List of UFC champions

(Redirected from UFC Heavyweight Champion)

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

DivisionChampionSinceDefenses
Heavyweight Jon JonesMar 4, 20230
Tom Aspinall (interim)Nov 11, 20230
Light Heavyweight Alex PereiraNov 11, 20231
Middleweight Dricus du PlessisJan 20, 20240
Welterweight Leon EdwardsAug 20, 20222
Lightweight Islam MakhachevOct 22, 20222
Featherweight Ilia TopuriaFeb 17, 20240
Bantamweight Sean O'MalleyAug 19, 20231
Flyweight Alexandre PantojaJul 8, 20231

Women

DivisionChampionSinceDefenses
Bantamweight Raquel PenningtonJan 20, 20240
Flyweight Alexa GrassoMar 4, 20231
Strawweight Zhang WeiliNov 12, 20222

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.NameEventDateReign
(total)
Defenses
1 Mark Coleman
def. Dan Severn
UFC 12
Dothan, AL, US
Feb 7, 1997170 days
2 Maurice SmithUFC 14
Birmingham, AL, US
Jul 27, 1997147 days

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

3 Randy CoutureUFC 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 Bas Rutten
def. Kevin Randleman
UFC 20
Birmingham, AL, US
May 7, 199934 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 Kevin Randleman
def. Pete Williams
UFC 23
Tokyo, Japan
Nov 19, 1999364 days

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

6 Randy Couture (2)UFC 28
Atlantic City, NJ, US
Nov 17, 2000490 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 Josh BarnettUFC 36
Las Vegas, NV, US
Mar 22, 2002126 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 Ricco Rodriguez
def. Randy Couture
UFC 39
Uncasville, CT, US
Sep 27, 2002154 days
9 Tim SylviaUFC 41
Atlantic City, NJ, US
Feb 28, 2003229 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 Frank Mir
def. Tim Sylvia
UFC 48
Las Vegas, NV, US
Jun 19, 2004419 days
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 Andrei Arlovski
promoted to undisputed champion
Aug 12, 2005246 days

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

12 Tim Sylvia (2)UFC 59
Anaheim, CA, US
Apr 15, 2006322 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 Randy Couture (3)UFC 68
Columbus, OH, US
Mar 3, 2007623 days
(1,113+ days)

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

Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira
def. Tim Sylvia for interim title
UFC 81
Las Vegas, NV, US
Feb 2, 2008
14 Brock LesnarUFC 91
Las Vegas, NV, US
Nov 15, 2008707 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

Frank Mir
def. interim champion Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira
UFC 92
Las Vegas, NV, US
Dec 27, 2008
Shane Carwin
def. Frank Mir for interim title
UFC 111
Newark, NJ, US
Mar 27, 2010
15 Cain VelasquezUFC 121
Anaheim, CA, US
Oct 23, 2010385 days
16 Junior dos SantosUFC on Fox: Velasquez vs. dos Santos
Anaheim, CA, US
Nov 12, 2011413 days

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

17 Cain Velasquez (2)UFC 155
Las Vegas, NV, US
Dec 29, 2012896 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

Fabrício Werdum
def. Mark Hunt for interim title
UFC 180
Mexico City, Mexico
Nov 15, 2014
18 Fabrício WerdumUFC 188
Mexico City, Mexico
Jun 13, 2015336 days
19 Stipe MiocicUFC 198
Curitiba, Brazil
May 14, 2016784 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 Daniel CormierUFC 226
Las Vegas, NV, US
Jul 7, 2018406 days

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

21 Stipe Miocic (2)UFC 241
Anaheim, CA, US
Aug 17, 2019588 days
(1,372 days)

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

22 Francis NgannouUFC 260
Las Vegas, NV, US
Mar 27, 2021659 days

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

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 Jon Jones
def. Ciryl Gane
UFC 285
Las Vegas, NV, US
Mar 4, 2023419 days
(incumbent)
Tom Aspinall
def. Sergei Pavlovich for interim title
UFC 295
New York City, NY, US
Nov 11, 2023167 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.NameEventDateReign
(Total)
Defenses
1 Frank Shamrock
def. Kevin Jackson
UFC Japan
Yokohama, Japan
Dec 21, 1997703 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 Tito Ortiz
def. Wanderlei Silva
UFC 25
Tokyo, Japan
Apr 14, 20001,260 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

