Frankie Edgar Reflects on Career After HOF Announcement
During UFC 297 it was announced that Frankie Edgar will be inducted into the “Modern Wing” of the UFC Hall of Fame this year. Edgar’s career as one of the stand-out fighters from the great “Garden State” of New Jersey is a storied one, filled with many rivalries and milestones. His reaction was caught on camera and obviously going through a lot of emotions with the news, Edgar was delighted.
After the announcement, he spoke with Megan Olivi for ESPN MMA and said the messages he got from fans and especially other fighters “One of the best strokes you can get, is from your peers.”
When asked what stands out as the biggest moment of his career, he said “Winning the title always stands out,” and added, “Probably [Gray] Maynard 3, that was a pretty good ending, the way it ended, that trilogy.”
Edgar is referring to his fourth-round knock victory at UFC 136. It was the end to a rivalry that began in 2008 when Maynard handed Edgar his first professional loss after going undefeated for nine pro bouts. They faced each other again at UFC 125, a title fight that ended in a draw that had Edgar retain the title, and in 2011 at UFC 136, Edgar was able to defend his title and avenge the loss while earning “knockout of the night” as well.
It makes sense that would stand out to Edgar, longtime MMA fans also remember his trilogy with BJ Penn as many of the lightweight battles he went through. For many years, the lightweight division in MMA has arguably been considered one of the toughest in the sport and Edgar was a big part of that reputation, especially among fans and martial artists in the Northeast.
Time is undefeated, especially in combat sports but damn if fighters like Edgar don’t make it fun to watch. Congratulations and thank you, Frankie Edgar.
