Ricardo Lamas, an old guard of the Featherweight division decides to depart. Goes out after an ideal swan song.
On September 7, 2020, one of the most renowned fighters of the Featherweight division, Ricardo Lamas has announced his retirement. The 38-year-old last featured at UFC Vegas 8, where he registered a victory against Bill Algeo, a fight which was adjudged as the fight of the night. After the bout, in the post-match address, Lamas did gave a hint about this potential move, and had said he will discuss his future with his family, and now a week and half afterwards, he officially declared to hung up his gloves. Lamas, thereby went on a high
Lamas, a former contender of the Featherweight title, stated an incredible episode from his life, which led to this ultimate decision to retire.
Ricardo Lamas’ Reason Behind Retirement
In an interview with MMA Junkie, the 38-year-old revealed how with a rosary he always used to pay tribute to his late brother. “If you watch me fight, you’ll know that I always carry a rosary with me to the weigh-ins and to the walkout, and I’ll give it to my corner or whatever. In 2009, one of my brothers passed away and he was living in Arizona at the time. So when we got the news, me, two of my brothers and my dad went out there to kind of gather his belongings. See him, kind of identify him and bring him back. … I was in this little store, kind of like a Native American store, and they had a bunch of rosaries – little wooden rosaries.
“So I picked one up, one for myself, one for each of my brothers, one for my dad, and one for my brother who had just passed away. At his wake, I had the priest bless all the rosaries, and I gave one to each of my brothers and we buried one with my brother. So that was kind of my way of bringing him with me to every fight, because he was really proud (of me).”
Lamas Lost The Rosary
Ricardo Lamas further explained intriguing turn of events in relation with the rosary, and how they became the factor that led to this decision. “After my last fight, because of my hospitalization, I was in the hospital, putting all my crap away. I misplaced the rosary,” Lamas said. “I didn’t know where it was. And I kind of forgot about it because I pretty much only bring it to fights. And I’m getting ready to leave for Miami, and because I had to go straight to Vegas from Miami, I’m getting everything ready to bring to the fight, like my flag, and I’m looking for the rosary. I’m tearing my house apart and my wife is helping me look, and I couldn’t find it anywhere and I’m like.’
“So I just had to leave without it. And the other crazy thing is that my brother passed away on Aug. 28, 2009. The day of the weigh-ins was Aug. 28, and that night, I had made weight. So I’m on weight, I go to bed, I wake up about 3 a.m. just because I’m so thirsty, and I just start scrolling through Facebook and one of my brothers had posted a comment on my late brother’s memorial page, and I commented on it, and I just started scrolling through pictures of him and kind of talking to him in my head and saying, ‘I know I don’t need a rosary to know that you’re here with me, and please just watch over me just one more time. I just want one more win, and I’ll move on from the sport.”
“He kept his promise to watch over me, so I’ve got to stick by my word”
However, Lamas co-incidentally found the rosary, next morning in his backpack, yet decided to keep his word, even after winning the fight. “I knew something big was going to happen in this fight. One of my corners was staying with me, and I tried telling him about it and I couldn’t even talk. I kept getting choked up. I was crying, and then he started crying. So I’ve never had anything like that happen to me – if it was a coincidence … the same day that my brother passed away … a few hours before, I’m literally talking to him in my head and mention the rosary … I didn’t have it with me … and I think it was just his way of letting me know he was still there. So he kept his promise to watch over me, so I’ve got to stick by my word. And I’m going to hang up my gloves after that performance.”
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