Randy Couture
def. Chuck Liddell for interim title
UFC 43
Las Vegas, NV, US
Jun 6, 2003
3 Randy CoutureUFC 44
Las Vegas, NV, US
Sep 26, 2003127 days
4 Vitor BelfortUFC 46
Las Vegas, NV, US
Jan 31, 2004203 days
5 Randy Couture (2)UFC 49
Las Vegas, NV, US
Aug 21, 2004238 days
(365 days)
6 Chuck LiddellUFC 52
Las Vegas, NV, US
Apr 16, 2005770 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 Quinton JacksonUFC 71
Las Vegas, NV, US
May 26, 2007406 days

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

8 Forrest GriffinUFC 86
Las Vegas, NV, US
Jul 5, 2008175 days
9 Rashad EvansUFC 92
Las Vegas, NV, US
Dec 27, 2008147 days
10 Lyoto MachidaUFC 98
Las Vegas, NV, US
May 23, 2009350 days

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

11 Maurício RuaUFC 113
Montreal, QC, Canada
May 8, 2010315 days
12 Jon JonesUFC 128
Newark, NJ, US
Mar 19, 20111,501 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 Daniel Cormier
def. Anthony Johnson
UFC 187
Las Vegas, NV, US
May 23, 20151,315 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

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 Jon Jones (2)
def. Alexander Gustafsson
UFC 232
Inglewood, CA, US
Dec 29, 2018597 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 Jan Błachowicz
def. Dominick Reyes
UFC 253
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Sep 27, 2020398 days

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

16 Glover TeixeiraUFC 267
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Oct 30, 2021225 days
17 Jiří ProcházkaUFC 275
Kallang, Singapore
Jun 12, 2022164 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 Jamahal Hill
def. Glover Teixeira
UFC 283
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Jan 21, 2023174 days
Hill vacated the belt on July 14, 2023, after suffering an achilles tendon rupture.[28]
19 Alex Pereira
def. Jiří Procházka
UFC 295
New York City, NY, US
Nov 11, 2023167 days
(incumbent)

1. def. Jamahal Hill at UFC 300 on Apr 13, 2024

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.NameEventDateReignDefenses
1 Dave Menne
def. Gil Castillo
UFC 33
Las Vegas, NV, US
Sep 28, 2001105 days
2 Murilo BustamanteUFC 35
Las Vegas, NV, US
Jan 11, 2002267 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 Evan Tanner
def. David Terrell
UFC 51
Las Vegas, NV, US
Feb 5, 2005119 days
4 Rich FranklinUFC 53
Atlantic City, NJ, US
Jun 4, 2005497 days

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

5 Anderson SilvaUFC 64
Las Vegas, NV, US
Oct 14, 20062,457 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 Chris WeidmanUFC 162
Las Vegas, NV, US
Jul 6, 2013889 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 Luke RockholdUFC 194
Las Vegas, NV, US
Dec 12, 2015175 days
8 Michael BispingUFC 199
Inglewood, CA, US
Jun 4, 2016518 days

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

Robert Whittaker
def. Yoel Romero for interim title
UFC 213
Las Vegas, NV, US
Jul 8, 2017
9 Georges St-PierreUFC 217
New York City, NY, US
Nov 4, 201733 days
St-Pierre vacated the title on December 7, 2017, due to ulcerative colitis.[30][31]
10 Robert Whittaker
promoted to undisputed champion
Dec 7, 2017660 days
Israel Adesanya
def. Kelvin Gastelum for interim title
UFC 236
Atlanta, GA, US
Apr 13, 2019
11 Israel AdesanyaUFC 243
Melbourne, Australia
Oct 6, 20191,134 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 Alex PereiraUFC 281
New York City, NY, US
Nov 12, 2022147 days
13 Israel Adesanya (2)UFC 287
Miami, FL, US
Apr 8, 2023155 days
(1,289 days)
14 Sean StricklandUFC 293
Sydney, Australia
Sep 10, 2023132 days
15 Dricus du PlessisUFC 297
Toronto, ON, Canada
Jan 20, 202497 days
(incumbent)

