Liam Harrison says fighting will always be in his heart, despite having to deal with inevitable retirement

British Muay Thai legend and recently retired ONE Championship athlete 'Hitman' Liam Harrison says he has come to terms with walking away from the sport he loves, despite it being the most difficult decision in his life.

Harrison climbed into the ONE Circle last weekend after more than two years off due to a debilitating knee injury he suffered in 2022. However, 'Hitman' was met with a stiff challenge in the form of 35-year-old Muay Thai icon 'The Man Who Yields To No One' Seksan Or Kwanmuang.

Seksan delivered a vintage performance, stopping Harrison in round two of their epic war at ONE 168: Denver last weekend at Colorado's Ball Arena.

'The Man Who Yields To No One' scored three knockdowns on 'Hitman' to clinch the technical knockout victory.

Speaking to the media at the official ONE 168: Denver press conference backstage, Harrison addressed his loss:

"There was absolutely spangles. It was back of the head, but it would have caught me again at some point because we were all over the place," Harrison said of the final shot that put him down.

Although replays showed the punch landed illegally on the back of his head, Harrison believes it did not matter, as it was only a matter of time before he got hit with something else.

He touched on his retirement:

"It's annoying, really. Because my heart [still] wants to do this."

Unfortunately for Harrison, though the heart and mind are willing, the body can no longer, and he is forced to hang up his gloves for good after this realization.

Fans in the United States and Canada can catch all the action of ONE 168: Denver via replay on demand on Amazon Prime Video.

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Liam Harrison on realizing he was done: "I can’t get through this one"

It must have been hard for Liam Harrison to come to terms with his career's mortality in the middle of an absolute barnburner against Seksan Or Kwanmuang at ONE 168: Denver.

But the 39-year-old Brit says he realized he no longer has the same chin as he did when he was younger.

'Hitman' said:

"I thought to myself, I can’t get through this one. The thing is, in my 20s, I had a rock-solid chin, I stood toe-to-toe with Anuwat, the hardest puncher of this era and I beat him. I went, I took prime Saenchai right to the wire in an amazing fight, I had a great fight with him and took all the best shots."