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Revision as of 20:10, 10 September 2023

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships.[1]

Historical notes

At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classes. Instead of the traditional championship model, the UFC held tournaments with the winner receiving a permanent appellation.[2] In response to criticism from Senator John McCain that saw the loss of its television deal and the banning of the sport in thirty-six states, the UFC increased its cooperation with state athletic commissions and introduced weight classes in 1997, starting with UFC 12, and began introducing weight-specific titles.[3]

The original codification for weight classes introduced only two divisions: heavyweight, which grouped together all competitors above 200 pounds (91 kg), and lightweight, which encompassed all competitors 199 pounds (90 kg) and under. At UFC 14 the lightweight division would be renamed to middleweight, though it would still encompass all fighters 199 pounds (90 kg) and under.[4] The lightweight moniker would later return at UFC 16 with a new division consisting of those competitors 170 pounds (77 kg) and under.[5] Two years later a fourth weight class, the bantamweight division, arrived at UFC 26 and included all fighters 155 pounds (70 kg) and under.[4]

In 2000, the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board completely took over MMA regulation in its home state and developed new rules and weight classes that eventually became the de facto rule set for all mixed martial arts.[6] The UFC realigned their weight classes to comply with these new regulations in 2001, beginning with UFC 31.[7] At the time, this brought the total number of active divisions in the UFC to five: lightweight, welterweight, middleweight, light heavyweight, and heavyweight.

It would be nearly ten years before the UFC would expand their divisional offerings to include any of the lower weight classes. The first additions came in late 2010 when the UFC merged with their sister organization World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC). Due to the WEC's focus on lighter weight fighters, this merger necessitated the addition of both the featherweight and bantamweight divisions to the UFC, starting with The Ultimate Fighter season 12 finale.[8] In early 2012 the UFC decided they would delve even further into the lower weight classes when they announced the introduction of the flyweight division to their ranks, beginning with UFC on FX: Alves vs. Kampmann.[9]

In November 2012, as a result of the forthcoming dissolution of their sister organization Strikeforce, the UFC announced they would be adding female fighters to their roster for the first time in the promotion's history. Initially, only the women's bantamweight division was brought over, with the division's premiere bout taking place at UFC 157.[10] A little over a year later, the UFC announced they would be expanding their weight classes for female fighters with the addition of a women's strawweight division,[11] the first bout took place at UFC Fight Night: Cowboy vs. Miller.[12] In late 2016, a featherweight division was introduced for the women with the first bout to be for the inaugural championship at UFC 208 on February 11, 2017. In that same year the UFC announced the Women's Flyweight division would officially be added, with the winner of the 26th season of The Ultimate Fighter to be named the inaugural champion.

Current champions

[13]

Men

Division Champion Since Defenses
Heavyweight United States Jon Jones Mar 4, 2023 0
Light Heavyweight Vacant Jul 14, 2023 —
Middleweight United States Sean Strickland Sep 9, 2023 0
Welterweight England Leon Edwards Aug 20, 2022 1
Lightweight Russia Islam Makhachev Oct 22, 2022 1
Featherweight Australia Alexander Volkanovski Dec 14, 2019 5
Bantamweight United States Sean O'Malley Aug 19, 2023 0
Flyweight Brazil Alexandre Pantoja Jul 8, 2023 0

Women

Division Champion Since Defenses
Featherweight Vacant Jun 20, 2023 —
Bantamweight Vacant Jun 20, 2023 —
Flyweight Mexico Alexa Grasso Mar 4, 2023 0
Strawweight China Zhang Weili Nov 12, 2022 1

Men's championship history

Heavyweight Championship

206 to 265 lb (93 to 120 kg)
The UFC Superfight Championship was unified with the UFC 11 Tournament Championship to determine the inaugural UFC Heavyweight Champion on February 7, 1997, when Mark Coleman defeated Dan Severn at UFC 12.[4]

No. Name Event Date Reign
(total)		 Defenses
1 United States Mark Coleman
def. Dan Severn 		UFC 12
Dothan, AL, US 		Feb 7, 1997 170 days
2 United States Maurice Smith UFC 14
Birmingham, AL, US 		Jul 27, 1997 147 days

1. def. Tank Abbott at UFC 15 on Oct 17, 1997

3 United States Randy Couture UFC Japan
Yokohama, Japan 		Dec 21, 1997 ? days
Couture was stripped of the title in January 1998, when he left the UFC due to a contract dispute.
4 Netherlands Bas Rutten
def. Kevin Randleman 		UFC 20
Birmingham, AL, US 		May 7, 1999 34 days
Rutten vacated the title in June 1999 in order to drop down to Light Heavyweight. He retired soon after due to training injuries.[14]
5 United States Kevin Randleman
def. Pete Williams 		UFC 23
Tokyo, Japan 		Nov 19, 1999 364 days

1. def. Pedro Rizzo at UFC 26 on Jun 9, 2000

6 United States Randy Couture (2) UFC 28
Atlantic City, NJ, US 		Nov 17, 2000 490 days
(490+ days)

1. def. Pedro Rizzo at UFC 31 on May 4, 2001
2. def. Pedro Rizzo at UFC 34 on Nov 2, 2001

7 United States Josh Barnett UFC 36
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Mar 22, 2002 126 days
Barnett was stripped of the title on July 26, 2002, after testing positive for anabolic steroids in a post-fight drug test.[15]
8 United States Ricco Rodriguez
def. Randy Couture 		UFC 39
Uncasville, CT, US 		Sep 27, 2002 154 days
9 United States Tim Sylvia UFC 41
Atlantic City, NJ, US 		Feb 28, 2003 229 days

1. def. Gan McGee at UFC 44 on Sep 26, 2003

Sylvia was stripped of the title on October 15, 2003, after testing positive for anabolic steroids in a post-fight drug test.[16]
10 United States Frank Mir
def. Tim Sylvia 		UFC 48
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Jun 19, 2004 419 days
— Belarus Andrei Arlovski
def. Tim Sylvia for interim title 		UFC 51
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Feb 5, 2005 —

1. def. Justin Eilers at UFC 53 on Jun 4, 2005

Mir was stripped of the title on August 12, 2005, for inactivity resulting from injuries he sustained in a road accident.[17]
11 Belarus Andrei Arlovski
promoted to undisputed champion 		— Aug 12, 2005 246 days

1. def. Paul Buentello at UFC 55 on Oct 7, 2005

12 United States Tim Sylvia (2) UFC 59
Anaheim, CA, US 		Apr 15, 2006 322 days
(551 days)

1. def. Andrei Arlovski at UFC 61 on Jul 8, 2006
2. def. Jeff Monson at UFC 65 on Nov 18, 2006

13 United States Randy Couture (3) UFC 68
Columbus, OH, US 		Mar 3, 2007 623 days
(1,113+ days)

1. def. Gabriel Gonzaga at UFC 74 on Aug 25, 2007

— Brazil Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira
def. Tim Sylvia for interim title 		UFC 81
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Feb 2, 2008 —
14 United States Brock Lesnar UFC 91
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Nov 15, 2008 707 days

1. def. interim champion Frank Mir at UFC 100 on Jul 11, 2009
2. def. interim champion Shane Carwin at UFC 116 on Jul 3, 2010

— United States Frank Mir
def. interim champion Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira 		UFC 92
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Dec 27, 2008 —
— United States Shane Carwin
def. Frank Mir for interim title 		UFC 111
Newark, NJ, US 		Mar 27, 2010 —
15 United States Cain Velasquez UFC 121
Anaheim, CA, US 		Oct 23, 2010 385 days
16 Brazil Junior dos Santos UFC on Fox: Velasquez vs. dos Santos
Anaheim, CA, US 		Nov 12, 2011 413 days

1. def. Frank Mir at UFC 146 on May 26, 2012

17 United States Cain Velasquez (2) UFC 155
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Dec 29, 2012 896 days
(1,281 days)

1. def. Antônio Silva at UFC 160 on May 25, 2013
2. def. Junior dos Santos at UFC 166 on Oct 19, 2013

— Brazil Fabrício Werdum
def. Mark Hunt for interim title 		UFC 180
Mexico City, Mexico 		Nov 15, 2014 —
18 Brazil Fabrício Werdum UFC 188
Mexico City, Mexico 		Jun 13, 2015 336 days
19 United States Stipe Miocic UFC 198
Curitiba, Brazil 		May 14, 2016 784 days

1. def. Alistair Overeem at UFC 203 on Sep 10, 2016
2. def. Junior dos Santos at UFC 211 on May 13, 2017
3. def. Francis Ngannou at UFC 220 on Jan 20, 2018

