Chris Leben News

Chris Taylor - February 5, 2021

UFC veteran Chris Leben returns to action at tonight’s BKFC KnuckleMania pay-per-view event for a bout with Quentin Henry. Leben, who had previously announced his retirement in 2020, currently holds a 2-1 professional bare knuckle record with his last bout taking place in June 2019. He’s been able to defeat Phil Baroni and Justin Baesman with his one and only loss up to this point being a decision against Dakota Cochrane.

Chris Taylor - February 5, 2021

Former UFC standout Paige VanZant is set to make her Bare Knuckle debut at tonight’s BKFC KnuckleMania event against Britain Hart. VanZant (8-5 MMA) was most recently seen in action at July’s UFC 251 event on Yas Island, where she suffered a first round submission loss to Amanda Ribas. Prior to her setback to Ribas, ‘PVZ’ was coming off a submission victory over Rachael Ostovich in Janaury of 2019.

Harry Kettle - January 8, 2021

BKFC will look to make a real statement on Super Bowl weekend when they host “Knucklemania,” featuring Paige VanZant and Chris Leben. Leben had already teased the idea of fighting next month, but when it comes to VanZant, there has been a great deal of speculation over when and where she would make her official debut for BKFC.

Harry Kettle - December 31, 2020

MMA and BKFC veteran Chris Leben isn’t going to hold back when he takes on Quentin Henry on Super Bowl weekend. Leben, who had previously announced his retirement earlier this year, currently holds a 2-1 professional bare knuckle record with his last bout taking place in June 2019. He’s been able to defeat Phil Baroni and Justin Baesman with his one and only loss up to this point being a decision against Dakota Cochrane.

Thomas Taylor - June 23, 2019

On Saturday night, in the co-main event of BKFC 6 in Tampa, Florida, UFC veteran Chris Leben stepped into the ring for his third bare knuckle bout. His opponent this time around was Ultimate Fighter veteran Dakota Cochrane, who was riding high on a knockout win over former UFC welterweight champion Johny Hendricks. While Leben put forth a valiant effort in this fight, he ultimately lost a decision to Cochrane. As it turns out, he also sustained some of the hardest punches he’s ever felt in his long and illustrious career — perhaps even the hardest outright.

Christopher Taylor - June 22, 2019

A fight between Chris Leben and Dakota Cochrane served as the co-headliner of tonight’s BKFC 6 event in Tampa Bay. Chris Leben (22-11 MMA, 2-0 BKF) was most recently seen in action at April’s Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship 5 event, where he scored a first round knockout victory over Justin Baesman.

Chris Taylor - April 6, 2019

Former UFC fighter and fan favorite Chris Leben took on Justin Baesman in the co-headliner of tonight’s Bare Knuckle FC 5 event in Biloxi. Chris Leben was most recently seen in action under the WBKFF banner this past November, where he knocked out fellow veteran Phil Baroni in the very first round.

Drake Riggs - March 14, 2019

The World Bare Knuckle Fighting Federation (WBKFF) made the biggest steal of 2018. Putting on their very first and only event on November 10, the promotion had stacked its inaugural card with plenty of big names ranging from the likes of former UFC welterweight champion, Johny Hendricks to athletes outside of MMA as well such as the ex-NFL star, Shawne Merriman.

Mike Straus - November 19, 2018

Everyone loves a good comeback story and perhaps no MMA fighter has a more inspirational one than “The Crippler” Cris Leben. An original cast member on season one of The Ultimate Fighter, Leben recently came out of retirement to knock out Phil Baroni in the World Bare Knuckle Fighting Federation’s (WBKFF) inaugural event.

Chris Taylor - November 10, 2018

UFC veteran Chris Leben picked up his first win since 2011 at last nights “WBKFF1: Rise Of The Titans” event, defeating Phil Baroni by way of first-round TKO. “The Crippler” connected with a crisp punch that stunned Phil Baroni just seconds into the opening round. Shortly after that, “The New York Bad Ass” charged forward with a flurry but Chris Leben was able to land a beautiful counter left hand that sent Phil crashing face first into the canvas.

Christopher Taylor - November 9, 2018

Bare Knuckle Boxing took center stage tonight as WBKFF 1: Rise Of The Titans went down in Casper, Wyoming live from the Casper Events Center. Tonight’s event featured a handful of former UFC staples including former welterweight champion Johny Hendricks, Phil Baroni, Chris Leben, Josh Neer and Isaac Vallie-Flagg.

Tom Taylor - July 18, 2018

Yesterday evening, we learned that former UFC middleweight star Chris Leben will return to action this fall when he battles fellow UFC veteran Phil Baroni in a bareknuckle boxing bout. The fight will be promoted by the upstart World Bare Knuckle Fighting Federation (WBKFF) in Casper, Wyoming. This is not Leben’s first attempt at a comeback. Several years ago, the UFC vet was expected to start competing under the Bellator banner. Unfortunately for him, these plans were derailed when it was learned that he had a severe heart condition.

Russell Ess - March 14, 2016

UFC veteran Chris Leben was just about to make a return to MMA with a new contract with Bellator MMA. In the process of getting ready to return to competition, bad news about his physical health hit the knockout specialist as he went through the process of pre-fight medical exams. The 35-year-old veteran appeared on The Luke Thomas Show on SiriusXM to talk about his condition (transcribed by MMA Fighting):

Chris Taylor - March 8, 2016

Mixed martial arts veteran Chris Leben (22-11 MMA) was planning on coming out of retirement to fight for the Bellator MMA promotion. Sadly that is no longer the case, as MMAJunkie is reporting that “The Crippler” has been diagnosed with a severe medical condition that has left Chris with just 18 percent of normal blood flow to his heart.