Canadian lightweight Lance Gibson Jr. follows his father’s footsteps to the UFC

Lance Gibson Jr. was eating a late dinner Monday when the call came, telling him to pack his bags and be ready to jump on a plane because the UFC might need him on Saturday’s UFC Fight Night card in Las Vegas.

“I was running around, grabbing all my gear … the main stuff I really need. Tuesday got it confirmed. Wednesday flew out, did a bunch of medicals,” Gibson (9-1-0) recounted.

There were more medicals Thursday ahead of Friday’s weigh-in. The whirlwind week ends Saturday when the 30-year-old from Port Moody, B.C., makes his UFC debut against veteran American King Green (32-17-1 with one no-contest).

“I’m just truly grateful for the opportunity,” said Gibson, who went 5-1-0 in the Bellator promotion from 2019 to 2023. “This is what I’m dreamt of. I think, it’s kind of been my entire life.”

Gibson has grown up with mixed martial arts.

His father, Lance Sr., fought in UFC 24 and 29 in 2000, defeating Jermaine (Bam Bam) Andre and losing to Evan Tanner. That means, come Saturday, the Gibsons will become the third father-and-son duo to compete in the mixed martial arts promotion, following Randy and Ryan Couture and Gilbert and Elijah Smith.

“It’s been a long time coming,” said Gibson, who grew up in the gym and has a photo of himself in action at the age of two.

There are other family ties to the sport.

His stepmother, Julia Budd, defended the Bellator featherweight title three times before losing it to Brazilian star Cris Cyborg in January 2020. Budd, who also competed in Strikeforce, Invicta and the Professional Fighters League (PFL), and Gibson both posted wins on the Bellator 257 card in April 2021.

Gibson had just turned five when his father made his UFC debut in Lake Charles, La.

“I just remember my grandparents screaming, just going crazy,” he said. “I was so excited.”

He also remembers his father, during an interview promising him a Silver Power Ranger “that I really badly wanted at the time,” Gibson said with a laugh.

After a couple of amateur bouts, Gibson made his pro debut in 2017. He won his first seven fights before losing to Russian Vladimir (Vova) Tokov in his last Bellator outing.

After the PFL acquired Bellator in November 2023, Gibson decided his next best move was to try to get into the UFC. So he asked to be released.

He has since won twice on local Washington state cards, while staying in shape in case a short-notice UFC call-up came along.

“We made it,” he said.

Both his father and stepmother are with him in Vegas.

Because of the short notice, Saturday’s fight is being contested at a catchweight of 160 pounds, rather than the normal 156-pound lightweight non-title limit.

Both men weighed in at 158.5 pounds Friday.

The 39-year-old Green, who changed his name from Bobby Green to King Green in 2024, is a veteran of 27 UFC fights, making his debut in the promotion in 2013. He was initially due to face Jai Herbert.

“He’s been doing this for a long time,” said Gibson. “He’s got some great knockouts. He’s got power in hi hands. He’s well — rounded fighter. I expect him to bring it.

“I expect him to be Bobby Green and I expect to be Lance Gibson Jr. And I think Lance Gibson Jr. has all the skills to beat Bobby Green.”

Green was the victim of a highlight-reel knockout last time out at UFC 313 in March, felled by a spinning wheel kick to the temple by Mauricio Ruffy, ranked 14th among lightweight contenders. That dropped Green to 13-12-1 with one no-contest in the UFC.

He was beaten by No. 5 Paddy Pimblett in the fight before that and has lost three of his last four — with all three defeats coming in the first round.

Green has fought the likes of Tony Ferguson, Islam Makhachev, Dustin Poirier, Jim Miller and Rafael Fiziev.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 12, 2025