{"id":292187,"date":"2018-11-21T09:28:14","date_gmt":"2018-11-21T17:28:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/?p=292187"},"modified":"2018-11-27T16:12:05","modified_gmt":"2018-11-28T00:12:05","slug":"chuck-liddell-opens-up-on-gamble-he-made-by-accepting-third-tito-ortiz-fight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/mma-news\/golden-boy-promotions\/chuck-liddell-opens-up-on-gamble-he-made-by-accepting-third-tito-ortiz-fight\/","title":{"rendered":"Chuck Liddell opens up on ‘gamble’ he made by accepting third Tito Ortiz fight"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Saturday night, UFC Hall of Famers Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz will collide for a third time (watch here<\/a>). They will do so as part of the first MMA event promoted by Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions.<\/p>\n

Speaking at the final pre-fight press conference for this event, Chuck Liddell referred to this fight with Tito Ortiz as a “gamble.” Just as Ortiz has stated ahead of this trilogy fight<\/a>, Liddell admitted that he will not be receiving a very big guaranteed purse, and that he only stands to earn a big payday if the pay-per-view performs well.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was taking a gamble,\u201d Liddell told MMAjunkie<\/a> at the press conference. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t a big upfront (pay check). It\u2019s taking a gamble that you\u2019ll be successful, but it\u2019s also a big home run if you win.\u201d<\/p>\n

Liddell added that he received offers from other promotions when he began floating the idea of a comeback, but the prospect of a ‘tune-up’ fight with his arch rival Tito Ortiz was enough to convince him this was the right move.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had offers everywhere,\u201d Chuck Liddell said. \u201cA lot bigger guarantees to fight anybody I wanted to pick. I could pick anybody. They didn\u2019t care. The name, whoever I fought, they didn\u2019t care. But I chose this over that because I think it\u2019s a fight my fans want, and I think for me, it\u2019s a closest thing to a tuneup fight that\u2019s got a name to it that there is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI expect it to be a cakewalk. He\u2019s hoping that after 12 years, I\u2019ve slowed down so much that he can actually beat me. That\u2019s kind of what he\u2019s said. He\u2019s like, \u2018Chuck\u2019s over the hill. He\u2019s slow now.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, I\u2019m going to beat him. I mean, basically, he\u2019s saying he can\u2019t beat me if I\u2019m fast, and I\u2019m still able to do things. The sad thing is, if he\u2019s even convinced himself, which I don\u2019t think he has, that he\u2019s going to beat me, about 30 seconds into the fight, I can still stop his shot, I still hit really, really hard, and I\u2019m still pretty fast. And he\u2019s going to figure that out about a minute in and start looking for a way out.\u201d<\/p>\n

How do you think Chuck Liddell will perform in his Saturday rematch with Tito Ortiz?<\/p>\n

This article first appeared on\u00a0<\/i>BJPENN.COM<\/i><\/span><\/a>\u00a0on 11\/21\/2018.<\/i><\/p>\n