White: Browne should retire

Travis Browne had three fights in 2013, beating Gabriel Gonzaga, Alistair Overeem, and Josh Barnett, all via KO, in a combined time of barely over one round. He was 18-1, training at Jackson-Wink, arguably the best MMA camp in the world, and a title shot appeared inevitable.

In April of 2014 ‘Hapa’ lost to Fabricio Werdum and months later switched to Glendale Fight Club and coach Edmund Tarverdyan, who is known primarily for training Ronda Rousey. Browne bounced back from the Werdum loss with a win over Brendan Schaub. And then his career went over a cliff.

He is now on a four-fight losing streak, to Cain Velasquez, Fabricio Werdum, Derrick Lewis, and Oleksiy Oliynyk. However, Velasquez is arguably the best heavy in UFC history. Going the distance with Werdum requires world-class skills. And losing to a surging Derrick Lewis in the Fight of the Night is not the kind of fighter the UFC wants to lose.

But at UFC 213 on Saturday night, Browne was outstruck by a 40-year-old grappler. Speaking with the media after UFC 213, UFC president Dana White was asked about Browne’s future.

Yeah, it’s crazy,” said White, as transcribed by Fernando Quiles Jr. for MMA News. “Travis Browne was one of those guys right before, I would say the ‘Bigfoot’ fight, even the ‘Bigfoot’ fight he got injured. He blew his hamstring or something weird happened to him in that fight. The guy looked like he would be a world champion. And this is just one of those sports [where] you never know. One minute you’re absolutely unbeatable and unstoppable, and the next minute you can’t win a fight. I think that Travis should retire.

Many fighters go on dangerously long as they need the money. Browne recently proposed to Ronda Rousey, who has millions, so access to capital for a different life endeavor should be available.