20 United States Daniel Cormier UFC 226
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Jul 7, 2018 406 days

1. def. Derrick Lewis at UFC 230 on Nov 3, 2018

21 United States Stipe Miocic (2) UFC 241
Anaheim, CA, US 		Aug 17, 2019 588 days
(1,372 days)

1. def. Daniel Cormier at UFC 252 on Aug 15, 2020

22 Cameroon Francis Ngannou UFC 260
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Mar 27, 2021 659 days

1. def. interim champion Ciryl Gane at UFC 270 on Jan 22, 2022

— France Ciryl Gane
def. Derrick Lewis for interim title 		UFC 265
Houston, TX, US 		Aug 7, 2021 —
Ngannou was stripped of the title on January 14, 2023 when he left the UFC due to a contract dispute.[18]
23 United States Jon Jones
def. Ciryl Gane 		UFC 285
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Mar 4, 2023 657 days
(incumbent)

Light Heavyweight Championship

186 to 205 lb (84 to 93 kg)
The Light Heavyweight Championship was known as the Middleweight Championship prior to UFC 31 (May 4, 2001). The Pride World Middleweight Championship (205.03 lb) was unified with the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship on September 8, 2007, when Quinton Jackson defeated Dan Henderson at UFC 75.[4]

No. Name Event Date Reign
(Total)		 Defenses
1 United States Frank Shamrock
def. Kevin Jackson 		UFC Japan
Yokohama, Japan 		Dec 21, 1997 703 days

1. def. Igor Zinoviev at UFC 16 on Mar 13, 1998
2. def. Jeremy Horn at UFC 17 on May 15, 1998
3. def. John Lober at UFC Brazil on Oct 16, 1998
4. def. Tito Ortiz at UFC 22 on Sep 24, 1999

Shamrock vacated the title on November 24, 1999, when he retired from the UFC, citing a lack of competition.[1]
2 United States Tito Ortiz
def. Wanderlei Silva 		UFC 25
Tokyo, Japan 		Apr 14, 2000 1,260 days

1. def. Yuki Kondo at UFC 29 on Dec 16, 2000
2. def. Evan Tanner at UFC 30 on Feb 23, 2001
3. def. Elvis Sinosic at UFC 32 on Jun 29, 2001
4. def. Vladimir Matyushenko at UFC 33 on Sep 28, 2001
5. def. Ken Shamrock at UFC 40 on Nov 22, 2002

— United States Randy Couture
def. Chuck Liddell for interim title 		UFC 43
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Jun 6, 2003 —
3 United States Randy Couture UFC 44
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Sep 26, 2003 127 days
4 Brazil Vitor Belfort UFC 46
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Jan 31, 2004 203 days
5 United States Randy Couture (2) UFC 49
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Aug 21, 2004 238 days
(365 days)
6 United States Chuck Liddell UFC 52
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Apr 16, 2005 770 days

1. def. Jeremy Horn at UFC 54 on Aug 20, 2005
2. def. Randy Couture at UFC 57 on Feb 4, 2006
3. def. Renato Sobral at UFC 62 on Aug 26, 2006
4. def. Tito Ortiz at UFC 66 on Dec 30, 2006

7 United States Quinton Jackson UFC 71
Las Vegas, NV, US 		May 26, 2007 406 days

1. def. Dan Henderson at UFC 75 on Sep 8, 2007

8 United States Forrest Griffin UFC 86
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Jul 5, 2008 175 days
9 United States Rashad Evans UFC 92
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Dec 27, 2008 147 days
10 Brazil Lyoto Machida UFC 98
Las Vegas, NV, US 		May 23, 2009 350 days

1. def. Maurício Rua at UFC 104 on Oct 24, 2009

11 Brazil Maurício Rua UFC 113
Montreal, QC, Canada 		May 8, 2010 315 days
12 United States Jon Jones UFC 128
Newark, NJ, US 		Mar 19, 2011 1,501 days

1. def. Quinton Jackson at UFC 135 on Sep 24, 2011
2. def. Lyoto Machida at UFC 140 on Dec 10, 2011
3. def. Rashad Evans at UFC 145 on Apr 21, 2012
4. def. Vitor Belfort at UFC 152 on Sep 22, 2012
5. def. Chael Sonnen at UFC 159 on Apr 27, 2013
6. def. Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 165 on Sep 21, 2013
7. def. Glover Teixeira at UFC 172 on Apr 26, 2014
8. def. Daniel Cormier at UFC 182 on Jan 3, 2015

Jones was stripped of the title on April 28, 2015, due to his involvement and arrest in a felony hit-and-run.[19]
13 United States Daniel Cormier
def. Anthony Johnson 		UFC 187
Las Vegas, NV, US 		May 23, 2015 1,315 days

1. def. Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 192 on Oct 3, 2015
2. def. Anthony Johnson at UFC 210 on Apr 8, 2017
3. def. Volkan Oezdemir at UFC 220 on Jan 20, 2018

— United States Jon Jones
def. Ovince Saint Preux for interim title 		UFC 197
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Apr 23, 2016 —
Jones was stripped of the interim title on November 9, 2016, due to his one-year suspension related to a failed pre-fight drug test.[20]
Jones won the undisputed title at UFC 214 on July 29, 2017, but was stripped on September 13, 2017, after his win was overturned to a no-contest due to a failed pre-fight drug test. Cormier was then retroactively reinstated as champion.[21]
Cormier vacated the title on December 28, 2018, 174 days after winning the heavyweight title.[22]
14 United States Jon Jones (2)
def. Alexander Gustafsson 		UFC 232
Inglewood, CA, US 		Dec 29, 2018 597 days
(2,098 days)

1. def. Anthony Smith at UFC 235 on Mar 2, 2019
2. def. Thiago Santos at UFC 239 on Jul 6, 2019
3. def. Dominick Reyes at UFC 247 on Feb 8, 2020

Jones vacated the belt on August 17, 2020, citing issues with the UFC over salary negotiation and the desire to compete at heavyweight.[23][24]
15 Poland Jan Błachowicz
def. Dominick Reyes 		UFC 253
Abu Dhabi, UAE 		Sep 27, 2020 398 days

1. def. Israel Adesanya at UFC 259 on Mar 6, 2021

16 Brazil Glover Teixeira UFC 267
Abu Dhabi, UAE 		Oct 30, 2021 225 days
17 Czech Republic Jiří Procházka UFC 275
Kallang, Singapore 		Jun 12, 2022 164 days
Procházka vacated the belt on November 23, 2022, after suffering a severe shoulder injury.[25][26]
Jan Błachowicz and Magomed Ankalaev fought to a draw for the vacant title on December 10, 2022, at UFC 282 in Las Vegas, NV, US.[27]
18 United States Jamahal Hill
def. Glover Teixeira 		UFC 283
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 		Jan 21, 2023 174 days
Hill vacated the belt on July 14, 2023, after suffering an achilles tendon rupture.[28]

Middleweight Championship

171 to 185 lb (78 to 84 kg)
The Pride World Welterweight Championship (182.98 lb) was unified with the UFC Middleweight Championship on March 1, 2008, when Anderson Silva defeated Dan Henderson at UFC 82.[29]

No. Name Event Date Reign Defenses
1 United States Dave Menne
def. Gil Castillo 		UFC 33
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Sep 28, 2001 105 days
2 Brazil Murilo Bustamante UFC 35
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Jan 11, 2002 267 days

1. def. Matt Lindland at UFC 37 on May 10, 2002

Bustamante was stripped of the title on October 5, 2002, when he left the UFC for Pride.[1]
3 United States Evan Tanner
def. David Terrell 		UFC 51
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Feb 5, 2005 119 days
4 United States Rich Franklin UFC 53
Atlantic City, NJ, US 		Jun 4, 2005 497 days

1. def. Nate Quarry at UFC 56 on Nov 19, 2005
2. def. David Loiseau at UFC 58 on Mar 4, 2006

5 Brazil Anderson Silva UFC 64
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Oct 14, 2006 2,457 days

1. def. Nate Marquardt at UFC 73 on Jul 7, 2007
2. def. Rich Franklin at UFC 77 on Oct 20, 2007
3. def. Dan Henderson at UFC 82 on Mar 1, 2008
4. def. Patrick Côté at UFC 90 on Oct 25, 2008
5. def. Thales Leites at UFC 97 on Apr 18, 2009
6. def. Demian Maia at UFC 112 on Apr 10, 2010
7. def. Chael Sonnen at UFC 117 on Aug 7, 2010
8. def. Vitor Belfort at UFC 126 on Feb 5, 2011
9. def. Yushin Okami at UFC 134 on Aug 27, 2011
10. def. Chael Sonnen at UFC 148 on Jul 7, 2012

6 United States Chris Weidman UFC 162
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Jul 6, 2013 889 days

1. def. Anderson Silva at UFC 168 on Dec 28, 2013
 2. def. Lyoto Machida at UFC 175 on Jul 5, 2014
3. def. Vitor Belfort at UFC 187 on May 23, 2015

