The final competing member of the original season of the UFC‘s Ultimate Fighter is about to call it a career. The season one winner, Diego Sanchez (30-13), announced on Twitter yesterday that his next fight will be his last in the octagon.
Sanchez has been competing in the UFC for almost sixteen years now. His official debut came back in 2005 when he defeated Kenny Florian to win the UFC‘s first six-figure contract that they handed out for the Ultimate Fighter.
Sanchez fought in the middleweight division during that tournament. His career inside the octagon has seen him compete in four different divisions. Most notably the lightweight division where he had his best run.
After starting taking off in the UFC‘s welterweight division, Sanchez decided to drop to 155 pounds. Sanchez looked like a monster when he moved down to lightweight in 2008. He had two standout wins over Joe Stevenson and Clay Guida.
The Guida fight has actually been inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame. Following those two impressive wins, Sanchez got his lone shot at UFC gold against BJ Penn. Sanchez was completely dominated by Penn and decided to move back to welterweight after the loss.
Sanchez’s Incredible UFC Run
Since 2010, it’s really been a journey all over the map for Diego Sanchez inside the UFC. He’s competed at welterweight, lightweight, and even a one-fight stint at featherweight in the last decade.
The Nightmare has competed 19 times since 2010 and has gone 9-10 in those 19 fights. However, it’s worth noting that he won one of those fights by DQ in a fight that he was completely getting dominated in.
After all of the wars that he’s been in, the 39 year old Sanchez is ready to hang it up. Sanchez took to Twitter yesterday saying, “It’s time to heal not hurt! One more Nightmare to give!” He then stated it’s up to the UFC on who he will face.
There’s no telling on what the promotion will do for Sanchez’s final fight. There’s no secret that Dana White has a soft spot for the TUF one guys. He’s been very vocal about his love for Diego Sanchez over the last 15 years.
I’m honestly not sure what the UFC should do with Sanchez’s last fight. If he’s willing to cut to lightweight, it could be fun to see him in there with Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone (36-15-1, 2 NC). Winnable or not, Sanchez needs to go out with an entertaining opponent. He deserves that.