Athletes
Gabe Green | God's Plan
Returning Californian Discusses A Year Of Change, Putting Everything In God’s Hands
By the time he makes the walk this weekend, Gabe Green will have spent just 14 seconds inside the Octagon over the last 1050 days.
He’s competed just once since the day after his loss to welterweight contender Ian Machado Garry, suffering a knockout loss at the hands of Bryan Battle on May 13, 2023, in a bout that took place in Battle’s home state of North Carolina. He was slated to return last April, but shortly before his bout with James Llontop, Green suffered a torn lateral collateral ligament that forced him out of the fight and kept him on the sidelines.
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Saturday night, he finally makes his return, stepping in with newcomer Matheus Camilo in a lightweight matchup that kicks off the main card, and he does so armed with a new perspective.
“Fighting has always been a giant priority in my life, and it was kind of put on a pedestal,” began Green, reflecting on his time away, and especially this past year. “It was ‘fighting, fighting, fighting, fighting, fighting,’ but realistically, the best year of my life was this last year that didn’t have fighting in it whatsoever.”
Since he last stepped into the Octagon, the 32-year-old Californian has gotten married and welcomed a daughter, bringing about a seismic shift in mindset and perspective, and a deeper relationship and trust in God’s plan for him.
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“I had that fight planned, contracts were signed, and then literally right before, my knee popped, and I was like, ‘I guess it’s not meant to happen yet,’” began Green. “Funny thing though: my wife was pregnant at the time when it happened, and there is this Bible verse in Deuteronomy that says in the first year of marriage, a man is supposed to stay home with his wife and make sure that she’s taken care of, that she’s okay, and I was just like, ‘Well I guess biblically, God just wants me to stay my butt home.’
“Not having that extra cash coming in definitely hurts — it’s been two years since I fought — but God has been providing the whole time, and this has made me appreciate and love God so much more because there are definitely some struggles, but I’ve been blessed beyond what I could ever imagine.
“You get married and obviously your whole mentality shifts, then you have a baby and your mentality shifts again,” he added. “I’ve changed so much since my last fight — I’m nowhere near the person that I was when I was walking in for that fight at all, and I’ve grown so much.”
In addition to growing as a man and a follower of Christ, the veteran has changed weight classes, finally making the move down to lightweight that his coach has been suggesting for quite some time.
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“My coach has always been like, ‘Gabe, you’re a ‘55er,’ and I’m like, ‘I’m winning at ’70! What do you mean I’m a ‘55er? I’m huge!’” said Green, who earned wins over Phil Rowe and Yohan Lainesse prior to his losses to Machado Garry and Battle. “He’s like, ‘Gabe, with your sweats on you were 175!’
“Having that little success I had at 170, I was like, ‘I told you — 170 is where it’s at!’” he added with a laugh. “But having the two losses in a row, my coach was like, ‘Do you wanna try ’55? Maybe you won’t have to fight guys that are that much bigger than you? You’re fighting at the highest level, so why don’t we pull you back, try ’55?’”
For Green, the combination of his prior victories and not having to cut much weight, if any, was a “have your cake and eat it too” experience, sometimes quite literally.
“I was force-feeding myself, but I work out so much that it was hard to keep the weight on,” continued Green, admitting something that would likely irritate many of his contemporaries that cut considerable weight. “I was going to buffets on the weekend, going, going, going, and then checking my weight at the end of the week and losing weight. I was like, ‘Dang it! Let’s go eat again, guys!’
“That was a struggle, but a fun one; it felt like I was a heavyweight,” he continued, smiling. “Now my weight is good, and the only difference is I don’t force-feed myself on the weekends anymore. I feel great and it’s where I probably should be.”
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Along with shifting divisions, the deeply religious competitor is eager to bring a new approach to this weekend’s fight with Camilo.
“I’ve realized that even in my last fights — even in the fights that I won in the UFC — I was going out there and making it a battle of toughness, and I wasn’t really utilizing my skills and the talents that God has given me,” began Green, who carries an 11-5 record into his return to action on Saturday night at the UFC APEX. “I had a deep thought and I was like, ‘I should go out there and be a vessel of the Holy Spirit.’
“Everything I do should be for His glory, so I shouldn’t be doing anything half-heartedly; I should be using every skill and talent that He’s given me for His honor and glory when I go out there.’ I should definitely be trying to be the best person I can be because I love my God, He means so much to me, so if I go out there not being my best, that’s kind of a slap in the face to Him and I don’t wanna disrespect God.”
As much as his faith is a massive component of the alteration to his approach, it also comes down to a simple matter of taking advantage of all the tools in your toolbox each time you step into the Octagon, rather than purposely choosing to leave some behind.
“As much as I’d love to go out there, point at the middle of the Octagon and say, ‘Let’s crack!’ there is a time and a place for that, and it’s not the first 10 seconds,” Green said with a chuckle. “Imagine you work all these years, get some good skills, get some good cardio, and I almost throw it away by saying, ‘Let’s go!’ and just biting down.
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“It makes for some exciting TV, for sure, and it could go either way, but at the very least I’m not gonna do that in the first 10 seconds.”
After such an extended absence, there are surely a number of elements Green is eager to experience and enjoy again on Saturday night.
Asked if there is one that stands out, he was quick to respond.
"Honestly, I walk out to gospel every single time, so my favorite thing is when you walk out and hear worship music playing really loud in a place where you don’t usually hear worship music, I absolutely love that,” Green said. “I hope I get to a level in my career where I’m walking out and people are singing along; that would make my heart feel so good.”
Former lightweight champion Benson Henderson got a lot of people adding R-Swift’s version of “Awesome God” to their playlists, so it’s certainly not out of the question for Green.
In terms of the fight itself, the returning competitor is simply eager to see how things shake out, leaving the outcome in the hands of his higher power.
“I’m leaving everything in God’s hands,” he said. “This whole camp, I’ve just been praying that His will is done in my life. Whether I’m victorious or I lose, as long as it’s the way He wants it to be and He gets what He wants from me, that’s all I want.
“I feel really at ease and peaceful, excited to see how the night unfolds. I feel extremely ready for it all, so now let’s just see what happens.”
UFC Fight Night: Burns vs Morales took place live from UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on May 17, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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