7 United States Luke Rockhold UFC 194
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Dec 12, 2015 175 days
8 England Michael Bisping UFC 199
Inglewood, CA, US 		Jun 4, 2016 518 days

1. def. Dan Henderson at UFC 204 on Oct 8, 2016

— Australia Robert Whittaker
def. Yoel Romero for interim title 		UFC 213
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Jul 8, 2017 —
9 Canada Georges St-Pierre UFC 217
New York City, NY, US 		Nov 4, 2017 33 days
St-Pierre vacated the title on December 7, 2017, due to ulcerative colitis.[30][31]
10 Australia Robert Whittaker
promoted to undisputed champion 		— Dec 7, 2017 660 days
— Nigeria Israel Adesanya
def. Kelvin Gastelum for interim title 		UFC 236
Atlanta, GA, US 		Apr 13, 2019 —
11 Nigeria Israel Adesanya UFC 243
Melbourne, Australia 		Oct 6, 2019 1,134 days

1. def. Yoel Romero at UFC 248 on Mar 7, 2020
2. def. Paulo Costa at UFC 253 on Sep 27, 2020
3. def. Marvin Vettori at UFC 263 on Jun 12, 2021
4. def. Robert Whittaker at UFC 271 on Feb 12, 2022
5. def. Jared Cannonier at UFC 276 on Jul 2, 2022

12 Brazil Alex Pereira UFC 281
New York City, NY, US 		Nov 12, 2022 147 days
13 Nigeria Israel Adesanya (2) UFC 287
Miami, FL, US 		Apr 8, 2023 155 days
(1,289 days)
14 United States Sean Strickland UFC 293
Sydney, Australia 		Sep 10, 2023 467 days

Welterweight Championship

156 to 170 lb (71 to 77 kg)
The Welterweight Championship was known as the Lightweight Championship prior to UFC 31 (May 4, 2001).

No. Name Event Date Reign
(Total)		 Defenses
1 United States Pat Miletich
def. Mikey Burnett 		UFC Brazil
São Paulo, Brazil 		Oct 16, 1998 931 days

1. def. Jorge Patino at UFC 18 on Jan 8, 1999
2. def. André Pederneiras at UFC 21 on Jul 16, 1999
3. def. John Alessio at UFC 26 on Jun 9, 2000
4. def. Kenichi Yamamoto at UFC 29 on Dec 16, 2000

2 Canada Carlos Newton UFC 31
Atlantic City, NJ, US 		May 4, 2001 183 days
3 United States Matt Hughes UFC 34
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Nov 2, 2001 820 days

1. def. Hayato Sakurai at UFC 36 on Mar 22, 2002
2. def. Carlos Newton at UFC 38 on Jul 13, 2002
3. def. Gil Castillo at UFC 40 on Nov 22, 2002
4. def. Sean Sherk at UFC 42 on Apr 25, 2003
5. def. Frank Trigg at UFC 45 on Nov 21, 2003

4 United States B.J. Penn UFC 46
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Jan 31, 2004 107 days
Penn was stripped of the title on May 17, 2004, when he left the UFC for K-1.[32]
5 United States Matt Hughes (2)
def. Georges St-Pierre 		UFC 50
Atlantic City, NJ, US 		Oct 22, 2004 757 days
(1,577 days)

1. def. Frank Trigg at UFC 52 on Apr 16, 2005
2. def. B.J. Penn at UFC 63 on Sep 23, 2006

6 Canada Georges St-Pierre UFC 65
Sacramento, CA, US 		Nov 18, 2006 140 days
7 United States Matt Serra UFC 69
Houston, TX, US 		Apr 7, 2007 378 days
— Canada Georges St-Pierre
def. Matt Hughes for interim title 		UFC 79
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Dec 29, 2007 —
8 Canada Georges St-Pierre (2) UFC 83
Montreal, QC, Canada 		Apr 19, 2008 2,064 days
(2,204 days)

1. def. Jon Fitch at UFC 87 on Aug 9, 2008
2. def. B.J. Penn at UFC 94 on Jan 31, 2009
3. def. Thiago Alves at UFC 100 on Jul 11, 2009
4. def. Dan Hardy at UFC 111 on Mar 27, 2010
5. def. Josh Koscheck at UFC 124 on Dec 11, 2010
6. def. Jake Shields at UFC 129 on Apr 30, 2011
7. def. interim champion Carlos Condit at UFC 154 on Nov 17, 2012
 8. def. Nick Diaz at UFC 158 on Mar 16, 2013
9. def. Johny Hendricks at UFC 167 on Nov 16, 2013

— United States Carlos Condit
def. Nick Diaz for interim title 		UFC 143
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Feb 4, 2012 —
St-Pierre vacated the title on December 13, 2013, when he decided to take time off.[33]
9 United States Johny Hendricks
def. Robbie Lawler 		UFC 171
Dallas, TX, US 		Mar 15, 2014 266 days
10 United States Robbie Lawler UFC 181
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Dec 6, 2014 602 days

1. def. Rory MacDonald at UFC 189 on Jul 11, 2015
2. def. Carlos Condit at UFC 195 on Jan 2, 2016

11 United States Tyron Woodley UFC 201
Atlanta, GA, US 		Jul 30, 2016 945 days

1. drew with Stephen Thompson at UFC 205 on Nov 12, 2016
2. def. Stephen Thompson at UFC 209 on Mar 4, 2017
3. def. Demian Maia at UFC 214 on Jul 29, 2017
4. def. Darren Till at UFC 228 on Sep 8, 2018

— United States Colby Covington
def. Rafael dos Anjos for interim title 		UFC 225
Chicago, IL, US 		Jun 9, 2018 —
Covington was stripped of the interim title on September 8, 2018, due to injury.[34]
12 Nigeria Kamaru Usman UFC 235
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Mar 2, 2019 1,267 days

1. def. Colby Covington at UFC 245 on Dec 14, 2019
2. def. Jorge Masvidal at UFC 251 on Jul 12, 2020
3. def. Gilbert Burns at UFC 258 on Feb 13, 2021
4. def. Jorge Masvidal at UFC 261 on Apr 24, 2021
5. def. Colby Covington at UFC 268 on Nov 6, 2021

13 England Leon Edwards UFC 278
Salt Lake City, UT, US 		Aug 20, 2022 853 days
(incumbent)

1. def. Kamaru Usman at UFC 286 on Mar 18, 2023

Lightweight Championship

146 to 155 lb (66 to 70 kg)
The Lightweight Championship was known as the Bantamweight Championship prior to UFC 31 (May 4, 2001). The Strikeforce Lightweight Championship was unified (perhaps unofficially) with the UFC Lightweight Championship on April 20, 2013, when Benson Henderson defeated Gilbert Melendez at UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Melendez.[35]

No. Name Event Date Reign
(Total)		 Defenses
1 United States Jens Pulver
def. Caol Uno 		UFC 30
Atlantic City, NJ, US 		Feb 23, 2001 393 days

1. def. Dennis Hallman at UFC 33 on Sep 28, 2001
2. def. B.J. Penn at UFC 35 on Jan 11, 2002

Pulver was stripped of the title on March 23, 2002, when he left the UFC due to a contract dispute.[1]
B.J. Penn and Caol Uno fought to a draw on February 28, 2003, at UFC 41 in Atlantic City, NJ, US in the finale of a four-man tournament for the vacant title.[1]
2 United States Sean Sherk
def. Kenny Florian 		UFC 64
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Oct 14, 2006 420 days

1. def. Hermes França at UFC 73 on Jul 7, 2007

Sherk was stripped of the title on December 8, 2007, after testing positive for anabolic steroids in a post-fight drug test.[36]
3 United States B.J. Penn
def. Joe Stevenson 		UFC 80
Newcastle, England, UK 		Jan 19, 2008 812 days

1. def. Sean Sherk at UFC 84 on May 24, 2008
2. def. Kenny Florian at UFC 101 on Aug 8, 2009
3. def. Diego Sanchez at UFC 107 on Dec 12, 2009

4 United States Frankie Edgar UFC 112
Abu Dhabi, UAE 		Apr 10, 2010 687 days

1. def. B.J. Penn at UFC 118 on Aug 28, 2010
2. drew with Gray Maynard at UFC 125 on Jan 1, 2011
3. def. Gray Maynard at UFC 136 on Oct 8, 2011

5 United States Benson Henderson UFC 144
Saitama, Japan 		Feb 26, 2012 552 days

1. def. Frankie Edgar at UFC 150 on Aug 11, 2012
2. def. Nate Diaz at UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Diaz on Dec 8, 2012
3. def. Strikeforce Champion Gilbert Melendez at UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Melendez on Apr 20, 2013

