Last night, in the main event of UFC London, former UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum attempted to make it three wins in a row opposite former Bellator heavyweight champ Alexander Volkov. Though Werdum enjoyed some moments of success early on the bout, particularly in the phases that the fight was contested on the mat, he was ultimately put down by a volley of fourth-round punches.

In the wake of this tough KO loss to Volkov, who he has trained with in the past, Werdum issued a lengthy statement, addressing the defeat itself and his future in the sport.

Gostaria de agradecer a todos que torceram por mim, que me mandaram mensagens de apoio e que estão ao meu lado neste momento difícil que é uma derrota. Estou triste porém mantenho minha cabeça erguida com a certeza que a vida é feita e erros e acertos e que o mais importante desta trajetória é como a gente se levanta de um tombo. Eu tenho a sorte de ter a felicidade e a determinação no meu coração e ser rodeado de pessoas que me respeitam e que me dão a energia que eu preciso para continuar minha trajetória de sucesso. Obrigado pelo apoio e saiba que cada um de vocês é muito importante para mim! ➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖ I would like to thank everyone who cheered for me, who sent me messages of support and who are by my side in this difficult moment which is a defeat. I am sad but I keep my head up with the certainty that life is made and mistakes and correct and that the most important of this trajectory is how we rise from a fall. I am fortunate to have happiness and determination in my heart and to be surrounded by people who respect me and who give me the energy that I need to continue my path of success. Thanks for the support and know that each one of you is very important to me!

A post shared by Fabricio Werdum 🥇 (@werdum) on Mar 17, 2018 at 10:07pm PDT

“I would like to thank everyone who cheered for me, who sent me messages of support and who are by my side in this difficult moment which is a defeat,” Fabricio Werdum said in his post. “I am sad but I keep my head up with the certainty that life is made and mistakes and correct and that the most important of this trajectory is how we rise from a fall. I am fortunate to have happiness and determination in my heart and to be surrounded by people who respect me and who give me the energy that I need to continue my path of success. Thanks for the support and know that each one of you is very important to me!”

What do you think the future holds for the former champ Fabricio Werdum?

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 3/18/2018.