Top 10 comebacks since UFC 100

In this series: Best fighters | Best trash talkers | Best fights | Best walkout songs | Best rivalries | Best KOs | Best submissions

Everybody loves a comeback story. From the Cleveland Cavaliers rallying from a three games to one deficit against the Golden State Warriors to win the 2016 NBA title, to the thrilling 2004 Boston Red Sox rally against the Yankees to eventually end the Curse of the Bambino, comeback stories are everywhere.

They just happen to be more violent in the UFC.

The cliché saying that “it only takes one punch to change a fight” rings true here more often than not and the sensation of seeing a fighter come back from the clutches of defeat to snare a victory is one of the most exciting things you can see in all of sports. The UFC has had its fair share of comebacks and these 10 from UFC 100 to present day are certainly worth their weight in gold.

10. Dan Henderson vs. Hector Lombard (UFC 199)

Dan Henderson has been in his fair share of wars and many assumed that this one could be his last if things didn’t go his way. The 45-year-old was paired with the frighteningly powerful Hector Lombard and it was immediately evident that Lombard had no desire to let the old man off the hook. Midway through the first, Henderson landed a shot that briefly wobbled Lombard but ended up getting him in deep trouble as Lombard caught the blitzing Henderson with a counter punch that sank the middleweight to the canvas. Lombard emptied his toolbox on Henderson and even attempted to finish him with a straight armbar but Henderson’s senses remained intact. In the second round, Lombard tried to catch a kick to use for a takedown but Henderson was having none of it and thrust an elbow into his opponent’s temple that turned out the lights. Henderson went from a fighter on his way out to a possible title contender in one swift motion.

9. Matt Brown vs. Erick Silva (UFC Fight Night 40)

They call Matt Brown “The Immortal” and he showed why he earned that nickname on this particular night.

Within seconds of the opening bell, Brown was doubled over in pain from a wicked series of kicks courtesy of Silva. Brown was frozen and the referee could have stopped the fight as Brown legitimately looked like he was unable to protect himself. Silva made a curious mistake after being unable to finish his wounded prey by shifting his focus to a fight-ending submission. Brown managed to fight the rear naked choke attempts off, scamper to his feet and began to bludgeon his Brazilian opponent with a bevy of strikes. The rejuvenated Brown’s assault from that point was relentless and Silva was drained from trying to end the fight. Two rounds later, a depleted Silva found himself on the wrong end of a flurry of ground and pound and the fight was called off.

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8. Tim Boetsch vs. Yushin Okami (UFC 144)

For two rounds, Tim Boetsch was battered and bloodied by Yushin Okami. The crowd in Japan was fully behind their countryman and it seemed like it was only a matter of whether Boetsch could survive the final round after being dominated for the first 10 minutes of the fight. With his corner begging him to let his hands go, Boetsch threw caution to the wind and fired away in the final frame. A right hand connected for Boetsch, who kept coming and landed a head kick and more punches. Okami was reeling and Boetsch wasn’t going to let him off the hook. The Barbarian chased him down, trapped him in the clinch and cut loose a series of uppercuts that rendered Okami unconscious.

7. Mike Russow vs. Todd Duffee (UFC 114)

You have to remember that Todd Duffee was supposed to be an unstoppable force of muscle and mass that was set to terrorize the heavyweight division. He set the record for fastest knockout in UFC history in his last fight and the expectation was that he’d obliterate Mike Russow in the same manner. Russow certainly didn’t look like a dangerous fighter. He had flab where Duffee had abs and nothing about him suggested that he’d hang around as long as he did. Two-and-a-half rounds went by and Russow was still conscious but easily losing the fight. Duffee was exhausted from exerting energy yet he continued to follow Russow around the cage. And then, seemingly out of nowhere, Russow uncorked a right hook that smashed against Duffee’s head and sent the giant crashing to the canvas in a shocking scene.

6. Andrei Arlovski vs. Travis Browne (UFC 187)

Usually, when two friends are pitted up against one another, the result is a tentative fight where the action slows to a snail-like pace. But what we got between Arlovski and Browne was the exact opposite. These two fought like they hated each other’s guts from the opening bell and didn’t stop until somebody was unfit to continue.

