Matt Riddle, veteran of the 7th season of The Ultimate Fighter, has injured his rib and been forced to pull out of Bellator’s Middleweight tournament. Riddle, frustrated by Bellator’s inability to offer him another fight this year then took to social media to announce his retirement.
Here’s what he tweeted:
I’m retiring from MMA today, I cracked my rib and I can’t fight sept 20th @BellatorMMA can’t give me a fight this year so I can’t afford it!
— matthew riddle (@riddletuf7) September 10, 2013
And here’s what he posted on Facebook:
“I’m retiring from MMA today. Cracked my rib and can’t fight Sept. 20. Bellator said they can’t find me a fight till the next tournament and I can’t afford not fighting that long and need a job. Sorry if I let anyone down but it isn’t paying the bills.”
It’s an unfortunate ending to Riddle’s five-year pro MMA career which began with his tenture on TUF. Though he was cut from the UFC after racking up two drug test failures for marijuana and signed with Bellator, he ended up fighting out his career in the Octagon, going 7-3 (2 NC) in the UFC.
Both of his No Contests were victories that were overturned due to positive results for marijuana metabolites in his urine. Though many of Riddle’s career difficulties were self-inflicted it is still not a good sign for the sport that MMA can’t sustain the career of a well-known, talented and young fighter like Riddle.
Riddle had been slated to face Luis Melo, Jr. in the quarterfinals of this season’s Bellator Middleweight tournament.
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