MMA fighters are made, not born. However, there were those who not only began training early but also began their MMA careers at a much younger age than their peers.
Success in the combative world of mixed martial arts is determined by long hours of training and preparation. Most aspiring fighters spend years in preparation for their professional debuts, biding their time for their opportunity to showcase their skills on the biggest stage.
Like most sports, fighters may never get their shot. But their are those that excel from early on, bursting onto the scene with a deadly combination of raw talent and ability to make their name in this game as teenage sensations.
In this article, we will take a look at the youngest fighters to ever compete in the UFC.
1. Raul Rosas Jr. (age in first UFC bout: 18 years and 2 months)
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Raul Rosas Jr. is a pro MMA fighter from Santa Rosa, California. Known as El Nino, Rosas began his pro MMA career at the age of 17 when he fought at the Ultimate Warrior Challenge (UWC) promotion in Mexico. He went 5-0 with five stoppages during his stint there and earned a spot at Dana White’s Contender Series. Rosas appeared in Week 9 of the DWCS 2022 season where he defeated Mando Gutierrez to earn a UFC contract.
Raul made his UFC debut at UFC 282 on December 10, 2022, where he submitted Jay Perrin inside one round. He suffered his first professional loss at the hands of Christian Rodriguez at UFC 287 but bounced back to beat Terrence Mitchell during his last UFC appearance last September 16, 2023.
2. Dan Lauzon (age in first UFC bout: 18 years and 6 months)
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Dan Lauzon is the younger brother of former UFC fighter Joe Lauzon. Dan began training in mixed martial arts at the age of 14 and made his pro debut two days after turning 18 years old in a regional promotion called WFL in Massachusetts.
Four fights later Lauzon saw himself fighting at UFC 64 on October 14, 2006. But after losing to Spencer Fischer in his UFC debut, he was cut by the promotion. Lauzon made it back to the UFC in 2010 but after suffering back-to-back losses, he was released again. He ended up in the World Series of Fighting where he fought a young Justin Gaethje at WSOF 6 in 2013.
3. Sage Northcutt ( age in first UFC bout: 19 years and 7 months)
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Sage Northcutt was a prospect of UFC President Dana White who never got going in the UFC. Super Sage was featured in White’s Looking for a Fight series while fighting at the Legacy Fighting Championship amateur promotion. White was impressed and he signed Northcutt to the promotion and hyped him as a top prospect.
He knocked out Francisco Trevino at UFC 192 on October 3, 2015, in his first UFC assignment. Northcutt followed that up with a submission victory over Cody Pfister but was beaten by Bryan Barbarena at UFC on Fox 18. He fought out his UFC contract and wasn’t resigned by the UFC. Super Sage then joined ONE Championship in 2019.
4. Vitor Belfort ( age in first UFC bout: 19 years and 10 months)
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The Phenom Vitor Belfort is one of the greatest fighters in UFC history. He is also one of the youngest ever to make his Octagon debut. Belfort defeated two fighters on the same day to win the UFC 12 tournament on February 7, 1997. He left the UFC to fight in Japan’s PRIDE promotion but returned to the UFC in 2002.
During his second tour of duty with the UFC, The Phenom knocked out the legendary Randy Couture to become the UFC light heavyweight champion at UFC 46. Belfort left a second time and returned once again in 2009. He finished his career with the UFC and retired after losing to fellow Brazilian Lyoto Machida at UFC 224.
5. Song Yadong ( age in first UFC bout: 19 years and 11 months)
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Song Yadong was already training in MMA at the age of 13 and made his professional mixed martial arts debut before turning 16 years old. The Harbin, China native began his career at China’s RUFF promotion before making his mark in the Wu Lin Feng martial arts competition.
He made his UFC debut at UFC Fight Night 122 on November 25, 2017, where he defeated Bharat Khandare via guillotine choke. Song went undefeated in his first six Octagon assignments before losing to Kylee Phillips at UFC 259. He last fought on March 9, 2024, at UFC 299, losing to Petr Yan via unanimous decision.