Al Iaquinta unsure of UFC future after devastating KO defeat of Sanchez

Al Iaquinta looked as good as ever when he knocked out Diego Sanchez in the co-main event of UFC Nashville. Unfortunately, the New York based fighter is still at odds with the UFC, and as such, isn’t sure what the future holds as far as his fighting career goes.

Iaquinta addressed this issue post-fight (via MMAFighting.com).

“I don’t know if it’s worth it,” Iaquinta said of his continued fighting career. “I don’t know if the money is worth everything I go through to do this. It worked out tonight, but it’s not gonna be that easy. So I don’t know. I’ve gotta think if it’s worth it. I’ve got a lot of injuries. It’s a lot of years lost that I’m not making any money. And now I’m not making sponsorships. I’m in the video game and I haven’t gotten a dollar from it and I don’t even have an Xbox and they haven’t even sent me a video game.”

Iaquinta then explained that, while the UFC’s upcoming trip to Long Island is an exciting possibility for him, fighting for the money dictated by his current contract is not.

“That would be something I’d really love to do,” Iaquinta said. “But I’m not gonna do it for the contract I have now. Probably not. Definitely not for a top opponent. These guys are dangerous. I’m not going in there to get paid what I’m getting paid to get hurt. The chance of an injury, if I’m out for two years, where am I gonna get any money? I got no sponsors. There’s nothing. These last few years have been a wakeup call for me.”

I love fighting, but I’m not gonna ruin my body,” he continued. “This is no game, man. This is for real. [Getting paid $26,000 and $26,000 as per my contract] is not a lot of money. For doing what I’m doing, for being on TV, for me driving the car I’m driving, I gotta be living a lot better than this. I could be doing anything in the world and making the same kind of money. And I don’t have the risk of getting hurt. I don’t need to fight now. I have my real-estate career. I’m set with that. So, if I want to fight, I’ll fight.”

Finally Iaquinta touched briefly on his real estate career, assuring that it’s something he really enjoys, and that it’s more than enough to keep him afloat.

“I really enjoy selling the real estate,” he said. “I got my fix for fighting for now. I’m good for now. I haven’t thought about it. I just thought about tonight. I just wanted to get in there and have fun and that’s exactly what I did.”

Do you think Al Iaquinta deserves a more lucrative UFC contract? Sound off, PENN Nation!

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 4/23/2017.