"Trying to make it work was very unrealistic" - Luke Rockhold revisits failed relationship, abortion, struggle with alcoholism ahead of Paulo Costa fight

Luke Rockhold (left) and Paulo Costa (right) [Photo credit: @lukerockhold on Instagram]

Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold opened up about some of the low points he went through during his time away from the octagon.

A case of burnout caused Rockhold to step away from the sport for over three years. The former UFC and Strikeforce titleholder revealed that he was content living his life until his relationship with his ex turned sour.

Rockhold admitted that an unexpected pregnancy complicated his previous relationship, especially as he was already struggling with alcoholism. In turn, Rockhold and his ex decided to go for an abortion, which weighed heavily on the fighter's well-being.

During an interview with BT Sport, the 37-year-old veteran said:

"An ill-informed pregnancy that kinda fell upon us, it wasn't really planned but it came, and then trying to make it work was very unrealistic. And I was letting alcohol and lifestyle kind of pollute that. And it got deeper and trying to see counselors and make things work, whether we're together or we're apart. It's just... there just wasn't a lot of truth. And it drove me, drove us to making a final decision, which was to take a life and it was hard."

Check out Luke Rockhold's interview below:

Luke Rockhold on giving up drinking

Luke Rockhold has since sobered up and is gearing up for his comeback fight against Paulo Costa on Saturday. It will be his first time back in action since he suffered a devastating knockout loss to Jan Blachowicz in July 2019.

During an interview with MMA Junkie, Rockhold revealed that his return to the fight game has given him a sense of purpose. He added that giving up alcohol was a conscious decision he made to give himself the best chance of succeeding at UFC 278:

"I’m not saying sobriety – I’m just not drinking. Yeah, I was drinking a bit much, and I was enjoying myself a bit too much. It’s what happens. It’s just not helping. I know that I’m 37 years old, and I want to give every bit of my focus to that. And one glass of wine leads to another, and it’s just like my body doesn’t like it. When I’m training, my body doesn’t like alcohol, so I’m not going to drink alcohol."

Buzzing for this one!

🇧🇷 Paulo Costa 🆚 Luke Rockhold 🇺🇸

A fascinating middleweight encounter at #UFC278... Who ya got? https://t.co/ZraDDGjmOn