VIDEO | Tito Ortiz taps Chael Sonnen in the first

https://twitter.com/MMA_Jim/status/823091042148880384

On Saturday evening, Bellator MMA returned to our screens with Bellator 170. Featuring plenty of jaw-dropping moments, this thrilling card was topped by a light heavyweight showdown between UFC Hall-of-Famer and MMA legend Tito Ortiz, and three-time UFC title challenger, “The Bad Guy” Chael Sonnen.

In the buildup to this fight, we learned that, win, lose or draw, Ortiz would be retiring from mixed martial arts afterwards. In the end, he was able to earn himself a win, and the perfect way to ride off into the MMA sunset for good.

Ortiz earned his win with a first-round, neck-crank / rear-naked choke hybrid. This win came after Ortiz took Sonnen down in the bout’s opening seconds, snuck his way out of a guillotine attempt, secured full mount, and ultimately, took the back. Sonnen’s tap occured at the 2:03 mark of round one.

See the finish in the video at the top of this article!

Having bested Sonnen, Ortiz rebounds from a recent loss to former Bellator light heavyweight champion Liam McGeary, which saw him blow an early lead and fail to claim the divisional title. The UFC Hall-of-Famer, who made his pro debut almost two decades ago in May of 1997, will retire with a 19-12-1 overall record. While he experienced some tough losses on the tail end of his career, his contributions to the sport are undeniable.

Sonnen, on the other hand, now finds himself on a two-fight losing streak, having also lost his second most recent bout, succumbing to a swarm of Rashad Evans punches back in 2013. He’s now 28-15-1 overall. Where he goes from here is difficult to say, though he has no shortage of interesting options in the Bellator cage.

What do you think of Tito Ortiz’s defeat of Sonnen, and of his legendary career? Sound off in the comments section, PENN Nation!

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 1/22/2017.