UFC legend Mark Coleman is ALREADY back in the gym - days after nearly DYING from rescuing his parents in a house fire and being in critical condition in hospital - as he jokes: 'I never left!'

UFC legend Mark Coleman wasted no time going back to the gym days after laying on a hospital bed in critical condition.

On March 12, the 59-year-old MMA pioneer saved both of his parents from a house fire in Ohio. After securing his mom and dad, Coleman went back to save his dog, Hammer, who unfortunately did not survive the blaze. Coleman was taken to the hospital later as fans and family worried for his life.

A day after being released on March 18, Coleman returned to his mentoring duties at Immortal Martial Arts. UFC veteran Matt Brown posted a video proclaiming Coleman's return to the gym.

'What's up, guys? The man is back,' Brown said. 'The Hammer's back.'

'I never left. Well, for a second,' Coleman said with a chuckle as he raised his arms.

UFC legend Mark Coleman went back to the gym days after being in critical condition 

Coleman rescued his parents from a housefire in Ohio and attempted to save his dog Hammer 

According to Jonathan Snowden of MMA Encyclopedia, Coleman's dog woke him to a burning house. Coleman's rescue of his parents also came seconds before the roof collapsed from the fire.

Two days after the fire, Coleman woke up responsive and said: 'I'm the luckiest man in the world,' as he hugged his family.

'I'm so grateful to be here today,' Coleman said in a video after leaving the hospital. 'I'm so blessed. I'm one of the luckiest men in the world. I can't thank you all enough. I'm just so grateful.'

'My lungs are sore. My eyes are burnt but I'm very much alive and well,' he captioned the clip on Instagram. 'I feel so blessed it's in my higher powers hands. He wants me to move forward today and I am. I'm overwhelmed by the love and support that I have received, if I had a wish it would be that I could meet each and every one of you to give you a big hug and thank you in person.'

Coleman's dog, who alerted him of the fire, unfortunately did not survive the blaze  

A pioneer of the sport, Coleman was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2008 

The Hammer made his MMA debut in 1996 by winning the UFC 10 tournament. Later that year, he emerged victorious at UFC 11 to secure back-to-back tournament wins. Coleman also finished all five opponents through his run with victories over Don Frye and Gary Goodridge.

At UFC 12, Coleman submitted Dan Severn with a scarf hold to become the inaugural UFC heavyweight champion.

Coleman fought in Pride from 1999 until the Japanese promotion was bought out by Zuffa, the UFC's parent company, in 2007. He squared off against the likes of Fedor Emelianenko, Mirko Crop Cop, and Randy Couture before retiring in 2010 with a 16-10 record.

Coleman got inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame's Pioneer Wing in 2008 and Fight Wing in 2016 for his UFC 17 showdown against Pete Williams.