UFC
Dana White believes Brock Lesnar's retirement will stick after loss to "that much better" Alistair Overeem
Jan 12, 2012 - 1:15:00 PM Dana White believes Brock Lesnar's retirement will stick after loss to "that much better" Alistair Overeem

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

UFC President Dana White was on the Jim Rome Show earlier this week, and naturally the topic of Brock Lesnar and his retirement came up. Lesnar returned at UFC 141 in his first fight since losing his belt to Cain Velasquez in October of 2010, and after a one-sided beating against Alistair Overeem, Lesnar called it quits.

Speaking with Rome, White said he absolutely believed Lesnar was sincere in his retirement, and doesn't expect him to back off on it following the loss to Overeem.

"I think Brock's done," White said (transcribed by BJPenn.com). "The conversations I've had with Brock Lesnar since that fight, all indications point to it's over. This isn't baseball man, half in, half out, you can go out and party the night before and then play a game. These guys have to be 100-percent into this mentally, physically, emotionally."

Lesnar's demeanor in the cage at UFC 141 seemed in stark contrast to everything he had said leading into the fight about his camp and preparations, but according to White, it came down to Lesnar simply being bested by a better fighter.

"Here's what Brock said to me," White commented, "he said 'I'll tell you what, after my surgery from diverticulitis, this last surgery I had, I have never felt so good in my life.' He said 'I've had the best camp I've ever had, no injuries, I was in great shape, all the things that could go right, went right, that guy is just that much better than me and it's time for me to retire.'"

Penick's Analysis: White's final anecdote is the key here. Lesnar stepped into the cae against a fantastic fighter in Overeem, and in that fight he came to the decision that his time in the sport was over. Though I felt differently heading into the event, I don't think we'll see him back at all based on how he looked and sounded after the fight. With what White discussed in his conversation with Rome, that drives it home even further.

[Brock Lesnar art by Grant Gould (c) MMATorch.com]