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.NameEventDateReign
(Total)
Defenses
1 Pat Miletich
def. Mikey Burnett
UFC Brazil
São Paulo, Brazil
Oct 16, 1998931 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 Carlos NewtonUFC 31
Atlantic City, NJ, US
May 4, 2001183 days
3 Matt HughesUFC 34
Las Vegas, NV, US
Nov 2, 2001820 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 B.J. PennUFC 46
Las Vegas, NV, US
Jan 31, 2004107 days
Penn was stripped of the title on May 17, 2004, when he left the UFC for K-1.[32]
5 Matt Hughes (2)
def. Georges St-Pierre
UFC 50
Atlantic City, NJ, US
Oct 22, 2004757 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 Georges St-PierreUFC 65
Sacramento, CA, US
Nov 18, 2006140 days
7 Matt SerraUFC 69
Houston, TX, US
Apr 7, 2007378 days
Georges St-Pierre
def. Matt Hughes for interim title
UFC 79
Las Vegas, NV, US
Dec 29, 2007
8 Georges St-Pierre (2)UFC 83
Montreal, QC, Canada
Apr 19, 20082,064 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

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 Johny Hendricks
def. Robbie Lawler
UFC 171
Dallas, TX, US
Mar 15, 2014266 days
10 Robbie LawlerUFC 181
Las Vegas, NV, US
Dec 6, 2014602 days

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

11 Tyron WoodleyUFC 201
Atlanta, GA, US
Jul 30, 2016945 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

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 Kamaru UsmanUFC 235
Las Vegas, NV, US
Mar 2, 20191,267 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 Leon EdwardsUFC 278
Salt Lake City, UT, US
Aug 20, 2022615 days
(incumbent)

1. def. Kamaru Usman at UFC 286 on Mar 18, 2023
2. def. Colby Covington at UFC 296 on Dec 16, 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.NameEventDateReign
(Total)
Defenses
1 Jens Pulver
def. Caol Uno
UFC 30
Atlantic City, NJ, US
Feb 23, 2001393 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 Sean Sherk
def. Kenny Florian
UFC 64
Las Vegas, NV, US
Oct 14, 2006420 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 B.J. Penn
def. Joe Stevenson
UFC 80
Newcastle, England, UK
Jan 19, 2008812 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 Frankie EdgarUFC 112
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Apr 10, 2010687 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 Benson HendersonUFC 144
Saitama, Japan
Feb 26, 2012552 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. Gilbert Melendez at UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Melendez on Apr 20, 2013

6 Anthony PettisUFC 164
Milwaukee, WI, US
Aug 31, 2013560 days

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

7 Rafael dos AnjosUFC 185
Dallas, TX, US
Mar 14, 2015481 days

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

8 Eddie AlvarezUFC Fight Night: dos Anjos vs. Alvarez
Las Vegas, NV, US
Jul 7, 2016128 days
9 Conor McGregorUFC 205
New York City, NY, US
Nov 12, 2016511 days
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 Khabib Nurmagomedov
def. Al Iaquinta
UFC 223
Brooklyn, NY, US
Apr 7, 20181,077 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

Dustin Poirier
def. Max Holloway for interim title
UFC 236
Atlanta, GA, US
Apr 13, 2019
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 Charles Oliveira
def. Michael Chandler
UFC 262
Houston, TX, US
May 15, 2021357 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 Islam Makhachev
def. Charles Oliveira
UFC 280
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Oct 22, 2022552 days
(incumbent)
1. def. Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 284 on Feb 12, 2023
2. def. Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 294 on Oct 21, 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.NameEventDateReign
(Total)
Defenses
1 José Aldo
promoted to undisputed champion
UFC 123
Auburn Hills, MI, US
Nov 20, 20101,848 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

Conor McGregor
def. Chad Mendes for interim title
UFC 189
Las Vegas, NV, US
Jul 11, 2015
2 Conor McGregorUFC 194
Las Vegas, NV, US
Dec 12, 2015350 days
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 José Aldo (2)
promoted to undisputed champion
Nov 26, 2016189 days
(2,037 days)
Max Holloway
def. Anthony Pettis for interim title
UFC 206
Toronto, ON, Canada
Dec 10, 2016
4 Max HollowayUFC 212
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Jun 3, 2017925 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 Alexander VolkanovskiUFC 245
Las Vegas, NV, US
Dec 14, 20191,526 days

