5 times UFC fighters saved cards

#2. Nate Diaz - UFC 196

Conor McGregor has had poor luck when scheduled to face Brazilian champions. His initial bout with José Aldo was scrapped due to a rib injury that 'Junior' sustained in training, while his quest for a second championship encountered a momentary detour when the then-ruling lightweight kingpin Rafael dos Anjos fractured his foot before their scheduled matchup.

As they had before, the promotion scrambled to find a suitable last-minute opponent for the Irishman.

Aldo was contacted. The promotion hoped that the sting of his 13-second knockout loss to McGregor would be enough to entice him to accept a rematch, even with little time to prepare.

To the surprise of Dana White and his colleagues, Aldo declined the offer as he needed more time to prepare. Eventually, the promotion's sights were set on Nate Diaz. The Stockton legend had previously called out McGregor in a profanity-laden post-fight interview at UFC on Fox 17.

Diaz was quick to accept the promotion's offer. At UFC 196, McGregor faced Stockton's finest. While the Irishman won the first round, the second was a different affair altogether.

Fatigued from overextending on his punches and having to constantly reset his preferred counterpunching range every time Diaz marched forward, McGregor dove in for an ill-time takedown. He was sprawled, outgrappled and choked out. Diaz emerged victorious, setting up an all-time great rivalry.

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#1. Justin Gaethje - UFC 249

Anything and everything has happened to prevent Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov from clashing inside the octagon. The pair have been scheduled to fight five different times. The fifth and final time ended in failure due to the emergence of a global pandemic that imposed travel restrictions around the world, preventing Nurmagomedov from leaving his native Russia.

Arguably the greatest fight to have never happened, Ferguson and Nurmagomedov were kept from facing each other once more.

With the pandemic's role in stifling the UFC's efforts to generate revenue, the promotion was in desperate need of a marquee bout to replace the original matchup between 'El Cucuy' and 'The Eagle'. Former WSOF lightweight champion Justin Gaethje was chosen as Nurmagomedov's replacement.

Off the back of a three-fight win streak that included first-round knockouts over James Vick, Edson Barboza and Donald Cerrone, two of whom were former foes of Ferguson himself, Gaethje was an interesting opponent for 'El Cucuy'. When the pair clashed at UFC 249, it was one of the most one-sided beatings in lightweight history.

With the exception of a flash knockdown, Ferguson had nothing for Gaethje. After a four-round drubbing, the fight was called by Herb Dean in the fifth. Gaethje emerged victorious, and Ferguson has not won a fight since.