corner. Leben then reiterated "I'm done" multiple times before the fight was waved off. This marked Leben's fourth loss in a row. Retirement On January 20, 2014, Leben announced his retirement from MMA competition. He will continue his martial arts legacy by focusing on coaching his students and pro fighters at his new MMA gym "The Training Center" in San Diego, California. He cited an increasingly talented middleweight roster, his recent losing streak and the risk of serious injury as reasons for retiring. He called himself fortunate to have never had surgery throughout his record 22-fight middleweight stint, though he predicted several of his nagging injuries will get worse with time. On February 5, 2021, after his first round knockout win over Quentin Henry in the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, Leben announced his official retirement from combat sports. Bellator MMA After two years away from active competition for Leben, it was announced by Scott Coker on Inside MMA that Leben had signed a multi-fight deal with Bellator MMA in February 2016. However, after undergoing a physical to be cleared, he failed several electrocardiogram (EKG) tests, according to the statement. Doctors discovered a "life-threatening abnormality" to the left ventricle of his heart, which was "oversized", "misshapen", and "not operating properly," thus ending any possibility of a return. Unretirement In late 2018 Chris came out of retirement after being given an all-clear by doctors. Bare knuckle boxing World Bare Knuckle Fighting Federation After a return to MMA never materialized, Leben instead turned to bare knuckle boxing. He faced Phil Baroni at the World Bare Knuckle Fighting Federation debut card on November 9, 2018. He won the fight via TKO in the first round. In March 2019, reports surfaced that Leben had sued WBKFF for $90,000 in unpaid salary. Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship Leben made his debut for Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship on April 6, 2019. He faced Justin Baesman in the show's co-main event. Leben won the fight via knockout just 25 seconds into the first round. Leben was supposed to face Brennan Ward at BKFC 6 on June 22, 2019. On June 12, news surfaced that Ward withdrew from the bout and was replaced by Dakota Cochrane. Leben lost the fight by unanimous decision. Leben faced Quentin Henry at BKFC: Knucklemania on February 5, 2021. He won the fight via knockout in the first round and subsequently announced his retirement from