6 United States Anthony Pettis UFC 164
Milwaukee, WI, US 		Aug 31, 2013 560 days

1. def. Gilbert Melendez at UFC 181 on Dec 6, 2014

7 Brazil Rafael dos Anjos UFC 185
Dallas, TX, US 		Mar 14, 2015 481 days

1. def. Donald Cerrone at UFC on Fox: dos Anjos vs. Cowboy 2 on Dec 19, 2015

8 United States Eddie Alvarez UFC Fight Night: dos Anjos vs. Alvarez
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Jul 7, 2016 128 days
9 Republic of Ireland Conor McGregor UFC 205
New York City, NY, US 		Nov 12, 2016 511 days
— United States Tony Ferguson
def. Kevin Lee for interim title 		UFC 216
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Oct 7, 2017 —
Both McGregor and Ferguson were stripped of their titles on April 7, 2018, due to inactivity and injury, respectively.[37]
10 Russia Khabib Nurmagomedov
def. Al Iaquinta 		UFC 223
Brooklyn, NY, US 		Apr 7, 2018 1,077 days

1. def. Conor McGregor at UFC 229 on Oct 6, 2018
2. def. interim champion Dustin Poirier at UFC 242 on Sep 7, 2019
3. def. interim champion Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 on Oct 24, 2020

— United States Dustin Poirier
def. Max Holloway for interim title 		UFC 236
Atlanta, GA, US 		Apr 13, 2019 —
— United States Justin Gaethje
def. Tony Ferguson for interim title 		UFC 249
Jacksonville, FL, US 		May 9, 2020 —
Nurmagomedov announced his retirement on October 24, 2020.[38] The title was officially vacated on March 19, 2021.[39]
11 Brazil Charles Oliveira
def. Michael Chandler 		UFC 262
Houston, TX, US 		May 15, 2021 357 days

1. def. Dustin Poirier at UFC 269 on Dec 11, 2021

Oliveira was stripped of the title on May 7, 2022 after failing to make weight for his title defense against Justin Gaethje at UFC 274.[40]
12 Russia Islam Makhachev
def. Charles Oliveira 		UFC 280
Abu Dhabi, UAE 		Oct 22, 2022 790 days
(incumbent) 		1. def. Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 284 on Feb 12, 2023

Featherweight Championship

136 to 145 lb (61 to 66 kg)
Prior to the UFC-WEC merger, José Aldo was the WEC Featherweight Champion. Aldo was awarded the inaugural UFC Featherweight Championship on November 20, 2010, at UFC 123 in a ceremony prior to the event.[41]

No. Name Event Date Reign
(Total)		 Defenses
1 Brazil José Aldo
promoted to undisputed champion 		UFC 123
Auburn Hills, MI, US 		Nov 20, 2010 1,848 days

1. def. Mark Hominick at UFC 129 on Apr 30, 2011
2. def. Kenny Florian at UFC 136 on Oct 8, 2011
3. def. Chad Mendes at UFC 142 on Jan 14, 2012
4. def. Frankie Edgar at UFC 156 on Feb 2, 2013
5. def. Jung Chan-sung at UFC 163 on Aug 3, 2013
6. def. Ricardo Lamas at UFC 169 on Feb 1, 2014
7. def. Chad Mendes at UFC 179 on Oct 25, 2014

— Republic of Ireland Conor McGregor
def. Chad Mendes for interim title 		UFC 189
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Jul 11, 2015 —
2 Republic of Ireland Conor McGregor UFC 194
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Dec 12, 2015 350 days
— Brazil José Aldo
def. Frankie Edgar for interim title 		UFC 200
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Jul 9, 2016 —
McGregor was stripped of the title on November 26, 2016, 14 days after winning the lightweight title.[42][43]
3 Brazil José Aldo (2)
promoted to undisputed champion 		— Nov 26, 2016 189 days
(2,037 days)
— United States Max Holloway
def. Anthony Pettis for interim title 		UFC 206
Toronto, ON, Canada 		Dec 10, 2016 —
4 United States Max Holloway UFC 212
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 		Jun 3, 2017 925 days

1. def. José Aldo at UFC 218 on Dec 2, 2017
2. def. Brian Ortega at UFC 231 on Dec 8, 2018
3. def. Frankie Edgar at UFC 240 on Jul 27, 2019

5 Australia Alexander Volkanovski UFC 245
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Dec 14, 2019 1833 days
(incumbent)

1. def. Max Holloway at UFC 251 on Jul 12, 2020
2. def. Brian Ortega at UFC 266 on Sep 25, 2021
3. def. Jung Chan-sung at UFC 273 on Apr 9, 2022
4. def. Max Holloway at UFC 276 on Jul 2, 2022
5. def. interim champion Yair Rodríguez at UFC 290 on Jul 8, 2023

— Mexico Yair Rodríguez
def. Josh Emmett for interim title 		UFC 284
Perth, Australia 		Feb 12, 2023 —

Bantamweight Championship

126 to 135 lb (57 to 61 kg)
Prior to UFC-WEC merger, Dominick Cruz was the WEC Bantamweight Champion. At WEC 53, Cruz defeated Scott Jorgensen to retain the WEC Bantamweight Championship and was awarded the inaugural UFC Bantamweight Championship.[44]

No. Name Event Date Reign
(Total)		 Defenses
1 United States Dominick Cruz
def. Scott Jorgensen 		WEC 53
Glendale, AZ, US 		Dec 16, 2010 1,117 days

1. def. Urijah Faber at UFC 132 on Jul 2, 2011
2. def. Demetrious Johnson at UFC Live: Cruz vs. Johnson on Oct 1, 2011

— Brazil Renan Barão
def. Urijah Faber for interim title 		UFC 149
Calgary, AB, Canada 		Jul 21, 2012 —

1. def. Michael McDonald at UFC on Fuel TV: Barão vs. McDonald on Feb 16, 2013
2. def. Eddie Wineland at UFC 165 on Sep 21, 2013

Cruz vacated the title on January 6, 2014, after repeated injuries prevented him from returning to competition to defend his title.[45]
2 Brazil Renan Barão
promoted to undisputed champion 		— Jan 6, 2014 138 days

1. def. Urijah Faber at UFC 169 on Feb 1, 2014

3 United States T.J. Dillashaw UFC 173
Las Vegas, NV, US 		May 24, 2014 603 days

1. def. Joe Soto at UFC 177 on Aug 30, 2014
2. def. Renan Barão at UFC on Fox: Dillashaw vs. Barão 2 on Jul 25, 2015

4 United States Dominick Cruz (2) UFC Fight Night: Dillashaw vs. Cruz
Boston, MA, US 		Jan 17, 2016 348 days
(1,465 days)

1. def. Urijah Faber at UFC 199 on Jun 4, 2016

5 United States Cody Garbrandt UFC 207
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Dec 30, 2016 309 days
6 United States T.J. Dillashaw (2) UFC 217
New York City, NY, US 		Nov 4, 2017 501 days
(1,104 days)

1. def. Cody Garbrandt at UFC 227 on Aug 4, 2018

Dillashaw vacated the title on March 20, 2019, due to a failed drug test.[46]
7 United States Henry Cejudo
def. Marlon Moraes 		UFC 238
Chicago, IL, US 		Jun 8, 2019 352 days

1. def. Dominick Cruz at UFC 249 on May 9, 2020

Cejudo announced his retirement on May 9, 2020. The title was officially vacated on May 24, 2020.[47]
8 Russia Petr Yan
def. José Aldo 		UFC 251
Abu Dhabi, UAE 		Jul 12, 2020 237 days
9 United States Aljamain Sterling UFC 259
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Mar 6, 2021 896 days

1. def. interim champion Petr Yan at UFC 273 on Apr 9, 2022
2. def. T.J. Dillashaw at UFC 280 on Oct 22, 2022
3. def. Henry Cejudo at UFC 288 on May 6, 2023

— Russia Petr Yan
def. Cory Sandhagen for interim title 		UFC 267
Abu Dhabi, UAE 		Oct 30, 2021 —
10 United States Sean O'Malley UFC 292
Boston, MA, US 		Aug 19, 2023 489 days
(incumbent)

Flyweight Championship

116 to 125 lb (53 to 57 kg)
Demetrious Johnson defeated Joseph Benavidez on September 22, 2012, at UFC 152 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in the finale of a four-man tournament for the inaugural title.[48]

No. Name Event Date Reign
(Total)		 Defenses
1 United States Demetrious Johnson
def. Joseph Benavidez 		UFC 152
Toronto, ON, Canada 		Sep 22, 2012 2,142 days

