Fil-Am UFC ace Muñoz bids tearful farewell

Mark Munoz greets his Filipino supporters following his unanimous decision victory over Luke Barnatt during the UFC Fight Night in Manila Saturday night at the Mall of Asia Arena.  Photo by Don Lejano/INQUIRER.net

MARK Muñoz’s swan song was every bit action-packed as it was emotional.

The Filipino-American mixed martial arts star outclassed Luke Barnatt of England, coming away with a unanimous decision victory in their three-round middleweight battle before a roaring crowd of 13,000 in UFC Fight Night at SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.

A relentless Muñoz relied on his superior wrestling and striking skills to stun Barnatt, whose 6-inch height edge was hardly a factor.

“The Filipino Wrecking Machine” made his way to the octagon with tears welling in his eyes and later delivered a heartfelt retirement message, capping a roller-coaster career that saw him finish with an impressive 14-6 record.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better ending and I thank God I was able to end my career here,” he addressed the crowd. “I didn’t accomplish what I wanted to accomplish in the cage but I’m happy I’ve been able to impact lives.”

Muñoz has promised to help the country’s wrestling program, having been an All-American and NCAA champion while competing for Oklahoma State.

Another Fil-Am fighter also came out on top as Phillipe Nover took a controversial split-decision win over Korean Yui Chul-nam.

But Filipinos Mark Eddiva and Roldan Sangcha-an bowed in their respective fights to Levan Makashvili of Georgia and Jon de los Reyes, a Guamanian with Filipino roots.

Sangcha-an, however, earned a bonus of $50,000 (P2.2 million)  as his fight with De los Reyes was adjudged as Fight of the Night.

Featherweight Frankie Edgar prevailed over Urijah Faber via unanimous decision in the main event of the historic card that ended at 1:30 a.m. on Sunday morning. Middleweight Gegard Mousasi also won by the same verdict over Cosotas Philippou in the main undercard.