Forgotten UFC lightweight ready to return after almost losing his hip during three-year layoff

Brad Riddell targets comeback almost three years on from his last UFC fight

During a recent interview on the Southern Cross Combat YouTube channel, Riddell reiterated his plan to make a comeback this year and spoke about his lengthy stint away from the Octagon.

The Kiwi striker revealed that he almost underwent major hip replacement surgery before the UFC stepped in with an alternative.

“I had a hip surgery after Moicano,” Riddell said. “A couple of months after that (fight), I went to Las Vegas and the UFC fixed my hip.

“I had been having a lot of problems with my hip in like, the last half of the year with my last two fights. The labrum was just torn off, just completely hanging off, and always getting caught in the joint. And there was a bit of bone sticking out that was just scratching all the cartilage off.

“There was a lot of time in the last year of my career where I was in a lot of pain,” Riddell added. “After that fight, it was really, really bad. … In New Zealand, they tried to replace my hip completely, which I thought was a little bit insane, for like a 30-year-old man to have a metal hip.

“I told the UFC and they were like, ‘Come over here and we’ll check it out.’ I went over there and they were just like, ‘We’ll do a pretty minor surgery.’ … I was happy that I didn’t have to have an insanely major surgery and I was mad that they tried to replace my hip in New Zealand.”

Having overcome that adversity and also had surgery to repair damage to his knee in Thailand, Riddell is ready to mount a comeback.

“You just email the matchmaker and the contract person, tell them you’re healthy and ready to go, which I’ve done a couple of times,” Riddell said of the process of returning.

“I was trying to get that matchup with Mason Jones, which I thought would be a great fight…(but) he’s matched up. I’ve been waiting to hear back about anything.

“There’s the next (card I’m targeting) in August, which is just in the backyard for us in Shanghai. It’s only a couple of hours away.”

Brad Riddell predicted the ‘itch’ would come back

Though it’s been close to three years in the making, it seems Riddell always expected to eventually resume his career as an active fighter.

While announcing his plan for a hiatus immediately following his loss to Moicano, ‘Quake’ said he would remain on the sidelines until his fire returned.

“I’m going to step away from competing in MMA for a good while until the fire to compete comes back. I’m not performing close to my capability, and it’s a dangerous job if you’re not fully present.

“I’ve been training hard for 15 years, in and out of camps with not enough rest or balance and it’s massively taken its physical and mental toll on me. There has not been a year since I was 17 that I have not fought.

“I will keep training and teaching, but my energy that was all consumed by the sport will be directed at my family. The itch will come back, but a long time off is needed.”

Riddell’s prediction evidently came to fruition, and with his “itch” back, the Kiwi fighter will be awaiting an assignment from the UFC matchmakers in the coming months.