UFC
Following controversial UFC on Fox 10 loss, Josh Thomson says "This might be it, man"
Jan 26, 2014 - 8:30:00 AM Following controversial UFC on Fox 10 loss, Josh Thomson says "This might be it, man"

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

At the post-fight press conference for UFC on Fox 10 Saturday night, an injured and dejected Josh Thomson could only express frustration in how things played out against Benson Henderson.

Not only did he break his hand early on in the fight, but to most observers, he won the bout, only to have the judges snatch it away from him. Because he still felt he won despite being unable to be as effective as possible, the loss certainly isn't sitting well.

"It was more irritating than anything, just to know just to know that the things you need to do you can do out there," he said after the event (transcribed by MMAFighting.com). "You train this hard, for this long, for such a long camp, and I see my title shot just f***ing disappearing, you know. Without getting emotional right now, it's really irritating me."

Despite not wanting to get emotional, Thomson was choked up a bit, and his anger was palpable as he talked about the loss in context of a couple of other decision losses, those to Gilbert Melendez in Strikeforce.

"The Gilbert [Melendez] fight, hey, that to me was a close fight, I could see how it went either way," Thomson said. "This fight, I felt like I won. And I won with one hand. I beat the former UFC Champion, who was a guy who's been here for two years, and I beat him with one hand. That's what I can't stomach. I'm a better fighter, and that pisses me off."

By virtue of losing, Thomson also seemed resigned to a move that may have come even in victory: retirement. As he explained, he's nearing the end of his time in the sport, and one way or another, that time's going to end. Win or lose in this one, it was something that was on his mind, and with the loss it's more of a likely proposition than it may have otherwise been.

"This might be it, man," Thomson lamented when asked what's next in MMA for him. "I'd still be in the same position [had I won this fight]. There's a possibility [that I'd have turned down a title shot with a win], because what's the point of winning the title knowing that you're not going to fight that much longer? I don't want to do that to the UFC either. But like I said, I've got to sit down with them and just talk about the direction of how this all should go."

"I love this sport. I love being around the guys. It's great being in the back, and I think anybody who was in my locker room knows, I was back there with smiles just knowing this has been great. I love it, this is the best."

Penick's Analysis: It'd be a shame for Thomson to go out on that note, with a really bad decision going against him here when he was so close to a redemptive title fight. That said, he's clearly had retirement on his mind outside of Saturday night, so it wouldn't be insane to see him pack up and leave. He's unfortunately not likely to get back to a title fight now, so heading out may be a decent idea for him. That said, if he sticks around, it depends on the matchups and getting decisive wins to get back to a title fight.