KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Zak Cummings battled with the idea of retiring prior to UFC on ESPN 44, but winning was the deciding factor.
Cummings (25-8 MMA, 10-4 UFC) took out Ed Herman (26-16 MMA, 13-12 UFC) by third-round TKO this past Saturday in his hometown of Kansas City, and the moment was too good for him not to call it a career. With a performance like that, 38-year-old Cummings wanted to leave the sport on a high note.
“I really wasn’t sure what I was gonna do,” Cummings told reporters, including MMA Junkie, backstage. “I knew this would be special, but I love this stuff. I had so much fun. Having the training camp, having everything, staying healthy to get to the fight. I got all the way to the end, had the war that I wanted, had the finish that I wanted, had a finish in three different weight classes in the UFC, which I know is pretty special.
“Hometown, the way they were – KC fans are insane. Any sporting event here, they’re so loud. They just get behind everybody. It was so special, and I’m not going to taint that. It was fun in there, it was special, and it’s time. I couldn’t imagine a better way for anybody to go out, and I can’t believe it was the way I got to.”
Cummings wasn’t the only one who retired. His opponent, longtime UFC veteran Herman, also called it a career as the pair shared a special moment in the octagon.
“Bittersweet, it really was,” Cummings said. “I have my emotions. I’m on top of the world right now, and I respect Ed so much. I’ve never said a bad thing about that guy. It was just crazy to be able to be in there with someone like Ed Herman, who’s been in this game for so long. I knew how tough he was and seeing the other end of it, it broke my heart. It broke my heart seeing him beaten and battered and his crying, his tears for the other end.”
He continued, “Being able to lay our gloves down in the middle of the octagon and have a moment with him, it’s a moment I’ll never forget.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 44.
