an experience he did not enjoy<\/a> \u2014 and a Karate Combat fight against Joe Schilling before booking his boxing debut with Till.<\/p>\nWhile he\u2019ll never say never, Rockhold doesn\u2019t see a need to go back to MMA unless there\u2019s an offer on the table that\u2019s too good to refuse.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t have to do anything,\u201d Rockhold told MMA Fighting. \u201cI do well. I\u2019ve got a lot of good investments, I\u2019ve got some money. I\u2019m not rich by any means so it\u2019s get rich or die trying. That\u2019s what life is. That\u2019s what the game is. But I love fighting. We all know what\u2019s on the table. Beat a guy like Darren, you put yourself in the running for the big fights. There\u2019s big, big, fights right here.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo pass up those big fights [after] winning this, why the f*ck would I go back to MMA? There would have to be a big opportunity and a big reason. There would have to be title implications and there would have to be big money.\u201d<\/p>\n
Prior to his boxing match against Till coming together in August, Rockhold was one of numerous UFC veterans signed to compete in the Global Fight League, a promotion built around a team concept with dozens of high profile signings after initially launching. GFL planned on a two-night, two event debut in May, but both cards were cancelled and the organization has all but disappeared now without ever holding a single event.<\/p>\n
None of that really came as a shock to Rockhold, who signed with GFL and booked a fight against old rival Chris Weidman before the promotion effectively went belly up. Rockhold says he went into that deal with his eyes wide open, but appreciated that GFL was still paying him a stipend even if he never actually fought there.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was getting paid,\u201d Rockhold said. \u201cI was taking nice paychecks monthly. I kind of knew, we as my management team talked and this thing wasn\u2019t really going to come to fruition.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re talking seven-figure paychecks for people that have never been UFC champions. Multiples. That\u2019s not a sustainable business. You can\u2019t keep that up. I used it as motivation to train and get paid and to stay in shape for these opportunities. I kind of expected what was to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to Rockhold, all of his GFL paychecks cleared so he has no complaints in that department even if he always had doubts the organization would get off the ground.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s why he never appeared in any promotional material much less the \u201cGFL draft\u201d that placed all the fighters on various teams based around the globe.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere wasn\u2019t one conversation I had with my managers that wasn\u2019t skeptical,\u201d Rockhold said. \u201cJust enjoy the money, do this, do that. I didn\u2019t even really want to do interviews because I just knew it was bullshit.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey had that big launch thing with the draft, they tried to get me on there. I was like this is not it. People were hopeful. People saw these big, big paychecks. They just wanted to believe it was real but people need to have more reality.\u201d<\/p>\n
While GFL came and went without holding a single event so far, Rockhold knows fighters need more opportunities just like how he spent a huge part of his career competing in Strikeforce.<\/p>\n
That said, the 40-year-old veteran has no illusions when it comes to the difficulty involved with getting into the fight business and actually sustaining long-term success.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a tough business for sure,\u201d Rockhold said. \u201cThe more opportunities is always better for sure. GFL, you just need someone more who\u2019s got their shit together. You can\u2019t be too ambitious. You can\u2019t come out of the gates throwing money around like that when the market\u2019s not doing well.\u201d<\/p>\n
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