Turning into a UFC champion is the fruits of a lifetime of onerous work and dedication. Not each fighter’s path is a direct shot to superstardom, as many roadblocks can face a fighter on their journey by means of the game. One such roadblock is accidents. Accidents stall the progress of a fighter each in coaching and competitors as focus is solely placed on restoration. Some accidents appear to have an almost inconceivable outlook, as fighters are suggested in opposition to returning to competitors or danger not returning to the identical stage of success as a consequence of an harm’s severity. There are, nonetheless, a number of fighters who’ve overcome the percentages to not solely recuperate totally from devastating accidents but in addition seize UFC gold afterward.
4 UFC Champions Who Overcame Devastating Accidents
Dominick Cruz
Maybe probably the most well-known story of a UFC champion overcoming accidents is Dominick Cruz. Cruz got here into the UFC because the inaugural bantamweight champion following his second WEC title protection in opposition to Scott Jorgensen. In his first yr within the UFC (2011), Cruz would defend his UFC title twice, as soon as in opposition to Urijah Faber to avenge his solely earlier loss and as soon as in opposition to Demetrious Johnson. “The Dominator” was on a path to stardom and was set to finish a trilogy with Faber after teaching in opposition to the guy Californian on TUF 15, the one stay TUF season. This, nonetheless, is the place issues started to derail.
Two months earlier than their scheduled matchup at UFC 148, Cruz suffered a torn ACL in coaching. As debilitating as that harm is by itself, it was made doubly so when he needed to have a second ACL surgical procedure after his physique rejected the alternative he obtained from a cadaver within the first surgical procedure. After lastly recovering, he was booked to unify the championship with interim champion Renan Barao in February 2014. Nonetheless, lower than a month earlier than the battle, Cruz suffered one other main harm when he tore his groin. This harm compelled Cruz to vacate the title, whereas Barao was promoted in his place. He would lastly return to the cage later that yr in spectacular trend, scoring a first-round stoppage victory over Takeya Mizugaki to earn a shot to regain his belt in opposition to champion TJ Dillashaw. Nonetheless, earlier than he might get to that battle, Cruz tore his ACL in his different knee, sidelining him for an additional yr and a half.
Cruz returned at UFC Battle Night time 81 in January 2016 to battle Dillashaw and in the end battle for the belt he had by no means misplaced 4 and a half years prior. In a back-and-forth affair, Cruz was capable of reclaim the belt by cut up choice, culminating an unimaginable Cinderella story of restoration.
Michael Bisping
At one level in his storied profession, Michael Bisping was on the trail to being thought-about one of many biggest UFC athletes to by no means obtain a title shot. He was matched in opposition to rival and fellow TUF 9 coach Dan Henderson in a middleweight title eliminator at UFC 100, however was on the receiving finish of probably the most well-known knockouts in UFC historical past. He finally rebounded and rode a four-fight profitable streak into one other title eliminator in opposition to Chael Sonnen three years later, however dropped a call. Two fights later, he was on the receiving finish of one other highlight-reel knockout, this time in opposition to a TRT-filled Vitor Belfort. The pinnacle kick that led to the end indifferent “The Depend”‘s retina, an harm that will change his life perpetually.
Shockingly, Bisping fought simply three months later, profitable a technical unanimous choice over Alan Belcher. This didn’t imply that the harm had healed, nonetheless. In reality, it had gotten worse as a result of he averted seeing a physician about it out of concern that it will finish his profession. After the UFC 159 win, although, he lastly determined to go to the physician and obtained surgical procedure to restore his eye. The attention surgical procedure put him out of motion for simply over a yr, and left him with strabismus, which means his eyes don’t correctly align when taking a look at an object. His post-surgery return didn’t begin on the proper foot, as he dropped a unanimous choice over Tim Kennedy on the TUF Nations Finale. He would battle twice extra that yr, scoring a dominant victory over Cung Le in August however then struggling a guillotine submission loss to rival Luke Rockhold in November. As he was advancing in age, most thought that was his final shot to catapult the Englishman into title competition.
