(Photo by Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images)
Chris Leben didn’t think he’d fight again until he got an offer he couldn’t refuse.
The 22-fight UFC veteran hadn’t fought in MMA since December 2013, when he suffered a TKO loss to Uriah Hall. He did make a comeback in bare-knuckle boxing, going 3-1, but he announced his retirement after a KO win over Quentin Henry in 2021.
Since he retired, Leben has become an MMA judge and a referee, but he’s now set to return to fighting. Leben is set to rematch legendary Japanese MMA fighter Yoshihiro Akiyama at Black Combat 17: Vantablack in South Korea on Nov. 21.
“It caught me by surprise; it was not in my plans to fight again whatsoever,” Leben said exclusively to RG.org. “Happily retired, I have an exciting career as a referee and a judge, working hard in that career, excelling, and focusing on building my gym. I’ve had people hit me up about fighting, and I’ve always told them the same thing: happily retired. This one was a little different: they hit me up, I gave them the standard line, they came back, said it again, and they came back again.
“It was a fight I was interested in. Then the money was right. When those two things kind of came together, I had to see if the commission would let me take time off for the fight, because that is my plan for the next 20 years. Everybody was very supportive. I’m 46; he’s 51. He’s in great shape; I don’t think I’m in terrible shape; I’m in the gym. I think it’s a good fight, and I think it’s a fight that makes a lot of sense. It’s his last fight, and the original fight is probably the most exciting fight of either of our careers.”