Retirement has always been a tricky thing for athletes who were once dominant in their respective sports. Brett Favre, Michael Jordan, Roger Clemens, Jerry Rice, and many others all had the itch to make a return or had the itch during the offseason that caused them to stick with the sport for a few more years. That time to decide is now for Matt Hughes.
Hughes, one of the most dominant Welterweights to ever step in the cage, didn't look like the dominant Matt Hughes from the past on Saturday night. In fact, he was demolished by the wrestling skill of St. Pierre. The most interesting aspect of that fight was that it was the second time in his past two bouts that he completely locked down a wrestler with better credentials than himself. Of course, credentials don't mean everything and in fact, Pierre is rumored to be training for the Canadian Olympic team in wrestling. He certainly has done well using it against top notch competition in the UFC, why not move on to a world stage?
With that said, Hughes now has a more dominant and better skilled opponent above him in the division. Does he simply do what Rich Franklin did and work his way back to a title shot? Or does he feel that St. Pierre is just too dominant of a fighter atop the Welterweight division now? Should he try his hand in the struggling Middleweight division? Let's take a look at the possibilities.
Hughes may want to retire
Depending on his contract terms, Hughes really has some things he needs to mull over in the next few weeks. He has recently started to move into the business side of things by releasing an autobiography, and also starting his own clothing line called One More Round. It's obvious that he is beginning to look toward other revenue streams to supplement his living than fighting.
With Georges St. Pierre on top of the Welterweight division and the dismantling of Hughes by Pierre on Saturday night, it's a very slim chance that he will be able to defeat the Canadian in a rematch down the road. Pierre is what Anderson Silva is to the Middleweight division. It's very doubtful that Hughes wants to follow Rich Franklin's gameplan to moving back up to title contention. It seems like a logical choice to retire from the sport while other ventures are beginning to unfold.
There is, however, one more battle that the UFC may want to put together. If Matt Serra loses the title during his defense against St. Pierre, will the UFC pursue a Matt Hughes vs. Matt Serra showdown? It's possible considering they spent a lot of money producing a show that was to pit both fighters against each other at the end of the show. It never materialized due to Serra's back injury. Realistically, this seems like the only logical fight left in the division unless Hughes plans on making a run for a rematch.
Middleweight move up?
Another option may be for Hughes to move up in weight to battle Anderson Silva if Dan Henderson somehow cannot defeat Silva. Many fans criticize this move because St. Pierre looked so unbelievably dominant, and Silva has been crushing opponents. Stylistically, Hughes is a potentially dangerous matchup for Silva for a couple of reasons.