Dana White Claims Rashad Evans Told Him He’s Retiring

MMA Fighting reports that during the post-UFC 225 press conference on Saturday, UFC President Dana White claimed that Rashad Evans told him he’s retiring from MMA. Here are highlights:

On talking with Evans after the fight: “When he lost, I had him come back to my room. We hung out and talked, and yeah, it’s sad. Rashad was on season two of The Ultimate Fighter, so he was around through the whole building of this company. We all get old, man, and this is a young man’s sport. But if you look at what he [did], he won The Ultimate Fighter, he became a world champion, he [built] this team where he was like the guy and built all these young up-and-coming fighters. He’s been in big, huge fights. He’s been on the ride with us the whole way and he got to close it out in his hometown of Chicago, so not a bad run.”

On if Evans told him he’s retiring: “Yeah, he did. Yeah. Again, I don’t want to stomp on his — if he was going to retire or whatever, I don’t want to steal the thunder from him. And obviously after a fight like that, he’s super emotional too. So yeah, I hope he does.”