Matt Hughes
Matt "K1" Hughes is a retired two-time former UFC welterweight champion and a UFC Hall of Famer. He is one of the few men to have defeated Georges St. Pierre and in turn received two defeats at the hands of St. Pierre.
He won his most recent fight against the debuting Renzo Gracie via TKO (leg kicks and punches). He then defeated Gracie's pupil, Ricardo Almeida, dropping him with a left hook before choking him unconscious with a tight anaconda choke. Around this time, fans began to call him 'K-1 Hughes'.
Hughes next fought a rubber match against former welterweight and lightweight champion B.J. Penn. Just over half a minute into the round, Penn dropped Hughes with a right hand before finishing the unconscious former champion with punches on the mat, grabbing his second win in the rubber match and proving he was the better man. Hughes contemplated retirement afterwards.
He was next set to face the relentless Diego Sanchez. Unfortunately, Sanchez was forced to pull out with an injury mere weeks before the bout was scheduled to take place. He was replaced on very short notice by former contender Josh Koscheck. Koscheck knocked Hughes unconscious with one second left in the first round. In the post-fight interview, Hughes stated that he would not retire and he would see what happened.
Former British contender Dan Hardy next called out Hughes, who was still contemplating retirement during his long hiatus after the Koscheck fight. After about a year of contemplation, Hughes retired from mixed martial arts in the fall of 2012.
Hughes officially retired towards the end of January 2013 and was given a job in the UFC -- similar to Chuck Liddell -- as the Vice President of Athlete Development and Government Relations.
Over a year later towards the end of February 2014 Hughes exchanged words with fellow former UFC welterweight champion and former rival Matt Serra. The two both said they'd be willing to come out of retirement for a rematch closer to the summer of 2014.
Fights[]
- Matt Hughes vs. Laverne Clark
- Matt Hughes vs. Jorge Pereira
- Matt Hughes vs. Pain Peters
- Matt Hughes vs. Jose Landi-Jons - The fight was one of the few true knockouts suffered thus far by Hughes. It was considered a grudge match with both fighters talking trash.
- Matt Hughes vs. Steve Gomm
- Matt Hughes vs. Carlos Newton 2 - The fight was for the welterweight title with Hughes defending.
- Matt Hughes vs. Gil Castillo - The fight was for the welterweight title with Hughes defending.
- Matt Hughes vs. Sean Sherk - The fight was for the welterweight title with Hughes defending. Sean Sherk came into the fight undefeated and it was his first loss. It was the first time Hughes had gone to a twenty-five minute decision.
- Matt Hughes vs. Frank Trigg 1 - The fight was for the UFC welterweight title with Hughes defending. It was Frank Trigg's UFC debut.
- Matt Hughes vs. Georges St. Pierre 1 - The fight was for the vacant UFC welterweight title and it was Georges St. Pierre's first loss.
- Matt Hughes vs. B.J. Penn 2 - The fight was for the UFC welterweight title with Hughes defending.
- Matt Hughes vs. Thiago Alves - Hughes suffered a shocking knockout loss.
UFC Hall of Famer Matt Hughes before his retirement bout against Josh Koscheck.
- Matt Hughes vs. Renzo Gracie - The fight was Renzo Gracie's UFC debut. It was the second win that Hughes secured over a member of the Gracie family.
- Matt Hughes vs. Ricardo Almeida
- Josh Koscheck vs. Matt Hughes - Josh Koscheck came in on just over two weeks' notice, replacing an injured Diego Sanchez.