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

Yair Rodríguez
def. Josh Emmett for interim title
UFC 284
Perth, Australia
Feb 12, 2023
6 Ilia TopuriaUFC 298
Anaheim, CA, US
Feb 17, 202469 days
(incumbent)

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.NameEventDateReign
(Total)
Defenses
1 Dominick Cruz
def. Scott Jorgensen
WEC 53
Glendale, AZ, US
Dec 16, 20101,117 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

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 Renan Barão
promoted to undisputed champion
Jan 6, 2014138 days

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

3 T.J. DillashawUFC 173
Las Vegas, NV, US
May 24, 2014603 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 Dominick Cruz (2)UFC Fight Night: Dillashaw vs. Cruz
Boston, MA, US
Jan 17, 2016348 days
(1,465 days)

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

5 Cody GarbrandtUFC 207
Las Vegas, NV, US
Dec 30, 2016309 days
6 T.J. Dillashaw (2)UFC 217
New York City, NY, US
Nov 4, 2017501 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 Henry Cejudo
def. Marlon Moraes
UFC 238
Chicago, IL, US
Jun 8, 2019352 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 Petr Yan
def. José Aldo
UFC 251
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Jul 12, 2020237 days
9 Aljamain SterlingUFC 259
Las Vegas, NV, US
Mar 6, 2021896 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

Petr Yan
def. Cory Sandhagen for interim title
UFC 267
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Oct 30, 2021
10 Sean O'Malley UFC 292
Boston, MA, US
Aug 19, 2023251 days
(incumbent)
1. def. Marlon Vera at UFC 299 on Mar 9, 2024

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.NameEventDateReign
(Total)
Defenses
1 Demetrious Johnson
def. Joseph Benavidez
UFC 152
Toronto, ON, Canada
Sep 22, 20122,142 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 Henry CejudoUFC 227
Los Angeles, CA, US
Aug 4, 2018574 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 Deiveson Figueiredo
def. Joseph Benavidez
UFC Fight Night: Figueiredo vs. Benavidez 2
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Jul 19, 2020328 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 Brandon MorenoUFC 263
Glendale, AZ, US
Jun 12, 2021223 days
5 Deiveson Figueiredo (2)UFC 270
Anaheim, CA, US
Jan 22, 2022364 days
(692 days)
Brandon Moreno
def. Kai Kara-France for interim title
UFC 277
Dallas, TX, US
Jul 30, 2022
6 Brandon Moreno (2)UFC 283
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Jan 21, 2023168 days
(391 days)
7 Alexandre PantojaUFC 290
Las Vegas, NV, US
Jul 8, 2023293 days
(incumbent)
1. def. Brandon Royval at UFC 296 on Dec 16, 2023

Women's championship history

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.[50]

No.NameEventDateReignDefenses
1 Ronda Rousey
promoted to undisputed champion
UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Diaz
Seattle, WA, US
Dec 6, 20121,074 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 Holly HolmUFC 193
Melbourne, Australia
Nov 15, 2015111 days
3 Miesha TateUFC 196
Las Vegas, NV, US
Mar 5, 2016126 days
4 Amanda NunesUFC 200
Las Vegas, NV, US
Jul 9, 20161,981 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 Julianna PeñaUFC 269
Las Vegas, NV, US
Dec 11, 2021232 days
6 Amanda Nunes (2)UFC 277
Dallas, TX, US
Jul 30, 2022325 days
(2,306 days)
1. def. Irene Aldana at UFC 289 on Jun 10, 2023
Nunes announced her retirement on June 10, 2023.[51] The title was officially vacated on June 20, 2023.
7 Raquel Pennington
def. Mayra Bueno Silva
UFC 297
Toronto, ON, Canada
Jan 20, 202497 days
(incumbent)

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.NameEventDateReignDefenses
1 Nicco Montaño
def. Roxanne Modafferi
The Ultimate Fighter: A New World Champion Finale
Las Vegas, NV, US
Dec 1, 2017280 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.[52]
2 Valentina Shevchenko
def. Joanna Jędrzejczyk
UFC 231
Toronto, ON, Canada
Dec 8, 20181,547 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 Alexa GrassoUFC 285
Las Vegas, NV, US
Mar 4, 2023419 days
(incumbent)