2015 would show to be a pivotal yr for Bisping’s profession, as he rebounded with two choice wins over CB Dolloway and Thales Leites to arrange a battle in opposition to the person he had so lengthy been searching for to battle – former middleweight champion Anderson Silva. In entrance of his house nation crowd, Bisping then picked up one other choice victory in what was the crowning second of his profession to that time – all after having to discover ways to account for his new imaginative and prescient and being principally blind in a single eye. In the meantime, former foe Rockhold had captured the belt from Chris Weidman on the finish of 2015, and the 2 have been set to rematch in the summertime of 2016 at UFC 199. Nonetheless, two weeks earlier than the bout, a Weidman harm and Bisping’s willingness to step in on brief discover led Bisping to obtain the long-evasive title shot. Not a lot was anticipated of Bisping, given he was on the draw back of his profession and had already been dominated by Rockhold. Nonetheless, he scored one of many largest upsets in UFC historical past by knocking Rockhold out within the first spherical and finishing a storybook ending to the title.
Sean Strickland
Sean Strickland got here into the UFC as a highly-regarded prospect in 2014 with a powerful 13-0 document. Two wins within the UFC would see him then drop to welterweight to make a run towards rankings and title competition. This plan was shortly halted by Santiago Ponzinibbio as he dropped a unanimous choice. Three wins following would then pit him in opposition to Kamaru Usman, the place he would once more fall by unanimous choice. After one other win, he would then lose for the primary time by end to Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos courtesy of a spinning wheel kick. It appeared like each time Strickland stepped up in competitors, he couldn’t rise to the event.
In late 2018, Strickland left coaching on his motorbike and was hit by an oncoming dashing automobile. After the accident, Strickland recalled being unconscious for a number of hours and waking up in a neck brace on the hospital as he was being rushed into surgical procedure to restore a badly-injured leg. The docs have been capable of restore a torn patella tendon, however virtually each physician suggested Strickland to by no means battle once more. However when he approached the docs on the UFC Efficiency Institute, they gave him a path ahead and a brand new sense of hope. He started restoration whereas nonetheless affected by a torn quadricep muscle from the accident. He would discover his means again to the Octagon simply over two years since his earlier battle, returning to middleweight and placing on one of many signature performances of his profession in opposition to Jack Marshman. That win was the beginning of a five-fight post-injury profitable streak, the place Strickland seemed like a fighter reborn, and people round him saying he had seemingly develop into a completely totally different individual from earlier than his harm. This set him up for a title eliminator match with Alex Pereira, however was on the receiving finish of the legendary energy of “Poatan” as he misplaced by knockout within the first spherical. A choice loss to Jared Cannonier in his subsequent battle would convey up the identical questions on whether or not he had it in himself to be a real title contender.
2023 would show to be his greatest yr but, although, as he began off the yr with a short-notice win over Nassourdine Imavov. He would comply with that up with a TKO victory of Abus Magomedov in July. These two wins earned a title shot for Strickland at UFC 293, though most noticed him as merely one other foe for champion Israel Adesanya to conquer in entrance of a house crowd after “The Final Stylebender” knocked out Pereira in his earlier battle. Strickland proved the entire doubters incorrect and placed on the most effective efficiency of his profession, nonetheless, to seize middleweight gold in one of many unlikeliest champion tales in UFC historical past.
Frank Mir
Though Sean Strickland and Frank Mir have very comparable harm tales, their journeys earlier than and afterward are vastly totally different. Mir was a Pan-American Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu champion and captured the UFC heavyweight title at UFC 48, the place he broke Tim Sylvia’s arm with an armbar. Just like Strickland, Mir was additionally concerned in a devastating motorbike accident simply three months later when he was knocked off his automobile by a automobile. The accident broke his femur in two locations and tore all ligaments in that knee. Medical doctors suggested in opposition to him ever combating once more, and in contrast to Strickland, the UFC Efficiency Institute didn’t exist on the time. Mir can be stripped of the title, selling interim champion Andrei Arlovski to undisputed champion.
Mir would finally make a full restoration, accredited to his combating spirit and need to return to combating. He acquired off to a rocky return to combating, nonetheless, shedding two of his first three bouts in 2006. Two spectacular submission victories, together with a kneebar end of famous person Brock Lesnar, catapulted Mir again into title competition. With the heavyweight title image in limbo, Mir and interim heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira would coach TUF 8 after which battle for the interim title. Mir would placed on among the best performances of his profession, exhibiting crisp putting and as soon as once more finishing a bone-breaking submission over probably the most achieved Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioners in heavyweight MMA historical past to say gold as soon as once more. Though he would lose the unification bout and two extra title alternatives after that, Mir proved docs incorrect by not solely returning to combating however reaching its pinnacle and changing into probably the most recognizable fighters in heavyweight MMA historical past.
