SATURDAY NEWS DIGEST: Vitor Belfort to retire, Cerrone calls McGregor a coward, Cyborg calls out Rousey

VITOR TO RETIRE

BloodyElbow has reported that Brazilian journalist Breno Massena posted a tweet that stated Belfort would retire after tonight’s event. The tweet, translated from Portuguese, says “According to sources, Vitor Belfort retires today after his fight at UFC 204.”

The news comes as a bit of a surprise to many fans who had no idea that Belfort had been contemplating retirement and will now see both Dan Henderson and Vitor Belfort retire following their respective bouts.

Belfort will leave the sport after 20 years and as a top five ranked fighter in the UFC.

Cervantes Analysis: This truly does come as a shock and certainly an odd time given that Belfort is still a top tier fighter and had a title shot just last May. It’s possible that he feels time has caught up to him and that he doesn’t believe he can continue to perform at the most elite level. At 39 years old it would be difficult for him to put together a string of wins to earn another shot and he may be accepting that reality. Regardless, he has been a phenomenal fighter over the last two decades and has had an incredible career with some highlight reel performances.

NOTEBOOK ITEMS…

-Per MMAMania, Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino said Ronda Rousey would need “surgery on her face” if a fight between the two ever came to fruition.

-Donald Cerrone told Sports Illustrated that Conor McGregor “is like a scared little kid” behind the scenes and that the majority of fighters do not like him.

-Ovince St. Preux told MMAJunkie that his fight against Jon Jones “proved what he was capable of” and that he can compete with the best.

NOW CHECK OUT YESTERDAY’S UPDATE: FRIDAY NEWS DIGEST: Anderson Silva feels disrespected by UFC, Cyborg criticizes Rousey, Mousasi’s new strategy