5 UFC comebacks that went horribly wrong

A great comeback makes for inspirational viewing in any sport, and MMA is no different. Whether it’s Randy Couture returning from retirement to defeat Tim Sylvia, or Dominick Cruz coming back from a laundry list of injuries to upset TJ Dillashaw, the UFC has seen plenty of jaw-dropping returns in its time.

Unfortunately, not every comeback in the UFC goes to plan, and on a number of occasions we’ve seen fighters return to the Octagon after a long layoff to much fanfare, only to suffer a devastating defeat that made everyone question whether it’d all been worth it.

Here are 5 UFC comebacks that went horribly wrong.

---

#1 Frank Mir

Frank Mir's big comeback was ruined by grappler Marcio Cruz

Long considered one of the best prospects in MMA at Heavyweight, submission expert Frank Mir reached the top of the UFC’s mountain in 2004 when he broke Tim Sylvia’s arm to claim the promotion’s Heavyweight title, but before he could defend it, disaster struck.

Mir was involved in a horrific motorcycle accident that left him with a severely broken femur, and at one point, it looked doubtful that he would ever return to the Octagon. The UFC stripped him of his title a year after the accident, but surprisingly, just a few months later the Las Vegas-based fighter’s return was announced.

Mir was signed to fight Marcio ‘Pe De Pano’ Cruz at UFC 57 in February 2006, and while Cruz brought a stellar reputation as one of the world’s best pure grapplers to the fight, it was also set to be just his second professional fight – so despite his long layoff, Mir was installed as the betting favourite.

Unfortunately, that proved to be a huge error. Mir appeared to be in shape, but looked tentative from the off and after a brief exchange of strikes, he found himself on his back with the Brazilian on top. From there, ‘Pe De Pano’ proceeded to control the former champion, and smashed him with ground-and-pound until the fight was stopped late in the first round, thoroughly ruining his comeback.

What happened next?

A bloated Mir returned 4 months later and edged a decision over Dan Christison, before being TKO’d at the hands of Brandon Vera in his next fight.

It looked like his career was over, but instead the former champion turned a corner a year later, and ended up putting together one of the most stirring returns to form in UFC history – recapturing the title he never lost in 2008. Mir is now recognised as one of the sport’s greatest ever big men.

#2 Jens Pulver

Jens Pulver was knocked out in his big UFC return

Jens Pulver was the UFC’s first-ever Lightweight champion, defeating Caol Uno in the inaugural 155lbs title fight back in 2001 at UFC 30. ‘Little Evil’ held onto the title through two successful defences, but after defeating BJ Penn, a contract dispute saw him leave the UFC midway through 2002.

A pair of losses on the regional circuit damaged his aura somewhat, but by mid-2006, Pulver had gone 9-4 outside the UFC with two wins coming in the highly regarded PRIDE organisation. And so when the UFC reintroduced their 155lbs weight class in 2006, ‘Little Evil’ was quickly re-signed and matched with promotional rookie Joe Lauzon at UFC 63 in what sounded like a showcase fight.

Unfortunately for Pulver, the dream return quickly became a nightmare. Lauzon – a huge betting underdog – came out with a huge amount of aggression, and rushed the former champion from the off before catching him with a left hook that knocked him clean out. The return of ‘Little Evil’ was over in under a minute, and any hopes of Pulver regaining his title went up in smoke.

What happened next?

Pulver coached the 5th season of The Ultimate Fighter alongside longtime rival BJ Penn, and when the two fought at the finale, Penn firmly came out on top. Pulver then dropped to 145lbs and moved to the UFC’s sister promotion, the WEC, but only managed a run of 1-5 as a Featherweight before departing in 2010. He continued to fight on the regional circuit, going 5-6 before his apparent retirement in 2013.

#3 Chuck Liddell

Chuck Liddell's comeback was ended in violent fashion by Rich Franklin

One of the most popular MMA fighters of all time, Chuck Liddell became a UFC legend in 2005 when he knocked out Randy Couture to claim the Light-Heavyweight title, and subsequently held the gold for two years, making 4 successful defenses in the process. Unfortunately, ‘The Iceman’ was already 36 years old when his reign began, and when he was unseated by Quinton Jackson in 2007, his downfall was swift.

After losing his title, Liddell went 1-3 in his next 4 fights, and after suffering a nasty KO at the hands of Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua, UFC President Dana White persuaded ‘The Iceman’ to retire for the good of his own health.