1. def. John Dodson at UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Dodson on Jan 26, 2013
2. def. John Moraga at UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Moraga on Jul 27, 2013
3. def. Joseph Benavidez at UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Benavidez 2 on Dec 14, 2013
4. def. Ali Bagautinov at UFC 174 on June 14, 2014
5. def. Chris Cariaso at UFC 178 on Sep 27, 2014
6. def. Kyoji Horiguchi at UFC 186 on Apr 25, 2015
7. def. John Dodson at UFC 191 on Sep 5, 2015
8. def. Henry Cejudo at UFC 197 on Apr 23, 2016
9. def. Tim Elliott at The Ultimate Fighter: Tournament of Champions Finale on Dec 3, 2016
10. def. Wilson Reis at UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Reis on Apr 15, 2017
11. def. Ray Borg at UFC 216 on Oct 7, 2017

2 United States Henry Cejudo UFC 227
Los Angeles, CA, US 		Aug 4, 2018 574 days 1. def. T.J. Dillashaw at UFC Fight Night: Cejudo vs. Dillashaw on Jan 19, 2019
Cejudo announced on December 20, 2019, that he would vacate his title to focus on defending the bantamweight title. It was officially vacated on February 29, 2020.[49]
3 Brazil Deiveson Figueiredo
def. Joseph Benavidez 		UFC Fight Night: Figueiredo vs. Benavidez 2
Abu Dhabi, UAE 		Jul 19, 2020 328 days

1. def. Alex Perez at UFC 255 on Nov 21, 2020
2. drew with Brandon Moreno at UFC 256 on Dec 12, 2020

4 Mexico Brandon Moreno UFC 263
Glendale, AZ, US 		Jun 12, 2021 223 days
5 Brazil Deiveson Figueiredo (2) UFC 270
Anaheim, CA, US 		Jan 22, 2022 364 days
(692 days)
— Mexico Brandon Moreno
def. Kai Kara-France for interim title 		UFC 277
Dallas, TX, US 		Jul 30, 2022 —
6 Mexico Brandon Moreno (2) UFC 283
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 		Jan 21, 2023 168 days
(391 days)
7 Brazil Alexandre Pantoja UFC 290
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Jul 8, 2023 531 days
(incumbent)

Women's championship history

Women's Featherweight Championship

136 to 145 lb (62 to 66 kg)
The inaugural title was contested on February 11, 2017, in Brooklyn, NY, US at UFC 208.[50]

No. Name Event Date Reign Defenses
1 Netherlands Germaine de Randamie
def. Holly Holm 		UFC 208
Brooklyn, NY, US 		Feb 11, 2017 128 days
de Randamie was stripped of the title on June 19, 2017, after she refused to defend the title against Cris Cyborg.[51]
2 Brazil Cris Cyborg
def. Tonya Evinger 		UFC 214
Anaheim, CA, US 		Jul 29, 2017 517 days

1. def. Holly Holm at UFC 219 on Dec 30, 2017
2. def. Yana Kunitskaya at UFC 222 on Mar 3, 2018

3 Brazil Amanda Nunes UFC 232
Inglewood, CA, US 		Dec 29, 2018 1,634 days

1. def. Felicia Spencer at UFC 250 on Jun 6, 2020
2. def. Megan Anderson at UFC 259 on Mar 6, 2021

Nunes announced her retirement on June 10, 2023.[52] The title was officially vacated on June 20, 2023.

Women's Bantamweight Championship

126 to 135 lb (57 to 61 kg)
Prior to its folding and absorption by the UFC, Ronda Rousey was the Strikeforce Women's Bantamweight Champion. Rousey was awarded the inaugural UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship on December 6, 2012, at a UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Diaz pre-event press conference.[53]

No. Name Event Date Reign Defenses
1 United States Ronda Rousey
promoted to undisputed champion 		UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Diaz
Seattle, WA, US 		Dec 6, 2012 1,074 days

1. def. Liz Carmouche at UFC 157 on Feb 23, 2013
2. def. Miesha Tate at UFC 168 on Dec 28, 2013
3. def. Sara McMann at UFC 170 on Feb 22, 2014
4. def. Alexis Davis at UFC 175 on Jul 5, 2014
5. def. Cat Zingano at UFC 184 on Feb 28, 2015
6. def. Bethe Correia at UFC 190 on Aug 1, 2015

2 United States Holly Holm UFC 193
Melbourne, Australia 		Nov 15, 2015 111 days
3 United States Miesha Tate UFC 196
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Mar 5, 2016 126 days
4 Brazil Amanda Nunes UFC 200
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Jul 9, 2016 1,981 days

1. def. Ronda Rousey at UFC 207 on Dec 30, 2016
2. def. Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 215 on Sep 9, 2017
3. def. Raquel Pennington at UFC 224 on May 12, 2018
4. def. Holly Holm at UFC 239 on Jul 6, 2019
5. def. Germaine de Randamie at UFC 245 on Dec 14, 2019

5 United States Julianna Peña UFC 269
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Dec 11, 2021 232 days
6 Brazil Amanda Nunes (2) UFC 277
Dallas, TX, US 		Jul 30, 2022 325 days
(2,306 days) 		1. def. Irene Aldana at UFC 289 on Jun 10, 2023
Nunes announced her retirement on June 10, 2023.[52] The title was officially vacated on June 20, 2023.

Women's Flyweight Championship

116 to 125 lb (53 to 57 kg)
The inaugural title was contested on December 1, 2017, in Las Vegas, NV, US at The Ultimate Fighter: A New World Champion Finale. The inaugural title fight was between two fighters who appeared on the 26th season of The Ultimate Fighter.

No. Name Event Date Reign Defenses
1 United States Nicco Montaño
def. Roxanne Modafferi 		The Ultimate Fighter: A New World Champion Finale
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Dec 1, 2017 280 days
Montaño was stripped of the title on September 7, 2018, after she was forced to withdraw from her title defense at UFC 228 due to weight cut issues.[54]
2 Kyrgyzstan Valentina Shevchenko
def. Joanna Jędrzejczyk 		UFC 231
Toronto, ON, Canada 		Dec 8, 2018 1,547 days

1. def. Jessica Eye at UFC 238 on Jun 8, 2019
2. def. Liz Carmouche at UFC Fight Night: Shevchenko vs. Carmouche 2 on Aug 10, 2019
3. def. Katlyn Chookagian at UFC 247 on Feb 8, 2020
4. def. Jennifer Maia at UFC 255 on Nov 21, 2020
5. def. Jéssica Andrade at UFC 261 on Apr 24, 2021
6. def. Lauren Murphy at UFC 266 on Sep 25, 2021
7. def. Taila Santos at UFC 275 on Jun 12, 2022

3 Mexico Alexa Grasso UFC 285
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Mar 4, 2023 657 days
(incumbent)

Women's Strawweight Championship

106 to 115 lb (48 to 52 kg)
Previously the Invicta FC Strawweight Champion, Carla Esparza defeated Rose Namajunas for the inaugural title on December 12, 2014, in the tournament finale of The Ultimate Fighter: A Champion Will Be Crowned.[11]

No. Name Event Date Reign Defenses
1 United States Carla Esparza
def. Rose Namajunas 		The Ultimate Fighter: A Champion Will Be Crowned Finale
Las Vegas, NV, US 		Dec 12, 2014 92 days
2 Poland Joanna Jędrzejczyk UFC 185
Dallas, TX, US 		Mar 14, 2015 966 days

1. def. Jessica Penne at UFC Fight Night: Jędrzejczyk vs. Penne on Jun 20, 2015
2. def. Valérie Létourneau at UFC 193 on Nov 15, 2015
3. def. Cláudia Gadelha at The Ultimate Fighter: Team Joanna vs. Team Cláudia Finale on Jul 8, 2016
4. def. Karolina Kowalkiewicz at UFC 205 on Nov 12, 2016
5. def. Jéssica Andrade at UFC 211 on May 13, 2017

3 United States Rose Namajunas UFC 217
New York City, NY, US 		Nov 4, 2017 554 days

1. def. Joanna Jędrzejczyk at UFC 223 on Apr 7, 2018

4 Brazil Jéssica Andrade UFC 237
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 		May 11, 2019 112 days
5 China Zhang Weili UFC Fight Night: Andrade vs. Zhang
Shenzhen, China 		Aug 31, 2019 603 days

1. def. Joanna Jędrzejczyk at UFC 248 on Mar 7, 2020

6 United States Rose Namajunas (2) UFC 261
Jacksonville, FL, US 		Apr 24, 2021 378 days
(932 days)

1. def. Zhang Weili at UFC 268 on Nov 6, 2021

7 United States Carla Esparza (2) UFC 274
Phoenix, AZ, US 		May 7, 2022 190 days
(282 days)
8 China Zhang Weili (2) UFC 281
New York City, NY, US 		Nov 12, 2022 769 days
(incumbent)

1. def. Amanda Lemos at UFC 292 on Aug 19, 2023

Defunct title

Superfight Championship

The openweight title used before the introduction of weight classes in 1997. It was designed to create a reigning UFC champion for the UFC tournament winners to challenge.[55]

