Tim Kennedy Eying Lyoto Machida For ‘Loser Leaves UFC’ Match
UFC middleweight Tim Kennedy has been out of action since his highly controversial TKO loss to Yoel Romero at last September’s UFC 178, a bout where “The Sniper” had “Soldier of God” badly rocked in the second only to see him come back after a supposedly extra (and shady) amount of time on the stool between rounds.
Kennedy has been noticeably absent from MMA during that time, having knee surgery and even teasing an early retirement. But apparently he’s not going to stay away forever, as Ariel Helwani reported on this evening’s (Wed., April 22, 2015) UFC Tonight that Kennedy is apparently interested in taking on Lyoto Machida with the loser retiring from the Octagon:
Tim Kennedy wants to return to the UFC and have a “loser leaves the UFC” match with Lyoto Machida.
— UFC Tonight (@UFCTonight) April 23, 2015
Kennedy had won four straight UFC bouts before the loss to Romero, with his prior defeat coming to surging middleweight Luke Rockhold for the Strikeforce middleweight championship in July 2012.
Machida also lost to Rockhold; only much more recently, dropping a brutal one-sided affair by submission in the main event of last Saturday’s (April 18, 2015) UFC on FOX 15 from Newark, New Jersey. He’s still ranked at No. 4 in the stacked division despite two losses in his last three fights.
Although “The Dragon” may be 36 years old, it could still be argued that he can give most of the 185-pound talent pool some serious problems in the Octagon.
Kennedy’s displayed a stifling grappling game mixed in with intermittent knockout power, but it’s tough to say the same about him based on the uncertainty of his overall mental state and motivation to fight.
It’s doubtful that Machida would agree to retire from MMA if he lost to Kennedy, but it could still be a great fight for an upcoming card. Is it one that you’d like to see?
