Brock Lesnar and the Most Disappointing Career Endings in Sports History

Brock Lesnar ended his UFC career on Friday night as he announced his retirement after losing to Alistair Overeem in UFC 141's main event in Las Vegas.

UFC President Dana White was unaware something like this was going to happen, saying via the LA Times, "I had no idea he was going to do that. There were no signs."

The ending to Lesnar's career in the octagon was not expected, and it's pretty disappointing to say the least.

That's usually not how you want to go out, but in a decision as important as this, you have to respect the athlete's decision.

Brock Lesnar's retirement from UFC is one of the more disappointing career endings we've seen in a while, so let's look at some of the most disappointing career endings in sports history.

1) Elgin Baylor, Los Angeles Lakers

Elgin Baylor is one of the greatest NBA players ever and was a prolific scorer in the 1960s who helped the Los Angeles Lakers reach many NBA Finals throughout the decade.

Unfortunately, Los Angeles lost every Finals appearance they made in the 1960s to the Boston Celtics, and in 1970, they were beaten by the New York Knicks.

Baylor retired in 1972, and later that year, the Lakers finally won the championship. It was a disappointing ending to one of the best basketball careers of all time.

2) Barry Sanders, Detroit Lions

It's quite rare that players walk away during the prime of their career, especially without winning a championship before they leave their sport, but Detroit Lions running back Barry Sanders shocked many when he retired after the 1998 NFL season.

Sanders was just 1,457 yards away from Walter Payton's NFL rushing record, a mark now held by Emmitt Smith.

Sanders left the game of football with so much more to win and accomplish on a personal and team level, and his retirement still has many fans in Detroit puzzled.

3) Barry Bonds, San Francisco Giants

The MLB's all-time home run king hasn't played baseball since 2007, and he never got the proper exit from the game.

Whether you think he took steroids or not, Bonds was a great player and deserved to retire when he felt it was right.

The Giants star is one of the best hitters of all-time, but his tremendous career ended in disappointing fashion due to the BALCO investigation and perjury charges.

4.) Manny Ramirez, Tampa Bay Rays

Say what you want about Manny Ramirez, but for over a decade he was an elite baseball player who was feared by so many pitchers.

He spent most of his career with the Boston Red Sox, where he won two World Series and a World Series MVP award.

In 2011, he tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug for the second time, and he retired instead of serving a 100-game suspension.

It was a massively disappointing career ending to one of the best hitters baseball has seen over the last 25 years.

5) Magic Johnson, Los Angeles Lakers

Magic Johnson's stunning announcement that he was retiring from the Los Angeles Lakers prior to the 1991-92 NBA season because he had contracted HIV shocked the basketball world.

Magic did come back for a few events such as the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, but his retirement from pro basketball was one of the more disappointing exits in sports history.

Magic was still an elite player, and he was a class act on and off the court.

6) Lou Gehrig, New York Yankees

The New York Yankees legend retired too soon because of the disease ALS, and in 1938, during his retirement, he gave one of the most powerful and touching speeches when at Yankee Stadium he said, "Today, I consider myself, the luckiest man, on the face of the Earth."

Gehrig's retirement was so disappointing because from a baseball standpoint, he could have accomplished much more than he did during his Hall of Fame career.

Gehrig died from ALS in 1941.

7) Roberto Clemente, Pittsburgh Pirates

The Pittsburgh Pirates legend is the best right fielder of all time and was a unique talent.

He captured his 3,000th hit at the end of the 1972 season, but died in a plane crash during the offseason when bringing supplies to Nicaragua, a country dealing with an earthquake.

Clemente's sad death was a disappointing ending to one of the best baseball careers ever.