A short right hook from Arlovski started the fireworks. Arlovski clobbered Browne twice with punches that would have snuffed out another opponent, but Browne showed resolve and came firing right back. Arlovski would get the upper hand only to get his jaw cracked with a right hand that sent him to the canvas. Browne pounced, sought for the finish but Arlovski survived, scrambled to his feet and shoved a knee into Browne’s face. An uppercut was followed by a straight right hand that finally ended it all. Interestingly enough, either fighter would have had a comeback of the ages should they have won. On this night it was Arlovski.

5. Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard 2 (UFC 123)

This fight almost ended as soon as it started as Maynard eschewed the notion that he was a “boring” fighter and pulverized Edgar in the opening frame. It looked like a short night and Maynard certainly could almost taste UFC gold. However, Edgar refused to be put away. Nobody knows how he survived and it was certainly a 10-8 round. But the resilience of Frankie Edgar showed itself as “The Answer” regained his senses and worked his way back into the fight. The two fighters battled valiantly until the end when the fight was declared a split draw and the two were destined to meet again. But the similarly contested fight wouldn’t take place in the rematch, would it? Of course it would.

4. Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard 3 (UFC 136)

Less than a year after Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard battled to a draw, the two were at it again at UFC 136 for the UFC lightweight title.

Maynard crushed Edgar with power shots early and had the champion, once again, on roller skates as he tried to survive that assault. And, once again, he managed to make it out of the round and quickly regrouped to get back into the fight. But unlike that January meeting, this wasn’t going to the judges as Edgar managed to capitalize on a failed takedown attempt and smash Maynard with an uppercut that sent him reeling. Although not known for his knockout power, Edgar would immediately swarm and did exactly what Maynard couldn’t do: he finished the job. A savage amount of clean punches to the head caused the fight to be stopped in the fourth and ended the rivalry between the two in definitive fashion.

3. Cheick Kongo vs. Pat Barry (UFC Live)

This was absolutely bananas.

Pat Barry blitzed Cheick Kongo from the opening bell and clobbered him from pillar to post. Much credit has to go to referee Dan Miragliotta for not stopping the fight even though Kongo looked like out on two occasions. Barry had Kongo pinned on the cage and sought the finish, only to find a counter hook from Kongo wrap around his guard and knock him off balance. Kongo would then unleash a right uppercut that caught Barry square and immediately turned the lights out. Barry was out cold and Kongo, somehow, was declared the winner.

2. Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin (UFC 116)

It was the unstoppable force versus the immovable object when Shane Carwin and Brock Lesnar met in the main event of UFC 116. Carwin had been absolutely annihilating his opponents as he powered his way to the top of the division. Meanwhile, Lesnar had battled back from diverticulitis and sought to prove that he was the only UFC heavyweight champion the UFC needed to recognize. But Carwin was not here to entertain Lesnar’s return and clobbered him with haymakers to open up the fight. Try as he might, Lesnar could not escape the onslaught as Carwin followed him to the mat and rained down with vicious punches and elbows that could have stopped the fight. But Lesnar didn’t need rescuing and managed to survive the opening stanza.

After regrouping, it was evident that Carwin had punched himself out and Lesnar took full advantage of the opportunity by immediately driving Carwin’s back to the mat, mounting him and slapping on an ultra tight arm triangle that squeezed the fight out of Carwin and cemented Lesnar as the premier attraction in the UFC.

1. Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen (UFC 117)

At the time, Anderson Silva was perceived as indestructible and Chael Sonnen was little more than a fighter who was writing checks with his mouth that his ass couldn’t cash. The prevailing thought was that Sonnen would get carved up if he were to come anywhere near the wood chipper known as Silva. But Sonnen talked a good game and surprisingly backed it up for four and a half rounds. He grounded Silva immediately from the opening bell and used his vaunted wrestling to dominate just about every minute of every round. The crowd was in shock as the fight entered the final frame. Everyone thought that Silva would need a knockout, so when Sonnen grounded him again, a collective gasp let out of the building. It appeared to be over and Chael Sonnen was on his way to pulling off the biggest upset in UFC history.

And then it happened.

In a last-gasp effort, Silva adjusted his hips, took a deep breath and went for a Hail Mary submission in the form of a triangle choke and modified armbar. It was the very jiu-jitsu that Sonnen ridiculed heading into the fight that “The Spider” used to wrap his long legs around his opponent’s neck. Sonnen squirmed for a moment until he relented and tapped out as the building exploded in jubilation.