“The show is over,” Alexander Gustafsson announced to the UFC Stockholm crowd on June 1, taking his gloves off for emphasis. The Swedish fighter made the announcement after losing his fight to light heavyweight Anthony Smith.
“If you don’t feel you have it in you anymore then it is what it is,” he explained in his post-fight interview. “I had three title fights and, like I said, it’s been a great journey. This is it.”
Gustafsson cited his own losses as part of the reason–attempts to win the division belt have failed three times during his career, most recently to Jon Jones.
“I lost to Jon and that was the third title fight. I got a little bit of an injury in that fight, and didn’t get to show my capacity.” He went on to explain that a win to Smith could have been something to build yet another climb off of, but without that momentum he’s unwilling to continue.
Gustafsson holds a purple belt in jiu-jitsu, but built his career on striking. His record stands at 18-5.
One-time rival Jones wished him well, mostly:
