. Shortly after that, he made an appearance way back on Season 2 of "The Ultimate Fighter" and fought seven times officially for the UFC. With Joe Duarte on tap this Friday in Las Vegas on a Strikeforce card, Gurgel is currently 2-2 with the smaller Zuffa promotion.

Gurgel tops of solid card on Showtime (11 p.m. ET/PT) that also includes Danillo Villefort, Pat Healy, Gian Villante, Maciej Jewtuszko and female fight between Ronda Rousey and Sarah D'Alelio.

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Chris Lytle Says UFC on Versus 5 Fight With Dan Hardy Is Retirement Bout

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MILWAUKEE - Just one day after inferring a win over Dan Hardy could mean he had a title run left in him, Chris Lytle has announced his retirement.

Lytle, who fights Hardy in the main event of UFC on Versus 5 on Sunday in Milwaukee, informed UFC president Dana White that Sunday's fight would be his last. NBC Sports reported the news early Sunday morning.

Lytle handed White an envelope before he weighed in at the Harley-Davidson Museum on Saturday. According to NBC Sports, the envelope held a letter thanking White and the UFC, and a formal intent to retire from the sport. In White's video blog, put online late Saturday night, Lytle can be seen telling Hardy this would be his final fight.

"I've been fighting since '98, fighting forever," Lytle told NBC Sports. "A lot of it is just that I'm not doing my responsibilities like I need to at home. I feel like I'm not being the type of dad I want to. I've got four kids and lots of times I feel just an immense sense of guilt for not being there in times when I should."

On Friday, following a short workout, Lytle was asked if he believed he could get back in the hunt for a shot at a UFC welterweight title. He owned a four-fight winning streak prior to his upset loss to Brian Ebersole in February.

"If I go out there and just put on great fights - and I'm trying to win all of them - and win in spectacular fashion, it's not going to take eight fights," said Lytle, who will turn 37 later this week. "It's going to take a few. I feel like I'm still on the radar, and if I get a couple wins ..."

But those couple wins apparently will not come. He'll have a chance to go out with one victory against Hardy, in a main event fight nationally televised on Versus, before hanging up the gloves.

Lytle (30-18-5, 9-10 UFC) has put together one of the better career stories in MMA history. He made his UFC debut at UFC 28 in November 2000, predating even Zuffa's purchase of the promotion. A loss to Ben Earwood put him at 5-6-3 in his pro career, with most of his fights at that point in Japan for Pancrase and in his home state of Indiana. He went on a nice run after his UFC debut and returned at UFC 45, but lost to Robbie Lawler.

A win over Pete Spratt outside the promotion got him called back, and he won consecutive submissions against Tiki Ghosn at UFC 47 and Ronald Jhun at UFC 49. After toggling back and forth between the UFC, WEC (not yet owned by Zuffa) and other promotions, Lytle was asked to join the Season 4 cast of "The Ultimate Fighter," which featured former UFC fighters looking to make their way back to the promotion - with the winner guaranteed a title shot against Georges St-Pierre.

Lytle made it to the finals of TUF 4, but lost a close split decision to Matt Serra. Serra would go on to stun St-Pierre at UFC 69, winning the welterweight title in arguably the biggest upset in MMA history. But after his loss to Serra, only one of Lytle's fights has been outside the UFC.

Though he has a sub-.500 record in the UFC, he can bring that mark to 10-10 with a win over Hardy on Sunday night. Hardy has lost three straight fights, and both fighters have promised to put on a Fight of the Night-caliber performance - and both are likely to come out looking for fireworks now that they know it's Lytle's last rodeo.

That news may have been part of the reason White decided to up the ante on Sunday night's bonus amounts. Previous UFC on Versus shows have featured bonuses in the amounts of $40,000 and $50,000. For Sunday's card, the post-fight bonus awards will be $65,000, putting it on par with UFC pay-per-view amounts. Lytle has won eight post-fight bonus awards, including Fight of the Night for his lost loss, at UFC 127, to Ebersole. At one point, Lytle won bonus awards in four straight fights and seven of eight appearances. In total, he has five Fight of the Night awards, two Submission of the Night bonuses and one Knockout of the Night. The eight total ties him with Anderson Silva for the UFC record, and he'll likely be hoping to take the lead on Sunday.

Though Lytle said he thought a run at a title wasn't beyond reach for him, he also told MMA Fighting on Friday that retirement had indeed crossed his mind after his loss to Ebersole.

"After this last fight, I had a lot of injuries and that was one of the things I was contemplating," Lytle said. "I don't want to keep fighting if I can't perform like I've been doing. So I took some time off, hung out with the family a little bit and let my body heal up. I actually got to relax a little bit - it was pretty cool. I had about a month where I didn't do too much. That's a rarity."

Apart from his UFC career, which at 20 fights is one of the most active in the promotion's history, and more than 30 fights outside the promotion in a career spanning back to 1999, Lytle is also a former professional boxer who went 13-1-1 between 2002-2005, mostly near his Indianapolis home. He is also a full-time firefighter in Indianapolis, and recently announced he had formed an exploratory committee to consider a run for the Indiana legislature.

But it is his family life, with four children, that he told NBC Sports played the biggest factor.

"I just feel like I have a lot of things in my head that I feel guilty about," Lytle said. "I have a great time fighting, and I love fighting - I want to do it all the time - but I think that sometimes it's time for me to not think about what I want and start thinking about what's best for other people."

Lytle's MMA swan song takes place at the Bradley Center in downtown Milwaukee on Sunday. The main card airs live on Versus at 9 p.m. Eastern. In addition to the possibility of one last bonus check, a win by Lytle would also get him a new 2012 Harley-Davidson Blackline motorcycle. The UFC announced Friday that the main event winner will get the bike as a bonus. Harley-Davidson is based in Milwaukee and is one of the UFC's top-tier sponsors.

 

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Stefan Struve prepares for height difference with Pat Barry

On Tuesday, we showed you how Pat Barry is prepping flying clotheslines for his bout with Stefan Struve. The foot difference between the two fighters' heights means that they both face a challenge in training. Now, Struve has released a video to show how he is getting ready.

What's interesting about this fight is that the fighters have strengths that don't fit with their body types. Barry, the shorter one, has devastating headkicks, and Struve, the fighter with long, gangly limbs, has several submission wins under his belt.

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