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In the world of the UFC, time waits for no fighter, and anyone expecting to be able to instantly return to top form after an absence is usually mistaken.
However, over the years, we have seen some examples of UFC fighters who returned from a lengthy absence and somehow looked just as good as ever. While their return fights sometimes turned out to be a red herring of sorts, to see anyone return and instantly hit top gear is always incredible and usually rare too.
Here are 5 UFC fighters who returned from long absences and looked as good as ever.
#5. Brian Ortega – UFC featherweight contender
The latest entry to this list is former featherweight title challenger Brian Ortega, who returned to the UFC this past weekend following a lengthy absence of nearly two years.
‘T-City’ was sidelined following a serious shoulder injury suffered in a July 2022 bout with Yair Rodriguez, a fight that was, in itself, nearly a year in the making after he suffered a beating from Alexander Volkanovski in 2021.
Given that Ortega had turned 33 years old days before his return fight last weekend and hadn’t actually won a bout since October 2020, many observers were questioning exactly how much he’d have left in the tank.
The former title challenger wasn’t given a softball return fight, either, in the form of an instant rematch with Rodriguez, who had briefly held the interim featherweight title in 2023.
However, when he survived a barrage from ‘El Pantera’ in the opening round, it quickly became clear that the ultra-tough Ortega had lost none of his famed durability during his time away.
And once Rodriguez began to tire, ‘T-City’ took over the fight, beating the Mexican down before submitting him in the third round with an arm-triangle choke.
The win has moved Ortega right back into title contention at 145 pounds, and based on this showing, he appears to have lost none of his ability during his absence, which is remarkable when all things are considered.
#4. Khabib Nurmagomedov – former UFC lightweight champion
Former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, who retired in 2020, is widely recognized as one of MMA’s greatest ever fighters, with his gaudy 29-0 record his biggest calling card.
However, around a decade ago, ‘The Eagle’ was probably most renowned for suffering various injuries that meant his schedule in his early years with the promotion was sporadic to say the least.
Probably the biggest example of this came in 2014. After outpointing future titleholder Rafael dos Anjos in his best win to that point, Khabib was booked to fight fellow top contender Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone next.
Unfortunately, ‘The Eagle’ suffered a serious knee injury that landed him on the shelf for over a year, and he was then forced out of his 2015 return bout with Tony Ferguson with another injury.
By the time he finally returned in 2016, he hadn’t fought in two years, and although he was faced with an unknown foe in Darrell Horcher, observers were asking justified questions about how good he’d look.
The answer was, of course, that he was better than ever. Nurmagomedov whitewashed Horcher, smashing him with ground-and-pound en route to a second-round stoppage, and he showed no signs of ring rust whatsoever.
It was a sign of things to come for ‘The Eagle’, who would take lengthy absences for the remainder of his UFC career but never looked anything less than stellar each time he returned.
#3. Urijah Faber – former UFC bantamweight contender
Once considered the world’s best featherweight, it’s arguable that the UFC never quite saw the best of Urijah Faber. ‘The California Kid’ only arrived in the promotion via the WEC in 2011 and, by that point, his peak years had just about passed.
Despite fighting in numerous headline bouts and challenging in three UFC title fights, by 2016 it was clear that Faber was beginning to really slow down.
After turning 37 years old that July, he suffered a poor loss to Jimmie Rivera, and that was enough for him to announce that he’d be hanging up his gloves after one final fight.
‘The California Kid’ won that bout, beating Brad Pickett in front of his hometown fans in Sacramento, and that appeared to be that.
Nearly three years later, though, Faber stunned fans by announcing his return to action. Booked against Ricky Simon in the summer of 2019, ‘The California Kid’ had turned 40 years old just months earlier, and nobody knew how much he’d have left to offer.
Surprisingly, though, Faber looked better than ever. He came into the bout in phenomenal shape, and destroyed Simon with strikes in just 46 seconds. Remarkably, it was his first finish in the octagon since 2014.
Unfortunately, the win proved to be more of a curse than a blessing. The UFC, clearly believing Faber could move back into title contention at 135 pounds, matched him with dangerous contender Petr Yan in his next fight.
That proved to be a step too far and the veteran was systematically destroyed, suffering a violent knockout in the third round. He has not fought since.
#2. Nate Diaz – former UFC welterweight contender
It seems hard to believe now, but there was a time when Nate Diaz was one of the UFC’s most active fighters. After winning TUF 5 in June 2007, he fought an average of three times a year all the way up to 2013.
However, during the latter years of his career, the Stockton-based fighter would regularly take long leaves of absence from the octagon, usually in the hope that the UFC’s hand would be forced to offer him more money to return.
That approach paid off handsomely in 2015, when he returned from a year away and used a win over Michael Johnson to set up two huge fights with Conor McGregor.
The fights became the best-drawing bouts in UFC history, turning Diaz into one of the sport’s most bankable stars and earning him millions of dollars in the process.
Diaz chose to sit out after his second fight with ‘The Notorious’, though, clearly believing that the promotion needed him more than he needed them.
Unfortunately for the Californian, that wasn’t the case. Despite fans being desperate to see him fight, Diaz was left on the shelf until he finally chose to return in the summer of 2019, three years after his famed clash with McGregor.
With such a long layoff behind him, a lot of people figured Diaz would have nothing left to offer. Instead, though, he stunned everyone by turning back the clock and producing one of the best performances of his career to batter Anthony Pettis and waltz right back into relevancy.
It was a timely reminder that for Diaz, the usual rules would never quite apply.
#1. Dominick Cruz – former UFC bantamweight champion
The best example of a fighter who returned from a lengthy layoff and somehow didn’t miss a step is former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz.
Not only did ‘The Dominator’ win his return fight following a ridiculously long layoff, he was able to regain the 135-pound title he never lost by coming out on top of a five-round thriller. The fact that he managed to do this remains one of the biggest miracles in octagon history.
Cruz came into the promotion in 2011 and cemented his spot as bantamweight king by outpointing bitter rival Urijah Faber in his octagon debut. However, after one more defense, the injury bug struck, resulting in ‘The Dominator’ vacating his title in the summer of 2012.
Cruz would fight just once in the next four years, and while he looked good in his 2014 win over Takeya Mizugaki, he tore his ACL directly afterwards and headed straight back onto the shelf.
When it was announced that he’d be returning in January 2016 to challenge new 135-pound champ TJ Dillashaw, it sounded like an impossible task.
Not only had Cruz barely fought since 2011, but he was faced with a fighter who’d destroyed everyone he’d faced in a similar time period.
Given that ‘The Dominator’ relied primarily on a style heavily based on footwork, movement, and cardio, it was hard to imagine him having any success.
Incredibly, though, Cruz seemingly hadn’t lost a step, and took the fight to Dillashaw like it was 2011 all over again. In the end, he was rewarded with a narrow split decision and regained the title he’d vacated nearly four years earlier.
Prior to the bout, ‘The Dominator’ had told everyone who was willing to listen that he didn’t believe in ring rust – and with this miraculous showing, he proved that, for him at least, he was correct.
