Tito is little underrated imo

[13Seconds]

He was a monster for his era but he was never the best LHW in the world. I appreciate him for building the LHW division. He's such an important part in UFC history.

 

[Prince Nephilim]

He’s finishing his career strong that’s for sure

Since he’s left the UFC he’s only lost once.

 

[wrestlefan]

I never liked Tito but when he choked out Bader and did the grave digger, I couldn't help but cheer.

 

[Lee_]

he really isn't. he had almost no good wins. i have no idea how he beat wand.

goes firmly in the 'pioneer of the sport' bucket. also the 'world's most annoying interview' bucket.

Wandy was just coming into his own at the time. If you watch Wandy in early Pride, he fights the same way early on, but isn't as good as he gets by the time of Pride GP 2005. He would have smashed Tito's blockhead at that time.

 

[Bend NvR Break]

I think people can generally separate their dislike for Tito from his mma career.
Tito was the first mma fighter I ever heard about. And when he was winning he was smashing people.
Do i think I can be friends with Tito? Probably not. But that doesn't mean he's in my 5-10 range of greatest LHW of all time.

I also take age, longevity and competition when I do my rankings. That was I don't knock Silva much for his losing streak.

 

[kalabula]

On top of which he’s still fighting.

 

[Super2]

The Tito Ken grudge saved mma when it was floundering. Dude can't speak for shit but other than his in fight persona he was a good coach and seems like a good person.

 

[Morning Star]

I used to hate Tito but you would have to be a bigger moron than him to not recognize what he did for the sport and the success he had. Over time Tito has won me over. He's probably the funniest fighter of all time and he has a comically large cranium.

 

[EYEKICKFACES]

he’s one of the best lhw of all time. I read people say rumble is the third best lhw.

tito is certainly ahead of rumble.

He's certainly one of the best LHW's of the night!

 

[ookii]

Tito has dreams of becoming a college professor

 

[Karl_Hungus]

 

[JakePaulMMA]

That's cause he's going to outlive his kids

I don't think he understands what a vaccine is, so probably.

 

[sonhow]

I think people just wanted to hate on him.

I remember when Dana acted like he was a bum after losing to Machida on the scorecards. Despite that fact that everyone else was also losing to Machida and Tito almost pulled it off with a hail mary sub.

 

[Sweater of AV]

He ended up losing to Chuck, but that was a bad style match up.

I've been watching since Day 1.

If anyone is underrated, it’s Frank. Tito was great though and deserves respect.

 

[sonhow]

If anyone is underrated, it’s Frank. Tito was great though and deserves respect.

Great win for Frank but Tito was winning until gassed and then made changes on his camp + really worked on his cardio. Big Bear if I recall correctly.
Shame there was never a rematch.

But yeah Frank was one of the greats too. Maybe the most awkward retirement ever at a random strikeforce event but had heck of a career before it.

 

[Afrikan]

Tito and Ken shamrock literally saved North American mma during the dark ages. They were the biggest ppv draws around.

There is a reason Tito was the final *Boss* in this scene..



Or maybe it just might be his head that made him the most intimidating?

 

[akproplayer]

I've always found him entertaining. I even give him credit for his porn star wife.

 

[blackheart]

I couldn't disagree more. I think he's rated pretty accurately. Massive overachiever that had legendary fights and helped build the early ufc with classic rivalries against other big names.

Really big for the LHW division back then. Really strong wrestling and heavy hands but very basic and limited stand up skills. Once the UFC grew and brought in international talent and LHW became the legendary shark tank that it was back before Jones - Tito started losing most of his fights.

Admittedly in hindsight, his win over a young prime Ryan Bader was a pretty big deal and a nice flash of his former greatness. He blitzed his ass and put it on him. In the middle of a 1-7-1 streak too.

all of that said tho its pretty simple- the length and quality of his W column doesnt impress very much

I think what held Tito back more than anything was that at the end of the day he was just a big dumbass meathead jock with barely 3 brain cells to rub together. And that was BEFORE the cte! I say that somewhat affectionately honestly and we all know that about him. He's a classic character in the sport.

 

[gimmick122]

Once he told the Iceman that with his belly, he's more like a Snowman.

Underrated wordsmith. One of the greatest of that night.

 

[Sweater of AV]

Great win for Frank but Tito was winning until gassed and then made changes on his camp + really worked on his cardio. Big Bear if I recall correctly.
Shame there was never a rematch.

But yeah Frank was one of the greats too. Maybe the most awkward retirement ever at a random strikeforce event but had heck of a career before it.

Oh I know Tito made changes but Frank would have as well. Also, the game plan was a big part of that. Frank was doing well from the bottom. It’s not as if Tito just magically tired out on his own.

A rematch would have been nice but I’m content with Frank being the Shamrock that beat Tito.

Oh and regarding his retirement, I wouldn’t call the Diaz fight a random Strikeforce event. It wasn’t the best send off though.