Just over a year later, though, Liddell was back; able to convince White of his health, he was handed a coaching slot alongside longtime rival Tito Ortiz on the 11th season of The Ultimate Fighter, with the two pegged to face off for a third time afterwards. Unfortunately, fate intervened and Ortiz was forced out of the fight with a neck injury – leaving ‘The Iceman’ to take on former UFC Middleweight champion Rich Franklin instead.

In what was a tremendous fight, Liddell came at Franklin like his old, aggressive self, taking the fight to him and even breaking his arm with a kick midway through the first round. But with seconds to go in the opening stanza, his durability once again betrayed him; Franklin caught him with a short right hand to the jaw, and ‘The Iceman’ crumpled. That was the end of his comeback – and he headed back into retirement.

What happened next?

Liddell remained retired for the best part of a decade; the UFC’s parent company Zuffa gave him an office job to keep him occupied, but when the Fertitta brothers sold out to WME-IMG in 2016, the new owners made some cuts and ‘The Iceman’ found himself unemployed. Sadly, that was enough to trigger another comeback – and he was knocked out by Tito Ortiz in their eventual fight in 2018 under the Golden Boy MMA banner. Liddell has not fought since.

#4 Ronda Rousey

Ronda Rousey retired for good after her loss to Amanda Nunes

When Ronda Rousey’s dominant reign at the top of the UFC Women’s Bantamweight division came to an end at the hands – and legs – of Holly Holm in November 2015, everyone expected the UFC to do what they always do, and book an immediate rematch between the two. That didn’t happen, though, and instead ‘Rowdy Ronda’ took an extended sabbatical away from the sport.

Just over a year later, the most famous female MMA fighter of all time was ready to return, and rather than give her a tune-up fight, the UFC booked her right into a fight for the title she’d lost – except it wasn’t against Holm. Instead, Rousey was faced with Amanda Nunes – who had unseated Miesha Tate after Tate had beaten Holm.

Serious MMA analysts questioned Rousey’s mindset coming into the fight, particularly after she refused to attend many of the UFC’s planned media events prior to the show, but for her part, the former champion claimed she was as ready as she’d ever been before.

Many fans gave ‘Rowdy Ronda’ a fair chance of defeating Nunes, who was known as a front-runner and had struggled against offensive grapplers in the past. But instead, ‘The Lioness’ blitzed the former champion with a series of heavy punches, leaving her out on her feet in under a minute and ending her comeback with a bang.

What happened next?

The loss to Nunes would be the last time that Rousey would step inside the UFC’s Octagon; the former champion officially retired after the fight and was inducted into the UFC’s Hall of Fame months later. At the same time, she transitioned into pro-wrestling, signing with WWE and starring with them in 2018 and 2019.

#5 Conor McGregor

Conor McGregor returned from a foray into boxing to be dominated by Khabib Nurmagomedov

Conor McGregor’s rise up the ranks in the UFC was truly meteoric; just over two and a half years after ‘The Notorious One’ debuted in the promotion with a knockout win over journeyman Marcus Brimage, he took out longtime champion Jose Aldo to win the UFC Featherweight title. A year later, he’d won the Lightweight title too, knocking out Eddie Alvarez in the promotion’s first ever show in New York City.

Reigning as the UFC’s first ever simultaneous double champion, it felt like the Irishman had the MMA world at his feet – but rather than defend either title, ‘The Notorious One’ instead stepped away from the sport to chase a mega-money boxing match with undefeated superstar Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather.

McGregor would lose the eventual Mayweather fight, but he made so much cash from the event that at one point, it felt like he would never return to MMA. But just over a year after his foray into the boxing world – and nearly two years after he’d last set foot in the Octagon – the Irish superstar was back, challenging Khabib Nurmagomedov for the Lightweight title he’d never lost in what would become the promotion’s biggest selling pay-per-view ever.

Unfortunately for McGregor, the comeback didn’t go to plan; he was thoroughly beaten by Nurmagomedov in a largely one-sided fight that ended with him submitting to a neck crank in the fourth round. To make matters worse, he also found himself in hot water with Nevada’s Athletic Commission after a controversial post-fight brawl with the Russian’s teammates.

What happened next?

Rumours of retirement swirled around ‘The Notorious One’ for practically a year after his loss to Nurmagomedov, but instead, McGregor returned to the UFC this month by beating Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone in under a minute. The Irish star is now apparently in line to rematch Nurmagomedov – if he can get past Tony Ferguson – later in 2020.