1. drew with Valentina Shevchenko at UFC Fight Night: Grasso vs. Shevchenko 2 on Sep 16, 2023

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.NameEventDateReignDefenses
1 Carla Esparza
def. Rose Namajunas
The Ultimate Fighter: A Champion Will Be Crowned Finale
Las Vegas, NV, US
Dec 12, 201492 days
2 Joanna JędrzejczykUFC 185
Dallas, TX, US
Mar 14, 2015966 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 Rose NamajunasUFC 217
New York City, NY, US
Nov 4, 2017554 days

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

4 Jéssica AndradeUFC 237
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
May 11, 2019112 days
5 Zhang WeiliUFC Fight Night: Andrade vs. Zhang
Shenzhen, China
Aug 31, 2019603 days

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

6 Rose Namajunas (2)UFC 261
Jacksonville, FL, US
Apr 24, 2021378 days
(932 days)

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

7 Carla Esparza (2)UFC 274
Phoenix, AZ, US
May 7, 2022190 days
(282 days)
8 Zhang Weili (2)UFC 281
New York City, NY, US
Nov 12, 2022531 days
(incumbent)

1. def. Amanda Lemos at UFC 292 on Aug 19, 2023
2. def. Yan Xiaonan at UFC 300 on Apr 13, 2024

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.[53]

No.NameEventDateReignDefenses
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 Ken Shamrock
def. Dan Severn
UFC 6
Casper, WY, US
Jul 14, 1995308 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 Dan SevernUFC 9
Detroit, MI, US
May 17, 1996266 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]

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.[54]

No.NameEventDateReignDefenses
1 Germaine de Randamie
def. Holly Holm
UFC 208
Brooklyn, NY, US
Feb 11, 2017128 days
de Randamie was stripped of the title on June 19, 2017, after she refused to defend the title against Cris Cyborg.[55]
2 Cris Cyborg
def. Tonya Evinger
UFC 214
Anaheim, CA, US
Jul 29, 2017517 days

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

3 Amanda NunesUFC 232
Inglewood, CA, US
Dec 29, 20181,634 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.[51] The title was officially vacated on June 20, 2023.

Tournament winners

EventDateDivisionWinnerRunner-up
UFC 1Nov 12, 1993Openweight Royce Gracie Gerard Gordeau
UFC 2Mar 11, 1994Openweight Royce Gracie (2) Patrick Smith
UFC 3Sep 9, 1994Openweight Steve Jennum Harold Howard
UFC 4Dec 16, 1994Openweight Royce Gracie (3) Dan Severn
UFC 5Apr 7, 1995Openweight Dan Severn Dave Beneteau
UFC 6Jul 14, 1995Openweight Oleg Taktarov Tank Abbott
UFC 7Sep 8, 1995Openweight Marco Ruas Paul Varelans
The Ultimate UltimateDec 16, 1995Openweight Dan Severn (2) Oleg Taktarov
UFC 8Feb 16, 1996Openweight Don Frye Gary Goodridge
UFC 10Jul 12, 1996Openweight Mark Coleman Don Frye
UFC 11Sep 20, 1996Openweight Mark Coleman (2) Scott Ferrozzo
The Ultimate Ultimate 2Dec 7, 1996Openweight Don Frye (2) Tank Abbott
UFC 12Feb 7, 1997Heavyweight Vitor Belfort Scott Ferrozzo
Light Heavyweight Jerry Bohlander Nick Sanzo
UFC 13May 30, 1997Heavyweight Randy Couture Steven Graham
LightHeavyweight Guy Mezger Tito Ortiz
UFC 14Jul 27, 1997Heavyweight Mark Kerr Dan Bobish
LightHeavyweight Kevin Jackson Tony Fryklund
UFC 15Oct 17, 1997Heavyweight Mark Kerr (2) Dwayne Cason
Ultimate JapanDec 21, 1997Heavyweight Kazushi Sakuraba Marcus Silveira
UFC 16Mar 13, 1998Welterweight Pat Miletich Chris Brennan
UFC 17May 15, 1998Middleweight Dan Henderson Carlos Newton
UFC 23Nov 19, 1999Middleweight Kenichi Yamamoto Katsuhisa Fujii
UFC 39
UFC 41
Feb 28, 2003LightweightB.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, 2012Flyweight Demetrious Johnson 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.

