Former UFC champ Matt Hughes says he's now 'fully retired'

Photo via Tracy Lee of Combat Lifestyle

After returning from a controversial African hunting excursion, former UFC champion Matt Hughes had a revealing interview with a local Iowan paper. In it, Hughes informally announced his retirement from mixed martial arts.

It's been a long road, but it seems former UFC Welterweight champion Matt Hughes' fighting career has finally come to an end. MMA fans last saw him over a year ago in a losing effort against Josh Koscheck at UFC 135. Although he had some moments of success, Hughes was eventually knocked out in the last second of the first round. After a year of reflection, he's decided it's time to hang up the gloves.

The Iowa Daily Gate has the story:

I’ve not announced my retirement, but right now it looks like I’m fully retired. The UFC still treats me well, so I can be retired. It’s just funny, when God puts you on a road, you don’t know where you are going. I have all the faith that he put me there, and I have to thank him from that.

It's been more than two years now since Hughes picked up his last win in the Octagon against Ricardo Almeida at UFC 117. Despite the lack of success in the final leg of his career, the UFC Hall of Famer will go down as one of the best fighters in the sport's short history. He's retiring as a two-time former champ with a career record of 45-9.