The inclusion of the American fighter in the Hall of Fame was officially announced during the broadcast of the UFC on ESPN 43 tournament, held in San Antonio.
“Cowboy Cerrone is one of the best lightweights in UFC history,” UFC president Dana White said after the official announcement. “Cowboy has consistently fought the best for over a decade, setting a ton of records in the process. He was also an absolute savage who was ready to fight anyone, anytime. He is a true legend and we would be honored to induct him into the Hall of Fame at International Fight Week.”
Donald Cerrone made his debut in the octagon in February 2011 after a spectacular run in the WEC organization, where he failed to win the championship belt.
A winning streak of eight fights allowed Cowboy in December 2015 to fight the current UFC lightweight champion, Rafael dos Anjos, but already at the 66th second he lost to the Brazilian by knockout, thereby confirming the thesis that he was pursued in the most important fights failures.
After that, Cerrone achieved some success in welterweight, where he scored four early victories in a row, but even there his results gradually faded away.
Last July, 39-year-old Donald Cerrone suffered his tenth defeat in his last fifteen fights, losing by guillotine choke to veteran Jim Miller, after which he announced his retirement from professional career.