No. Name Event Date Reign Defenses
Ken Shamrock and Royce Gracie fought to a draw on April 7, 1995, at UFC 5 in Charlotte, NC, US for the inaugural Superfight title.[1]
1 United States Ken Shamrock
def. Dan Severn 		UFC 6
Casper, WY, US 		Jul 14, 1995 308 days

1. drew with Oleg Taktarov at UFC 7 on Sep 8, 1995
 2. def. Kimo Leopoldo at UFC 8 on Feb 16, 1996

2 United States Dan Severn UFC 9
Detroit, MI, US 		May 17, 1996 266 days
Mark Coleman defeated Severn on February 7, 1997, at UFC 12 in Dothan, AL, US. This bout unified the UFC Superfight Championship with the UFC 11 Tournament Championship to determine the inaugural UFC Heavyweight Champion.[4]

Tournament winners

Event Date Division Winner Runner-up
UFC 1 Nov 12, 1993 Openweight Brazil Royce Gracie Netherlands Gerard Gordeau
UFC 2 Mar 11, 1994 Openweight Brazil Royce Gracie (2) United States Patrick Smith
UFC 3 Sep 9, 1994 Openweight United States Steve Jennum Canada Harold Howard
UFC 4 Dec 16, 1994 Openweight Brazil Royce Gracie (3) United States Dan Severn
UFC 5 Apr 7, 1995 Openweight United States Dan Severn Canada Dave Beneteau
UFC 6 Jul 14, 1995 Openweight Russia Oleg Taktarov United States Tank Abbott
UFC 7 Sep 8, 1995 Openweight Brazil Marco Ruas United States Paul Varelans
The Ultimate Ultimate Dec 16, 1995 Openweight United States Dan Severn (2) Russia Oleg Taktarov
UFC 8 Feb 16, 1996 Openweight United States Don Frye Trinidad and Tobago Gary Goodridge
UFC 10 Jul 12, 1996 Openweight United States Mark Coleman United States Don Frye
UFC 11 Sep 20, 1996 Openweight United States Mark Coleman (2) United States Scott Ferrozzo
The Ultimate Ultimate 2 Dec 7, 1996 Openweight United States Don Frye (2) United States Tank Abbott
UFC 12 Feb 7, 1997 Heavyweight Brazil Vitor Belfort United States Scott Ferrozzo
Light Heavyweight United States Jerry Bohlander United States Nick Sanzo
UFC 13 May 30, 1997 Heavyweight United States Randy Couture United States Steven Graham
LightHeavyweight United States Guy Mezger United States Tito Ortiz
UFC 14 Jul 27, 1997 Heavyweight United States Mark Kerr United States Dan Bobish
LightHeavyweight United States Kevin Jackson United States Tony Fryklund
UFC 15 Oct 17, 1997 Heavyweight United States Mark Kerr (2) United States Dwayne Cason
Ultimate Japan Dec 21, 1997 Heavyweight Japan Kazushi Sakuraba Brazil Marcus Silveira
UFC 16 Mar 13, 1998 Welterweight United States Pat Miletich United States Chris Brennan
UFC 17 May 15, 1998 Middleweight United States Dan Henderson Canada Carlos Newton
UFC 23 Nov 19, 1999 Middleweight Japan Kenichi Yamamoto Japan Katsuhisa Fujii
UFC 39
UFC 41 		Feb 28, 2003 Lightweight B.J. Penn drew with Caol Uno in the finale of the 4-man tournament.
UFC on FX 2
UFC on FX 3
UFC 152 		Sep 22, 2012 Flyweight United States Demetrious Johnson United States Joseph Benavidez

The Ultimate Fighter

The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) is a reality television series and mixed martial arts competition produced by the UFC. The show features professional fighters living together and competing against one another in a tournament for a contract with the UFC.

Season Finale Division Winner Runner-up
TUF 1: Team Couture vs. Team Liddell Apr 9, 2005 Light Heavyweight United States Forrest Griffin United States Stephan Bonnar
Middleweight United States Diego Sanchez United States Kenny Florian
TUF 2: Team Hughes vs. Team Franklin Nov 5, 2005 Heavyweight United States Rashad Evans United States Brad Imes
Welterweight United States Joe Stevenson United States Luke Cummo
TUF 3: Team Ortiz vs. Team Shamrock Jun 24, 2006 Middleweight United States Kendall Grove United States Ed Herman
Light Heavyweight England Michael Bisping United States Josh Haynes
TUF 4: The Comeback Nov 11, 2006 Middleweight United States Travis Lutter Canada Patrick Côté
Welterweight United States Matt Serra United States Chris Lytle
TUF 5: Team Pulver vs. Team Penn Jun 23, 2007 Lightweight United States Nate Diaz Armenia Manny Gamburyan
TUF 6: Team Hughes vs. Team Serra Dec 8, 2007 Welterweight United States Mac Danzig United States Tom Speer
TUF 7: Team Rampage vs. Team Forrest Jun 21, 2008 Middleweight United States Amir Sadollah United States C. B. Dollaway
TUF 8: Team Nogueira vs. Team Mir Dec 13, 2008 Light Heavyweight United States Ryan Bader Brazil Vinny Magalhães
Lightweight Mexico Efrain Escudero United States Phillipe Nover
TUF 9: United States vs. United Kingdom Jun 20, 2009 Lightweight England Ross Pearson Grenada Andre Winner
Welterweight England James Wilks United States DaMarques Johnson
TUF 10: Heavyweights Dec 5, 2009 Heavyweight United States Roy Nelson United States Brendan Schaub
TUF 11: Team Liddell vs. Team Ortiz Jun 19, 2010 Middleweight United States Court McGee United States Kris McCray
TUF 12: Team GSP vs. Team Koscheck Dec 4, 2010 Lightweight United States Jonathan Brookins United States Michael Johnson
TUF 13: Team Lesnar vs. Team dos Santos Jun 4, 2011 Welterweight United States Tony Ferguson United States Ramsey Nijem
TUF 14: Team Bisping vs. Team Miller Dec 3, 2011 Bantamweight United States John Dodson United States T.J. Dillashaw
Featherweight Brazil Diego Brandão United States Dennis Bermudez
TUF 15: Live Jun 1, 2012 Lightweight United States Michael Chiesa United States Al Iaquinta
TUF: Brazil Jun 23, 2012 Featherweight Brazil Rony Jason Brazil Godofredo Pepey
Middleweight Brazil Cezar Ferreira Brazil Sérgio Moraes
TUF 16: Team Carwin vs. Team Nelson Dec 15, 2012 Welterweight United States Colton Smith Canada Mike Ricci
TUF: The Smashes Dec 15, 2012 Lightweight Northern Ireland Norman Parke England Colin Fletcher
Welterweight Australia Robert Whittaker England Brad Scott
TUF 17: Team Jones vs. Team Sonnen Apr 13, 2013 Middleweight United States Kelvin Gastelum Jamaica Uriah Hall
TUF: Brazil 2 Jun 8, 2013 Welterweight Brazil Leonardo Santos Brazil William Macario
TUF 18: Team Rousey vs. Team Tate Nov 30, 2013 Bantamweight United States Chris Holdsworth England Davey Grant
Women's Bantamweight United States Julianna Peña Canada Jessica Rakoczy
TUF: China Mar 1, 2014 Welterweight China Zhang Lipeng China Wang Sai
Ago 23, 2014 Featherweight China Ning Guangyou China Yang Jianping
TUF Nations: Canada vs. Australia Apr 16, 2014 Welterweight Canada Chad Laprise Canada Olivier Aubin-Mercier
Middleweight Canada Elias Theodorou Canada Sheldon Westcott
TUF: Brazil 3 May 31, 2014 Middleweight Brazil Warlley Alves Brazil Márcio Alexandre Júnior
Heavyweight Brazil Antônio Carlos Júnior Brazil Vitor Miranda
TUF 19: Team Edgar vs. Team Penn Jul 6, 2014 Middleweight Jamaica Eddie Gordon Brazil Dhiego Lima
Light Heavyweight United States Corey Anderson United States Matt Van Buren
TUF: Latin America Nov 15, 2014 Bantamweight Mexico Alejandro Pérez Mexico José Alberto Quiñónez
Featherweight Mexico Yair Rodríguez Nicaragua Leonardo Morales
TUF 20: A Champion Will Be Crowned Dec 12, 2014 Women's Strawweight United States Carla Esparza United States Rose Namajunas
TUF 21: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians Jul 12, 2015 Welterweight Nigeria Kamaru Usman United States Hayder Hassan
TUF: Brazil 4 Aug 1, 2015 Bantamweight Brazil Reginaldo Vieira Brazil Dileno Lopes
Lightweight Brazil Glaico França Brazil Fernando Bruno
TUF: Latin America 2 Nov 21, 2015 Lightweight Peru Enrique Barzola Mexico Horacio Gutiérrez
Welterweight Mexico Erick Montaño Spain Enrique Marín
TUF 22: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber Dec 11, 2015 Lightweight United States Ryan Hall Russia Artem Lobov
TUF 23: Team Joanna vs. Team Cláudia Jul 8, 2016 Women's Strawweight United States Tatiana Suarez United States Amanda Cooper
Light Heavyweight United States Andrew Sanchez United States Khalil Rountree Jr.
TUF: Latin America 3 Nov 5, 2016 Lightweight Mexico Martin Bravo Peru Claudio Puelles
TUF 24: Tournament of Champions Dec 3, 2016 Flyweight United States Tim Elliott Japan Hiromasa Ogikubo
TUF 25: Redemption Jul 7, 2017 Welterweight United States Jesse Taylor Brazil Dhiego Lima
TUF 26: A New World Champion Dec 1, 2017 Women's Flyweight United States Nicco Montaño United States Roxanne Modafferi
TUF 27: Undefeated Jul 6, 2018 Featherweight Canada Brad Katona England Jay Cucciniello
Lightweight United States Michael Trizano United States Joe Giannetti
TUF 28: Heavy Hitters Nov 30, 2018 Heavyweight Spain Juan Espino United States Justin Frazier
Women's Featherweight United States Macy Chiasson Sweden Pannie Kianzad
TUF 29: Team Volkanovski vs. Team Ortega Aug 28, 2021 Bantamweight United States Ricky Turcios United States Brady Hiestand
Middleweight United States Bryan Battle United States Gilbert Urbina
TUF 30: Team Peña vs. Team Nunes Aug 6, 2022 Heavyweight Nigeria Mohammed Usman United States Zac Pauga
Women's Flyweight United States Juliana Miller United States Brogan Walker-Sanchez
TUF 31: Team McGregor vs. Team Chandler Aug 19, 2023 Bantamweight Canada Brad Katona United States Cody Gibson
Lightweight United States Kurt Holobaugh United States Austin Hubbard

