​​By Shawn Smith 


​It was just over 20 years ago when Vitor Belfort, a bright-eyed Brazilian phenomenon with unparalleled athleticism and sharp boxing, entered the UFC Octagon for the first time.

He tore through the competition, putting together four straight first-round knockouts to begin his career, none lasting more than 80 seconds. He was dubbed the future of the sport.

But the aging process, which remains undefeated, has caught up with Belfort.

Now the longtime UFC veteran is looking for a way to extend his career.

In speaking with MMAJunkie’s Fernanda Prates and John Morgan, Belfort suggested that a “legend league” be formed for aging fighters, a way of using their popular names to sell shows and to allow aging talent with a fighting spirit to continue competing.

“What I want to propose to them is creating a league inside the UFC, the legend league, so we can bring back these retired people – bring them back to the game and sell more tickets – give more opportunities so they can make more revenue,” Belfort told MMAJunkie.

He used former UFC light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell and longtime middleweight contender (and now UFC commentator) Brian Stann as potential participants.

Of course, before Belfort were to share a cage with retired fighters, he’ll have to do so with a modern-day fighter looking to earn his own legendary status. At UFC Fight Night 106, Belfort will fight 25-year-old Kelvin Gastelum, one of the rising stars of the middleweight division. Gastelum, for further reference, was kindergarten-age when Belfort was smashing skulls inside the Octagon. 

Win or lose, most of those who care for Belfort would like to see him hang up the gloves before too long. He is 1-3 in his last four bouts, with all three losses coming via knockout, and has been a considerably different fighter in recent years as the aging process continues to take form (the TRT ban didn’t do Belfort any favors either).

At 39, Belfort has nothing left to prove. The former UFC champion has accomplished the greatest of feats in the mixed martial arts world and is almost certainly a first-ballot hall of famer.

Belfort’s idea comes off as a sad way to continue headlining major UFC cards and making money without having to face the most talented fighters the UFC has to offer. While fans would have salivated over a Belfort versus Liddell fight in 2005, the interest has significantly waned since then.

None of this is to suggest that legend fights are unfounded. After all, we’re talking about a world where Ken Shamrock, then 52, and Royce Gracie, then 49, competed in a Bellator event on Spike TV in the main event (and drew impressive ratings). We’re also talking about a world where Randy Couture, who was 46 at the time, fought then-45-year-old Mark Coleman and then-42-year-old James Toney in 2010. It was also only a few short years ago when football great Herschel Walker entered the Strikeforce cage in his late 40’s, going 2-0 against poor competition.

But this isn’t hockey or football where people can compete in legends games. Mixed martial arts isn’t a game at all. A legend league would be a dangerous concept, even with the bigger gloves that Belfort suggested.

The UFC has done the right thing in the past, virtually forcing the retirement of fighters like Chuck Liddell, Matt Hughes and Rich Franklin. If they hope to continue enforcing fighter safety, it would have to issue a hard "no" on any inkling of a legend league.