Ahead of his impending retirement fight against Chris Gutierrez at UFC 281: Israel Adesanya vs. Alex Pereira, Frankie Edgar reflected on his career, including his admission that a fight against Conor McGregor 'would've been a good one.'
PHOTO COURTESY: Michael Reaves
All good things must come to an end, as is the case with probable future UFC Hall-of-Famer Frankie Edgar and his final hoorah at UFC 281: Israel Adesanya vs. Alex Pereira against Chris Gutierrez. At UFC 281 media day, the conversation largely loomed over the news of Edgar's retirement and a reflection on his career impact on MMA.
Former lightweight champion Edgar was adamant that he had no regrets over his 17-year career, however, there was one fight with a certain superstar that he probably would've liked to have.
"That would've been a good one. Absolutely. Obviously with the with the paycheck it comes with it. But you know, I mean, Conor [McGregor] is, he's transcended the sport to the mainstream more than any other fighter, and to be able to set for them would have been cool, but again, I got no regrets."
Frankie Edgar has repeatedly stated that he plans to retire after his fight against Chris Gutierrez at UFC 281: Israel Adesanya vs. Alex Pereira
"This is my last UFC fight, MMA fight for sure. Most likely, one hundred percent, this is my last fight," Edgar said. "But if like there's some boxing, [if] Manny Pacquiao wants to do an exhibition, I know he's doing exhibitions now. I could be open to some crazy like that, but it has to be a, you know, a really, really big one."
Edgar also spoke about some more concrete plans after his MMA retirement, including the possibility of coaching other fighters and up-and-coming martial artists.
"Now I'll definitely get into the coaching," Edgar told reporters. "I feel like I have too much to give, you know, not many people, I mean, no one's been in there longer than me. And I feel like I got a lot to share, a lot to help people with."
In a reflection on his career and his favorite career moment, Edgar said that there was one fight that stood out among the rest.
"If I gotta pick one, it's winning the title against BJ Penn. You know, I've been in athletics for you know, since I was 10 years old and always striving to be to be the best at that and I don't think I ever accomplished it until I won that title. So that always stands out to me," Edgar said. "No regrets."
UFC 281: Israel Adesanya vs. Alex Pereira takes place on Saturday, Nov. 12, 2022, live from Madison Square Garden in New York, NY. Follow along with Crimson Combat for all your news and highlights.