Gregor Gillespie's Last Fight Before He Disappeared

[SamuraiBro]

I thought the last that was heard about him was that he went off the deep end with the conspiracy theories and was possible back on hard drugs?

Nah I spoke to someone who knew him and he’s coaching wrestling/grappling classes. Apparently he wants to come back for 3 fights then call it a day.

 

[kingofthecans]

Where does Kevin Lee fit into all of this? Is it his fault?

It is. He laid a Motown Throwdown that night.

 

[welcometohavoc]

What a rebound from the Kevin Lee fight, dominating the # 12 guy in the second round for the KO. He was back, in the top 10 with another win, a title contender in a year perhaps.....and then he disappeared.

I actually never saw this fight. My god what a fight.

Shades of Newton/Sakuraba.

There is nothing like two aggressive, high level grapplers going at it

 

[Private Whatley]

That's true for some, but Gregor took long layoffs between fights and seemed to spend all his spare time fishing. I don't think he was inactive because he was doing Door Dash for 8 hours a day and couldn't train. He had other priorities.

I mean, it's his career, but he had a lot of potential. He came to the UFC around age 30 so he needed to fight often and build his resume quickly before he got old. That didn't happen.

I think he just decided that the juice wasn’t worth the squeeze and honestly, I don’t blame him. For what the sport demands, the pay is atrocious especially if you live in the US. Strickland was going on about it again yesterday and he’s not wrong.

I’m really curious to see how they fill out the White House card given the relative dearth of high level American fighters. It’s why I fully expect that despite Dana’s attestations to the contrary, Jon Jones will be headlining.

 

[agibmxmma]

Happens in every sport.. when competing all your life, many get burnt out and do not seek the "fame" or potential financial rewards, that can be possibly made. Not that hard to understand or grasp.

 

[Romulas]

I've known him before, during and after fighting. He's fishing, cycling and he does well coaching wrestling privates and doesn't need to fight for money. I won't get into specifics but he lived beyond frugally while in the UFC and can live how he wants now.

He's a 0 or 110% person so if he's not doing something he needs publicity for, you won't hear anything about him.

 

[Sticko]

The last time I heard Gregor talking about taking a fight was back in June 2023 he wanted to get on the November Madison Square Garden card that year to "ruin somebody's night." But nothing ever came of it.

Gregor was already on a 2-year layoff since his last fight at that point and had been removed from the rankings for inactivity so I think basically the UFC wasn't interested in giving him a matchup with a ranked guy.

 

[NicholasJBasile]

What a rebound from the Kevin Lee fight, dominating the # 12 guy in the second round for the KO. He was back, in the top 10 with another win, a title contender in a year perhaps.....and then he disappeared.

Very sad as a fan, but I'm happy for him in that he probably just didn't have his heart in it and decided to follow a happier path for himself.

 

[NicholasJBasile]

I've known him before, during and after fighting. He's fishing, cycling and he does well coaching wrestling privates and doesn't need to fight for money. I won't get into specifics but he lived beyond frugally while in the UFC and can live how he wants now.

He's a 0 or 110% person so if he's not doing something he needs publicity for, you won't hear anything about him.

Thanks for the update! He wrestled against my teammate Chase Pami in college -- he was such a monster from top. I'm glad to hear he's doing well. If you play your cards right, you can get by nicesly with privates and coaching as a wrestling coach if you have the accolades he does.

 

[Morris88]

Well, Grant is back in civilization anyway, living in Halifax.

Nova Scotia, or West Yorkshire?

 

[Leonard Haid]

Nova Scotia, or West Yorkshire?

Mongolia. Jeez, takes 10 seconds to Google.

 

[Paladin]

I think we should sticky TJ grant whereabouts thread to stop weekly "what happened to TJ Grant" threads

Where is he??