When Mark Muñoz heads to the Octagon for his final fight in the UFC, it will be the same for his gym, Reign Training Center, after he made a decision to close it down in order to have more time with his family. It was a very tough choice for him to let go of the place where he considers his second home.
“Oh, ang hirap naman.” Said Muñoz, sadly sighed before even saying a word.
“I was very emotional for the whole week, I couldn’t even step foot in that place [at Reign] pero ang pamilya ko, they’re so important to me. I wanted to be there for my family so this is the next chapter in my life.”
One of the reasons why the Filipino Wrecking Machine was leaving the sport he loved was for his kids. Muñoz shared that his eldest son was a great football player in the best high school team in the state. “When my son told me that he wanted to move to wrestling, I realized that I missed a lot of games that a father should not miss. I don’t want that to ever happen again. I want to be there for my kids.”
Though he may be retiring from active competition, it does not mean that the former NCAA wrestling champion will turn his back from the sport entirely. In fact, he has decided to give back to his kababayans who supported him all the way through sharing his knowledge in the fight game.
“You know, sa susunod na chapter is gonna be me teaching and coaching and me coming back, babalik ako sa Pilipinas to teach wrestling and MMA – that’s my next chapter. And I’m excited because now the UFC’s here in the Philippines and so now, I’m able to use all my talents, skills and abilities and what I’ve learned throughout the years to be able to help the fighters here and I’m excited for that”
And as far as his fight his concerned, he says that Filipino fight fans will see a vintage Donkey Kong-performance by Mark Muñoz and he will do anything at his will to get his hand raised in front of the hometown crowd before calling it a career.
“A very aggressive Mark Muñoz, a very violent one. I’m gonna push forward and you’ll gonna see a lot of wrestling, a lot of transitional MMA, a lot of ground and pound so I’m excited.”
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