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

Championship wins by nationality

The table is divided by number of division championships, tournament championships, total championships, and individual champions. Fighters with multiple championship wins have each championship counted for the total. There is a distinction between the total number of championships won by a nationality and the number of individual fighters that won them. Division championships 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. Tournament championships 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.

CountryDivision
championships
Tournament
championships
Total
championships
Individual
champions
United States80169670
Brazil2452921
Russia4154
Canada4-42
Mexico4-43
England3-33
Nigeria3-32
Australia2-22
Netherlands2-22
Poland2-22
China2-21
Ireland2-21
Belarus1-11
Kyrgyzstan1-11
Cameroon1-11
France1-11
Czech Republic1-11
South Africa1-11
Georgia1-11
Japan-222

TUF winners by nationality

CountryTUF
winners
United States35
Brazil8
Mexico5
Canada4
England3
China2
Nigeria2
Australia1
Jamaica1
Northern Ireland1
Peru1
Spain1

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 winsChampionDivisionWLDNC
15 Jon JonesHeavyweight
Light Heavyweight
1
14
0
0
0
1
13 Georges St-PierreMiddleweight
Welterweight
1
12
0
2
12 Demetrious JohnsonBantamweight
Flyweight
0
12
1
1
11 Anderson SilvaMiddleweight112
Amanda NunesWomen's Featherweight
Women's Bantamweight
3
8
0
1
9 Randy CoutureHeavyweight
Light Heavyweight
6
3
3
3
Matt HughesWelterweight93
8 José AldoFeatherweight
Bantamweight
8
0
3
1
Valentina ShevchenkoWomen's Bantamweight
Women's Flyweight
0
8
1
1
0
1
Israel AdesanyaLight Heavyweight
Middleweight
0
8
1
2
6 Joanna JędrzejczykWomen's Flyweight
Women's Strawweight
0
6
1
3
Daniel CormierHeavyweight
Light Heavyweight
2
4
2
1
0
1
Tito OrtizLight Heavyweight63
Alexander VolkanovskiLightweight
Featherweight
0
6
2
1
Ronda RouseyWomen's Bantamweight62
Stipe MiocicHeavyweight62
Kamaru UsmanWelterweight62
5 B.J. PennWelterweight
Lightweight
1
4
2
3
0
1
Tim SylviaHeavyweight54
Max HollowayLightweight
Featherweight
0
5
1
3
T.J. DillashawBantamweight
Flyweight
5
0
2
1
Chuck LiddellLight Heavyweight52
Dominick CruzBantamweight52
Zhang WeiliWomen's Strawweight52
Pat MiletichWelterweight51
Frank ShamrockLight Heavyweight50
4 Rose NamajunasWomen's Strawweight43
Cain VelasquezHeavyweight42
Renan BarãoBantamweight42
Tyron WoodleyWelterweight411
Henry CejudoBantamweight
Flyweight
2
2
1
1
Benson HendersonLightweight41
Chris WeidmanMiddleweight41
Aljamain SterlingBantamweight41
Khabib NurmagomedovLightweight40

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]

