What could’ve been: 10 of the best booked UFC fights that never happened

Conor McGregor vs. Rafael dos Anjos, Nate Diaz vs. Dustin Poirer, Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson, and more make the list.

Junior dos Santos vs. Brock Lesnar

After coaching “The Ultimate Fighter 11,” [autotag]Junior dos Santos[/autotag] and [autotag]Brock Lesnar[/autotag] were scheduled to face off in the main event of UFC 131 on June 11, 2011. But Lesnar’s constant health issues with diverticulitis forced him to pull out, and he was then replaced by Shane Carwin.

Dos Santos went on to dominate Carwin, which set him up with a fight vs. then-UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez, where dos Santos picked up the upset victory, knocking him out in the first round at UFC on Fox 1.

A fight with Lesnar could have been a big opportunity for dos Santos, as Lesnar arguably the biggest pay-per-view draw in the UFC at the time.