Champions by nationality

Division champions are the primary separation criteria due to being non-closed competition. It includes title holders and interim title holders. Interim champions who become undisputed champions are listed only once. People with multiple title reigns will have each of them counted. Tournament wins are secondary due to many tournaments being country-specific and thus not generally a national achievement to win. Runners-up and TUF runners-up are not included.

Country Division
champions		 Tournament
champions		 Total
United States United States 78 16 94
Brazil Brazil 23 5 28
Russia Russia 4 1 5
Canada Canada 4 - 4
Mexico Mexico 4 - 4
Nigeria Nigeria 3 - 3
England England 2 - 2
China China 2 - 2
Australia Australia 2 - 2
Republic of Ireland Ireland 2 - 2
Netherlands Netherlands 2 - 2
Poland Poland 2 - 2
Belarus Belarus 1 - 1
Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan 1 - 1
Cameroon Cameroon 1 - 1
France France 1 - 1
Czech Republic Czech Republic 1 - 1
Japan Japan - 2 2

TUF winners by nationality

Country TUF
winners
United States United States 35
Brazil Brazil 8
Mexico Mexico 5
Canada Canada 4
England England 3
China China 2
Nigeria Nigeria 2
Australia Australia 1
Jamaica Jamaica 1
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland 1
Peru Peru 1
Spain Spain 1

Most wins in title bouts

Fighters with four or more championship and/or interim championship title wins.[56] Fighters with the same number of title wins are arranged in order of most title fights. Tournament championships and TUF winners are not included.

Title wins Champion Division W L D NC
15 United States Jon Jones Heavyweight
Light Heavyweight		 1
14		 0
0		 0
1
13 Canada Georges St-Pierre Middleweight
Welterweight		 1
12		 0
2
12 United States Demetrious Johnson Bantamweight
Flyweight		 0
12		 1
1
11 Brazil Anderson Silva Middleweight 11 2
Brazil Amanda Nunes Women's Featherweight
Women's Bantamweight		 3
8		 0
1
9 United States Randy Couture Heavyweight
Light Heavyweight		 6
3		 3
3
United States Matt Hughes Welterweight 9 3
8 Brazil José Aldo Featherweight
Bantamweight		 8
0		 3
1
Kyrgyzstan Valentina Shevchenko Women's Bantamweight
Women's Flyweight		 0
8		 1
1
Nigeria Israel Adesanya Light Heavyweight
Middleweight		 0
8		 1
2
6 Poland Joanna Jędrzejczyk Women's Flyweight
Women's Strawweight		 0
6		 1
3
United States Daniel Cormier Heavyweight
Light Heavyweight		 2
4		 2
1		 0
1
United States Tito Ortiz Light Heavyweight 6 3
United States Ronda Rousey Women's Bantamweight 6 2
United States Stipe Miocic Heavyweight 6 2
Nigeria Kamaru Usman Welterweight 6 2
Australia Alexander Volkanovski Lightweight
Featherweight		 0
6		 1
0
5 United States B.J. Penn Welterweight
Lightweight		 1
4		 2
3		 0
1
United States Tim Sylvia Heavyweight 5 4
United States Max Holloway Lightweight
Featherweight		 0
5		 1
3
United States T.J. Dillashaw Bantamweight
Flyweight		 5
0		 2
1
United States Chuck Liddell Light Heavyweight 5 2
United States Dominick Cruz Bantamweight 5 2
United States Pat Miletich Welterweight 5 1
United States Frank Shamrock Light Heavyweight 5 0
4 United States Rose Namajunas Women's Strawweight 4 3
United States Cain Velasquez Heavyweight 4 2
Brazil Renan Barão Bantamweight 4 2
United States Tyron Woodley Welterweight 4 1 1
United States Henry Cejudo Bantamweight
Flyweight		 2
2		 1
1
China Zhang Weili Women's Strawweight 4 2
United States Benson Henderson Lightweight 4 1
United States Chris Weidman Middleweight 4 1
United States Aljamain Sterling Bantamweight 4 1
Russia Khabib Nurmagomedov Lightweight 4 0

Most consecutive title defenses

The following includes all UFC champions who were able to consecutively defend their title three times or more. Fighters with the same number of title defenses are listed chronologically.[57]

Defenses Champion Division Period
11 United States Demetrious Johnson Flyweight Sep 22, 2012 — Aug 4, 2018
10 Brazil Anderson Silva Middleweight Oct 14, 2006 — Jul 6, 2013
9 Canada Georges St-Pierre Welterweight Apr 19, 2008 — Dec 13, 2013
8 United States Jon Jones Light Heavyweight Mar 19, 2011 — Apr 28, 2015
7 Brazil José Aldo Featherweight Nov 20, 2010 — Dec 12, 2015
Kyrgyzstan Valentina Shevchenko Women's Flyweight Dec 8, 2018 — Mar 4, 2023
6 United States Ronda Rousey Women's Bantamweight Dec 6, 2012 — Nov 15, 2015
5 United States Tito Ortiz Light Heavyweight Apr 14, 2000 — Sep 26, 2003
United States Matt Hughes Welterweight Nov 2, 2001 — Jan 31, 2004
Poland Joanna Jędrzejczyk Women's Strawweight Mar 14, 2015 — Nov 4, 2017
Brazil Amanda Nunes Women's Bantamweight Jul 9, 2016 — Dec 11, 2021
Nigeria Kamaru Usman Welterweight Mar 2, 2019 — Aug 20, 2022
Nigeria Israel Adesanya Middleweight Oct 6, 2019 — Nov 12, 2022
Australia Alexander Volkanovski Featherweight Dec 14, 2019 — present
4 United States Frank Shamrock Light Heavyweight Dec 21, 1997 — Nov 24, 1999
United States Pat Miletich Welterweight Oct 16, 1998 — May 4, 2001
United States Chuck Liddell Light Heavyweight Apr 16, 2005 — May 26, 2007
United States Tyron Woodley[a] Welterweight Jul 30, 2016 — Mar 2, 2019
3 United States B.J. Penn Lightweight Jan 19, 2008 — Apr 10, 2010
United States Frankie Edgar[b] Lightweight Apr 10, 2010 — Feb 26, 2012
United States Benson Henderson Lightweight Feb 26, 2012 — Aug 31, 2013
Brazil Renan Barão[c] Bantamweight Jul 21, 2012 — May 24, 2014
United States Chris Weidman Middleweight Jul 6, 2013 — Dec 12, 2015
United States Daniel Cormier[d] Light Heavyweight May 23, 2015 — Dec 28, 2018
United States Stipe Miocic Heavyweight May 14, 2016 — Jul 7, 2018
United States Max Holloway Featherweight Jun 3, 2017 — Dec 14, 2019
United States Jon Jones Light Heavyweight Dec 29, 2018 — Aug 17, 2020
Russia Khabib Nurmagomedov Lightweight Apr 7, 2018 — Mar 19, 2021
United States Aljamain Sterling Bantamweight Mar 6, 2021 — Aug 19, 2023
  • Bold — Incumbent champion.
  1. ^ Woodley successfully defended the UFC Welterweight Championship three times and retained the title once following a draw against Stephen Thompson at UFC 205.
  2. ^ Edgar successfully defended the UFC Lightweight Championship twice and retained the title once following a draw against Gray Maynard at UFC 125.
  3. ^ Barão successfully defended the interim UFC Bantamweight Championship twice before being promoted to undisputed champion and defending his title once more.
  4. ^ Cormier lost to Jon Jones attempting his 3rd consecutive defense. However, Jones' win was later overturned to a no-contest due to a failed pre-fight drug test. Cormier was later reinstated as champion and made his 3rd successful title defense at UFC 220.

