Alistair Overeem Releases Statement Following Loss to Curtis Blaydes at UFC 225

“The greatest test of courage is to bear defeat without losing heart” I would like to thank you all for supporting me through thick and thin. Huge thanks to my team and everyone involved! I will be back, I always come back. Congrats to @razorblaydes265 on his big win and he has a great future in this sport. #ufc #ufc225 #willbeback

A post shared by Alistair Overeem (@alistairovereem) on Jun 11, 2018 at 6:31am PDT

On Saturday night Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight veteran Alistair Overeem took on the surging Curtis Blaydes in the headlining bout of the Fox Sports 1 preliminary card for UFC 225 on pay-per-view.

Overeem was taken down in the third round by Blaydes and was on the receiving end of some brutal elbows, which resulted in Overeem’s forehead being opened up with blood gushing out before the referee intervened.

It was the second stoppage defeat in six months for Overeem, after also suffering a knockout loss to Francis Ngannou back in December. Fans were wondering if it was time for the 38-year-old to finally announce his retirement in mixed martial arts after several runs at the UFC heavyweight title.

However, “The Demolition Man” reached out to his fans on Instagram congratulating Blaydes and stating that he’ll be back:

“The greatest test of courage is to bear defeat without losing heart. I would like to thank you all for supporting me through thick and thin. Huge thanks to my team and everyone involved! I will be back, I always come back. Congrats to @razorblaydes265 on his big win and he has a great future in this sport. #ufc #ufc225 #willbeback”