Vitor Belfort's retirement opponent set as Nate Marquardt:

One of the baddest men to ever step foot in the octagon has one more walk ahead of him. 

One of the greatest natural strikers in mixed martial arts history, will bow out of the sport at UFC 212 this June, as Vitor Belfort faces former Strikeforce Welterweight champ Nate 'The Great' Marquardt in his native Brazil. A one time UFC Light Heavyweight champ, 'The Phenom' has been on a unfortunate run as of late, losing his last three in devastating fashion, against compatriot 'Jacaré' Souza, Gegard Mousasi and a UFC Fight Night Fortaleza loss to Kelvin Gastelum. Vitor's most previous triumph in the octagon came via a head kick KO win against long time foe Dan Henderson back in 2015, but regardless of form, Belfort will be remembered as one of the greatest to ever grace the sport, whether that will stem from highlight reel finishes of Michael Bisping and Luke Rockhold, or dominations of Wanderlei Silva, Anthony Johnson, Matt Lindland, Marvin Eastman or Randy 'The Natural' Couture. With a UFC career dating back to the organisation's humble early days back at UFC 12 in 1997, Vitor has established himself as one of the most inspirational and devastating finishers in combat sports history. UFC 212 opponent Nate Marquardt is also a seasoned MMA veteran, with an incredible 54 matches under his belt. The former 170lbs Strikeforce title holder, spectacularly stopped current UFC champ Tyron Woodley for the crown before a decision loss to Tarec Saffiedine but with eye catching wins over Shonie Carter, Yves Edwards, Jeremy Horn, Martin Kampmann, Demian Maia and Rousimar Palhares to boast about, Marquardt easily assets himself into MMA folklore along with Belfort, as two of the best the sport has had to offer. A really fitting way for Belfort to bow out against tough and rugged competition in the form of Marquardt, a much more appealing bout than the CM Punk contest Belfort had pleaded for.

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