Longest reigning champions

The following is a list of the ten longest reigning UFC champions.

Longest individual reigns

Name Title Reign Weight class Successful defenses
1 Brazil Anderson Silva 2,457 days MW 10
2 United States Demetrious Johnson 2,142 days FLW 11
3 Canada Georges St-Pierre 2,064 days WW 9
4 Brazil Amanda Nunes 1,981 days W-BW 5
5 Brazil José Aldo 1,848 days FTW 7
6 Brazil Amanda Nunes 1,634 days W-FTW 2
7 Kyrgyzstan Valentina Shevchenko 1,547 days W-FLW 7
8 United States Jon Jones 1,501 days LHW 8
9 Australia Alexander Volkanovski 1,833 days FTW 5
10 United States Daniel Cormier 1,315 days LHW 3

Longest combined reigns

Name Days as champion Reigns Weight class Cumulative title defenses
1 Brazil Amanda Nunes 3,940 days 3 W-BW, W-FTW 8
2 Brazil Anderson Silva 2,457 days 1 MW 10
3 United States Jon Jones 2,755 days 3 LHW, HW 11
4 Canada Georges St-Pierre 2,237 days 3 WW, MW 9
5 United States Demetrious Johnson 2,142 days 1 FLW 11
6 Brazil José Aldo 2,037 days 2 FTW 7
7 United States Daniel Cormier 1,722 days 2 LHW, HW 4
8 United States Matt Hughes 1,577 days 2 WW 7
9 Kyrgyzstan Valentina Shevchenko 1,547 days 1 W-FLW 7
10 United States Randy Couture 1,478 days 5 HW, LHW 3
  • Bold — Incumbent champion.

Multi-division champions

Fighters who have won championships in multiple weight classes.[58] Tournament championships and TUF winners are not included.

Randy Couture is notably the first champion to hold belts in two different divisions, and one of the few to reclaim a title after being defeated. Conor McGregor was the first fighter to hold multiple titles simultaneously.

Interim
Champion Division Won Lost Defenses Reign Total reign
1 United States Randy Couture Heavyweight Dec 21, 1997 (UFC Japan) Jan ?, 1998 (stripped) 0 00? days 1,478 + ? days
Nov 17, 2000 (UFC 28) Mar 22, 2002 (UFC 36) 2 490 days
Mar 3, 2007 (UFC 68) Nov 15, 2008 (UFC 91) 1 623 days
Light Heavyweight Jun 6, 2003 (UFC 43) Sep 26, 2003 (UFC 44) 0 -
Sep 26, 2003 (UFC 44) Jan 31, 2004 (UFC 46) 0 127 days
Aug 21, 2004 (UFC 49) Apr 16, 2005 (UFC 52) 0 238 days
2 United States B.J. Penn Welterweight Jan 31, 2004 (UFC 46) May 17, 2004 (stripped) 0 107 days 919 days
Lightweight Jan 19, 2008 (UFC 80) Apr 10, 2010 (UFC 112) 3 812 days
3 Republic of Ireland Conor McGregor Featherweight Jul 11, 2015 (UFC 189) Dec 12, 2015 (UFC 194) 0 - 861 days
Dec 12, 2015 (UFC 194) Nov 26, 2016 (stripped) 0 350 days
Lightweight Nov 12, 2016 (UFC 205) Apr 7, 2018 (stripped) 0 511 days
4 Canada Georges St-Pierre Welterweight Nov 18, 2006 (UFC 65) Apr 7, 2007 (UFC 69) 0 140 days 2,237 days
Dec 29, 2007 (UFC 79) Apr 19, 2008 (UFC 83) 0 -
Apr 19, 2008 (UFC 83) Dec 13, 2013 (vacated) 9 2,064 days
Middleweight Nov 4, 2017 (UFC 217) Dec 7, 2017 (vacated) 0 33 days
5 United States Daniel Cormier Light Heavyweight May 23, 2015 (UFC 187) Dec 28, 2018 (vacated) 3 1,315 days 1,722 days
Heavyweight Jul 7, 2018 (UFC 226) Aug 17, 2019 (UFC 241) 1 407 days
6 Brazil Amanda Nunes Women's Bantamweight Jul 9, 2016 (UFC 200) Dec 11, 2021 (UFC 269) 5 1,981 days 3,940 days
Jul 30, 2022 (UFC 277) Jun 20, 2023 (vacated) 1 325 days
Women's Featherweight Dec 29, 2018 (UFC 232) Jun 20, 2023 (vacated) 2 1,634 days
7 United States Henry Cejudo Flyweight Aug 4, 2018 (UFC 227) Feb 29, 2020 (vacated) 1 574 days 926 days
Bantamweight Jun 8, 2019 (UFC 238) May 24, 2020 (vacated) 1 352 days
8 United States Jon Jones Light Heavyweight Mar 19, 2011 (UFC 128) Apr 28, 2015 (stripped) 8 1,501 days 2,755 days
Apr 23, 2016 (UFC 197) Nov 19, 2016 (stripped) 0 -
Dec 29, 2018 (UFC 232) Aug 17, 2020 (vacated) 3 597 days
Heavyweight Mar 4, 2023 (UFC 285) Incumbent 0 657 days

Simultaneous two division champions

  • Note: Defenses shown are while champion was a two division champion.
Champion Division Period Defenses Reign
1 Republic of Ireland Conor McGregor Featherweight Nov 12, 2016 – Nov 26, 2016 0 14 days
Lightweight 0
2 United States Daniel Cormier Light Heavyweight Jul 7, 2018 – Dec 28, 2018 0 174 days
Heavyweight 1
3 Brazil Amanda Nunes Women's Bantamweight Dec 29, 2018 – Dec 11, 2021 2 1,078 days
Women's Featherweight 2
4 United States Henry Cejudo Flyweight Jun 8, 2019 – Feb 29, 2020 0 266 days
Bantamweight 1
5 Brazil Amanda Nunes (2) Women's Featherweight Jul 30, 2022 – Jun 20, 2023 0 325 days
Women's Bantamweight 1
  • Bold - Active reigns.

Missed weight title fights

There have been multiple instances in UFC history where a fighter misses the required weight limit for a championship fight. The following fights were originally scheduled and advertised as title fights, with the contenders earning a title shot, but due to a fighter missing weight these fights took place, only one fighter was eligible for the title, or the fight was changed to a non-title fight.

Event Date Championship Result Notes
UFC 56 Nov 19, 2005 Welterweight Matt Hughes (c) (170 lb) def. Joe Riggs (172.5 lb) Fight changed to non-title contest
UFC 67 Feb 3, 2007 Middleweight Anderson Silva (c) (185 lb) def. Travis Lutter (187 lb) Fight changed to non-title contest
UFC 206 Dec 10, 2016 Interim Featherweight Max Holloway (145 lb) def. Anthony Pettis (148 lb) Only Holloway was eligible to win title
UFC 221 Feb 11, 2018 Interim Middleweight Yoel Romero (187.7 lb) def. Luke Rockhold (185 lb) Only Rockhold was eligible to win title
UFC 225 Jun 9, 2018 Middleweight Robert Whittaker (c) (185 lb) def. Yoel Romero (185.2 lb) Fight changed to non-title contest
UFC Fight Night: Benavidez vs. Figueiredo Feb 29, 2020 Flyweight Deiveson Figueiredo (127.5 lb) def. Joseph Benavidez (124.5 lb) Only Benavidez was eligible to win title
UFC 274 May 7, 2022 Lightweight Charles Oliveira (c) (155.5 lb) def. Justin Gaethje (155 lb) Oliveira was stripped of the title, only Gaethje was eligible to win title

See also

References

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  2. ^ Plotz, David (November 7, 1999). "Fight Clubbed". Slate. Retrieved March 21, 2007.
  3. ^ Gentry III, Clyde (2003). No Holds Barred: Ultimate Fighting and the Martial Arts Revolution (Paperback ed.). Milo Books. pp. 106, 123. ISBN 978-1-903854-30-3.
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