Forrest Griffin with his nose broken in the second round of Griffin-Bonnar 1.
Forrest Griffin is the retired former UFC light-heavyweight champion and the light-heavyweight winner of the first season of The Ultimate Fighter reality show. He is also a UFC Hall of Famer.
Griffin engaged in one of the most memorable fights in UFC history -- and MMA history as a whole -- in the battle for the TUF contract against Stephan Bonnar.
Forrest's Career In My Humble View[]
Griffin most recently pulled out of a fight against Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, citing a shoulder injury, and he was replaced by Jason Brilz. Griffin had originally asked for the fight to be a catchweight, stating that he couldn't make 205 with the injury. The UFC told him no.
Griffin was next set to have a rubber match with Tito Ortiz. Instead, Ortiz fought Matt Hamill and Griffin was rumored to fight prospect Jon Jones. Jones dispelled this rumor after a month or so and claimed that he was next officially set to face the winner of the fight between Ryan Bader and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. Griffin, about a month after the Jones rumors were bashed, was announced to face Rich Franklin at the start of 2011. He defeated Franklin via unanimous decision after a fantastic fight. Griffin suffered a broken foot in the bout and faced another long layoff.
He next fought a rematch against former light-heavyweight champion Mauricio Rua. Griffin looked horrible before and after the fight, losing via first-round knockout. Rua's hammerfists on Forrest KOed him twice and fractured his jaw. Griffin contemplated retirement for the first time after the loss.
After recovering and after a lengthy hiatus, Griffin was next set again to face Tito Ortiz in a rubber match after which Ortiz would retire. Unfortunately Ortiz was injured soon after the bout was signed.
After Ortiz recovered a while later, Griffin signed again to face him in a rubber match at UFC 148 at the start of the summer of 2012. Griffin and Ortiz went to war for fifteen minutes. The fight had elements of both previous fights with Griffin outlanding Ortiz with light kicks and punches and Ortiz securing takedowns and landing good ground-and-pound elbows. This time, however, Ortiz knocked Griffin to the canvas with a few hard punches. The fight went the distance with both men high on the emotional ladder. Griffin won via a unanimous decision and Ortiz retired after the bout.
Griffin next signed for a rematch against former middleweight number-one contender Chael Sonnen at the UFC's New Year's Eve show to end 2012 with a bang. Sonnen received a disputed title shot against UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones and was replaced against Forrest by wrestler Phil Davis. Unfortunately Forrest suffered a bad knee injury in December 2012. He was replaced by Vinny Magalhaes.
At the UFC 160 post-fight press conference on May 25th, 2013, Forrest Griffin retired from the sport of mixed martial arts with honors. UFC president Dana White announced that Griffin and his partner-in-history Stephan Bonnar would be inducted together into the UFC Hall of Fame later in the summer of 2013.
Fights[]
- Forrest Griffin vs. Travis Fulton
- Forrest Griffin vs. Steve Sayegh - The fight was for King of the Cage.
- Forrest Griffin vs. Chael Sonnen - The fight was in the quarterfinals of the IFC light-heavyweight tournament.
- Jeremy Horn vs. Forrest Griffin - The fight was in the semifinals of the IFC light-heavyweight tournament.
- Forrest Griffin vs. Stephan Bonnar 1 - The fight was the UFC debut of both men. It was to decide the light-heavyweight winner of the very first season of The Ultimate Fighter.
- Forrest Griffin vs. Bill Mahood - The fight was Bill Mahood's UFC debut and only fight in the promotion, and Griffin's first fight after the victory over Stephan Bonnar to win the first season of The Ultimate Fighter.
- Forrest Griffin vs. Stephan Bonnar 2 - Stephan Bonnar tested positives for steroids after the fight and he was suspended for nine months. He also broke his right thumb in the first round.
- Forrest Griffin vs. Hector Ramirez - Griffin controlled the fight with brutal leg kicks. He also had a six-inch reach advantage.
- Mauricio Rua vs. Forrest Griffin 1 - The fight was Rua's UFC debut, and he was a heavy favorite coming into the fight. As seems to happen a lot, Griffin pulled off the upset, earning the right to be a coach on the seventh season of The Ultimate Fighter reality show and afterwards a title shot at light-heavyweight champion Quinton Jackson.
- Quinton Jackson vs. Forrest Griffin - Forrest won the light-heavyweight title in a controversial decision against Jackson.
- Forrest Griffin vs. Rashad Evans - Griffin was defending his UFC light-heavyweight championship. The fight was highly entertaining and competitive, but in the third round Evans rocked the champion on the ground after catching a leg kick and finished him there with hammerfists to be crowned the light-heavyweight champion.
- Forrest Griffin vs. Rich Franklin - Both men were coming off a long layoff.
- Mauricio Rua vs. Forrest Griffin 2
- Forrest Griffin vs. Tito Ortiz 3 - The fight was Tito Ortiz's last mixed martial arts fight as he was set to retire afterwards. The fight was the rubber match between the two rivals.
Quotes[]
- "The Octagon lights an incredible fire in you: the hunger for victory." - Forrest Griffin.