"There's one fight left on my UFC contract. I will have this fight, regardless of what the reporters think. However, there's a possibility that the UFC will insist on not allowing me to fight. I will accept their decision. It's time to retire, despite the fact that I want to continue. Next year, it will be 20 years since my first fight... I had a great career, and I don't regret anything. But I don't want to finish it defeated... I'm very sorry. I was more than ready for my last two fights, but still, I was unable to see the punches coming. I would like to apologize to all my fans. Believe me, I'm also very disappointed... There's no other options. UFC is a monopoly. Soon, they'll swallow Strikeforce, so I have basically nowhere to go. The Japanese market is dead, DREAM is dead, and the tragedy in Japan annihilated all the other Japanese MMA promotions."

Fresh off the heels of his UFC 128 defeat, Mirko Cro Cop tells the media (via lowkick.com) that he does not want to hang them up but if the UFC forces him out of the promotion (as Dana White has hinted at) than he will have no option other than retirement. Since the UFC's acquisition of Strikeforce many have called the MMA giant the NFL of MMA. Now owning the contracts of all top 10 fighters across all divisions with very few exceptions the UFC can control the fate of a fading fan favorite such as Mirko. While many say this is good for the sport, what about the fighters that feel they still have something to give to fans across the globe?