In a recent production appropriately titled “Punishment Athletics Presents: The Interview”, newly re-acquired UFC light heavyweight fighter Tito Ortiz spoke about why he chose to come back to the UFC, how he made up with Dana White, and a possible time frame on when we can expect to see him in the octagon once again.
“It was a big decision to come back to the UFC," Ortiz admitted. "I could have fought for Strikeforce and make a bunch of money, but who would I fight? They got Frank Shamrock, Babalou, possibly Fedor at a catch weight.
"I want to compete at the highest level of competition for four or five more years," Ortiz continued. "The UFC has Machida, Rashad, Forrest, Rampage, and the list goes on and on. People wouldn’t give me the recognition that I deserve if I didn’t fight the best in the world.”
He went on to add, “Ninety-eight percent of my fans on MySpace voted for me to re-join the UFC.”
Speaking on how he and Dana White re-established a friendly, working relationship, Tito noted, “Me and Dana met in Las Vegas before UFC 100 and we both decided to bury the hatchet. We were really good friends at one point, but we just didn’t see eye to eye on a lot of topics. Dana even told me that if I didn’t end up signing with the UFC, it’s still better to have me as a friend than an enemy.”
Tito went on to discuss his potential rumored bout with UFC Hall of Famer Mark Coleman. “He’s someone I look up to, and I respect him a lot. He’s a former heavyweight champ and now he’s a threatening fighter at 205. I love Mark, he’s a good guy, but it’s a competition.”
Ortiz also mentioned when he expects that fight to take place.
“Maybe November to early December or on the New Years card.”
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