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The UFC is an incredibly difficult place to make a debut in. We’ve even seen champions from rival promotions arrive there and suffer from ‘octagon shock’. However, some fighters are different.
Over the years, we have seen a number of fighters make impressive debuts in the UFC. Remarkably, a handful of them were able to do this on short notice.
Whether the short notice took some of the pressure off, or whether they were simply better than their opponents, is always debatable. However, it’s safe to say that some went onto major success in the promotion.
With that considered, here are five incredible short-notice octagon debuts.
#5. Jon Jones – UFC 87
These days, Jon Jones is widely recognized as not only the most dominant light heavyweight in MMA history, but also as one of the greatest champions in UFC history, too. Ignoring a debatable disqualification in his 2009 fight with Matt Hamill, ‘Bones’ has essentially never been beaten in the octagon.
However, every fighter has to start somewhere and it’s very easy to forget that while he would eventually become a massive superstar, Jones actually made his debut with the promotion on very late notice at the age of just 20.
Initially, UFC 87’s undercard would’ve seen a light heavyweight bout between middling contenders Tomasz Drwal and Andre Gusmao. However, just 12 days before the event was due to go down, Drwal was forced out with an undisclosed injury.
A number of eyebrows were raised when the promotion named Jones as his replacement. Not only was ‘Bones’ largely unknown, but while he held a record of 6-0, he’d only been fighting professionally for five months at the time.
When it came time to fight, though, it didn’t matter. Jones completely dominated Gusmao en route to a comfortable decision win. He abused the Brazilian in the clinch, took him down on multiple occasions and even nailed him with some unorthodox strikes such as a spinning elbow.
Sure, the win wasn’t as impressive as the kind of victories Jones would produce in the octagon a little later, but it was still a major eye-opener and sent a message that despite only being 20, ‘Bones’ was for real.
#4. Kevin Burns – UFC 85
Some 14 years on from his debut, most UFC fans have probably forgotten Kevin Burns, or only remember him for his cheesy nickname of ‘The Fire’. However, it’s safe to say that the welterweight’s debut still stands as one of the all-time best short-notice ones.
Sporting a middling record of 5-1, Burns was signed by the UFC on just 10 days notice to replace Ryo Chonan in a fight with veteran contender Roan Carneiro. To say that this was a remarkably brave decision would be an understatement.
Not only did ‘The Fire’ need to cut a substantial amount of weight to make the 170-pound limit for the fight, but the event in question was also taking place in London, England. That meant Burns needed to cross the Atlantic on late notice, too.
Incredibly, though, when it came to fight time, Burns looked more prepared than his notice and experience levels could ever have suggested.
He struggled through the first round, as Carneiro took him down and dominated him on the ground - just as fans expected, the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt did. However, in the second round, when ‘Jucao’ took him down again, Burns stunned everyone by locking up a triangle choke.
Carneiro himself seemed stunned by the move and was unable to escape. In a monstrous upset, the Brazilian was forced to tap out.
Burns didn’t go onto much more success in the octagon, ending his tenure there with a record of 2-3, but this short-notice debut remains one of the best of all time.
#3. Dustin Poirier – UFC 125
Widely recognized today as one of the UFC’s biggest stars, Dustin Poirier has defeated some of the greatest fighters of his generation in the octagon. He even held the interim lightweight title for a time.
2022 marks the 11th year in the promotion for ‘The Diamond’. It’s easy to forget that he actually made his debut there on late notice as part of the undercard of the first event of 2011.
Initially, UFC 125 would’ve seen the promotion’s first-ever featherweight title bout, with champion Jose Aldo defending against top contender Josh Grispi. However, Aldo picked up an injury that forced him out of the fight. On a month’s notice, Poirier was pegged as Grispi’s new opponent.
Given that he’d gone just 1-1 in his WEC run and had done nothing to stand out, very few fans were expecting a lot from ‘The Diamond’, particularly as Grispi held a record of 14-1 and had won 10 straight bouts.
However, the fight showed otherwise, as Poirier basically battered ‘The Fluke’ for three straight rounds, dominating him in every possible area of the bout and eventually winning a clear-cut unanimous decision.
While the later wins in his career would more than eclipse this one, it’s hard to play down what a huge victory it was at the time, particularly as it came on short notice.
#2. Alexander Hernandez – UFC 222
Current lightweight contender Alexander Hernandez has somewhat flattered to deceive for the best part of his UFC tenure. He's showed flashes of brilliance at times but still fell to defeat in three of his bouts in the octagon.
However, it’s safe to say that his debut with the promotion was an absolutely fantastic one. He was somehow able to knock off a genuine top 10-ranked contender despite taking the fight on just over three weeks’ notice.
Hernandez, who held a record of 8-1 at the time, was pegged as the late replacement for Bobby Green in a key lightweight bout against Beneil Dariush at UFC 222. To say nobody was giving ‘Alexander the Great’ would be an understatement.
However, despite Dariush’s phenomenal grappling skills and improving stand-up, it took Hernandez just 42 seconds to waylay him with a left hand, knocking him completely unconscious.
Everyone watching, from the fans in attendance to Dana White at cageside, was stunned by the performance, which naturally earned ‘Alexander the Great’ a $50k bonus. This debut was so good that almost four years later, Hernandez hasn’t quite matched it.
#1. Khamzat Chimaev – UFC Fight Island 1
When the subject of fantastic short-notice debuts comes up, one name naturally comes to mind, current welterweight prospect Khamzat Chimaev. ‘Borz’ rocked to fame in 2020 following three wins in the octagon. The nature of those wins more than contributed to his hype.
Incredibly, Chimaev took his UFC debut fight against John Phillips on just a week’s notice, replacing Dusko Todorovic after he was forced out with an injury. At the time, ‘Borz’ held a 6-0 record, but hadn’t beaten anyone of note and was a complete unknown when he first stepped into the octagon.
That changed quickly, of course. Chimaev bullied Phillips with his wrestling, essentially treating him like a grappling dummy from the word go when the fight began. The Welshman managed to last into the second round, but soon gave up the ghost, tapping out to a D’Arce choke.
Fans across the world were blown away by the performance, which earned Chimaev a $50k bonus cheque. Incredibly, on equally short notice, he returned 10 days later to destroy Rhys McKee, breaking the record for the fastest consecutive wins in modern UFC history in the process.
Chimaev is now a bonafide contender for the welterweight title. However, despite his skills inside the octagon, his meteoric rise to fame remains the most remarkable thing about his run.
