VIDEO | Anthony Johnson retires following UFC 210 loss to Daniel Cormier

VIDEO | Anthony Johnson retires following UFC 210 loss to Daniel Cormier

Following his UFC 210 title fight loss to Daniel Cormier at tonight’s UFC 210 in Buffalo, Anthony “Rumble” Johnson shocked fans by announcing his retirement from the sport.

Watch Anthony Johnson’s emotional retirement speech in the above video.

“Rumble” was the first fighter to be interviewed by UFC commentator Joe Rogan following the UFC 210 main event and stated the following.

“This is just something I have to do for me. I love you all. I said I love you!”

He continued:

“This uh… This was my last fight. I didn’t tell anybody. I didn’t even tell Dana White. My coaches knew, my family knew and my friends knew. I didn’t want any distractions. But I have to thank you all for being there for me,” Johnson said with tears in his eyes. “I gave my commitment to another job. Something that I have wanted to do for a while. It is not MMA related or anything like that. It is just time for me to move on to something else. I’m tired of getting punched by guys and rolling around on the ground with guys and stuff like that. Aint nothing fun about that yo. I enjoyed you Joe (Rogan). I enjoyed you UFC. I enjoyed you ZUFFA. Thank you. I will never forget you. And what better place to end my career than in Buffalo, New York.”

How shocked were you when Anthony Johnson announced his retirement? Sound off PENN Nation!

Get the full fight recap from last night’s Cormier vs. Johnson 2 title fight below:

Round one begins and Johnson lands a front kick to the body to start things off. He fires off a big right hand. DC returns fire with one of his own. Rumble lands a hard leg kick. He pushes Daniel against the cage. Anthony is looking for a double leg takedown. Cormier lands a knee inside and then another. Odd that Rumble would clinch up in the early moments. Anthony gets Daniel down for a second but Cormier gets right back up. Rumble continues to press DC against the fence. Johnson is really searching for the takedown here. Cormier switches the position and pushed Rumble against the fence. Cormier grabs a hold of a front head lock. Anthony is trying to break free but Cormier is all over him. Johnson is fighting back. He throws a high kick in the clinch. Wild. DC gets called for holding the fence and the referee forces them to break. Johnson lands a big head kick. DC seems to be stunned. Johnson rushes in and presses him against the fence. This is just bizarre. Cormier recovers against the cage and the horn sounds to end round one.

Round two begins and DC has a broken nose. He lands a hard kick on the body of Rumble. Johnson goes to the southpaw position. Cormier lands another good kick to the body. Johnson misses with a big right. DC ducks under and shoots in for a takedown. He does not get it but presses Rumble against the fence. Good short shots from Cormier here. He is making Johnson work here. Rumble is able to scramble but then chooses to press Daniel against the fence. He lands a takedown but DC pops right back up. Cormier now shoots in for the takedown and gets it. He immediately moves to the back. This is not good for Anthony. Two minutes remain. Big rights from Cormier. He switches to a rear-naked choke and this one is over.