DefensesChampionDivisionPeriod
11 Demetrious JohnsonFlyweightSep 22, 2012 — Aug 4, 2018
10 Anderson SilvaMiddleweightOct 14, 2006 — Jul 6, 2013
9 Georges St-PierreWelterweightApr 19, 2008 — Dec 13, 2013
8 Jon JonesLight HeavyweightMar 19, 2011 — Apr 28, 2015
7 José AldoFeatherweightNov 20, 2010 — Dec 12, 2015
Valentina ShevchenkoWomen's FlyweightDec 8, 2018 — Mar 4, 2023
6 Ronda RouseyWomen's BantamweightDec 6, 2012 — Nov 15, 2015
5 Tito OrtizLight HeavyweightApr 14, 2000 — Sep 26, 2003
Matt HughesWelterweightNov 2, 2001 — Jan 31, 2004
Joanna JędrzejczykWomen's StrawweightMar 14, 2015 — Nov 4, 2017
Amanda NunesWomen's BantamweightJul 9, 2016 — Dec 11, 2021
Kamaru UsmanWelterweightMar 2, 2019 — Aug 20, 2022
Israel AdesanyaMiddleweightOct 6, 2019 — Nov 12, 2022
Alexander VolkanovskiFeatherweightDec 14, 2019 — Feb 17, 2024
4 Frank ShamrockLight HeavyweightDec 21, 1997 — Nov 24, 1999
Pat MiletichWelterweightOct 16, 1998 — May 4, 2001
Chuck LiddellLight HeavyweightApr 16, 2005 — May 26, 2007
Tyron Woodley[a]WelterweightJul 30, 2016 — Mar 2, 2019
3 B.J. PennLightweightJan 19, 2008 — Apr 10, 2010
Frankie Edgar[b]LightweightApr 10, 2010 — Feb 26, 2012
Benson HendersonLightweightFeb 26, 2012 — Aug 31, 2013
Renan Barão[c]BantamweightJul 21, 2012 — May 24, 2014
Chris WeidmanMiddleweightJul 6, 2013 — Dec 12, 2015
Daniel Cormier[d]Light HeavyweightMay 23, 2015 — Dec 28, 2018
Stipe MiocicHeavyweightMay 14, 2016 — Jul 7, 2018
Max HollowayFeatherweightJun 3, 2017 — Dec 14, 2019
Jon JonesLight HeavyweightDec 29, 2018 — Aug 17, 2020
Khabib NurmagomedovLightweightApr 7, 2018 — Mar 19, 2021
Aljamain SterlingBantamweightMar 6, 2021 — Aug 19, 2023
  • Bold — Incumbent champion.

Longest reigning champions

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

Longest individual reigns

NameTitle ReignWeight classSuccessful defenses
1 Anderson Silva2,457 daysMW10
2 Demetrious Johnson2,142 daysFLW11
3 Georges St-Pierre2,064 daysWW9
4 Amanda Nunes1,981 daysW-BW5
5 José Aldo1,848 daysFTW7
6 Amanda Nunes1,634 daysW-FTW2
7 Valentina Shevchenko1,547 daysW-FLW7
8 Alexander Volkanovski 1,526 daysFTW5
9 Jon Jones1,501 daysLHW8
10 Daniel Cormier1,315 daysLHW3

Longest combined reigns

NameDays as championReignsWeight classCumulative title defenses
1 Amanda Nunes3,940 days3W-BW, W-FTW8
2 Anderson Silva2,457 days1MW10
3 Jon Jones2,517 days3LHW, HW11
4 Georges St-Pierre2,237 days3WW, MW9
5 Demetrious Johnson2,142 days1FLW11
6 José Aldo2,037 days2FTW7
7 Daniel Cormier1,722 days2LHW, HW4
8 Matt Hughes1,577 days2WW7
9 Valentina Shevchenko1,547 days1W-FLW7
10 Alexander Volkanovski 1,526 days1FTW5
  • 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
ChampionDivisionWonLostDefensesReignTotal reign
1 Randy CoutureHeavyweightDec 21, 1997 (UFC Japan)Jan ?, 1998 (stripped)000? days1,478 + ? days
Nov 17, 2000 (UFC 28)Mar 22, 2002 (UFC 36)2490 days
Mar 3, 2007 (UFC 68)Nov 15, 2008 (UFC 91)1623 days
Light HeavyweightJun 6, 2003 (UFC 43)Sep 26, 2003 (UFC 44)0-
Sep 26, 2003 (UFC 44)Jan 31, 2004 (UFC 46)0127 days
Aug 21, 2004 (UFC 49)Apr 16, 2005 (UFC 52)0238 days
2 B.J. PennWelterweightJan 31, 2004 (UFC 46)May 17, 2004 (stripped)0107 days919 days
LightweightJan 19, 2008 (UFC 80)Apr 10, 2010 (UFC 112)3812 days
3 Conor McGregorFeatherweightJul 11, 2015 (UFC 189)Dec 12, 2015 (UFC 194)0-861 days
Dec 12, 2015 (UFC 194)Nov 26, 2016 (stripped)0350 days
LightweightNov 12, 2016 (UFC 205)Apr 7, 2018 (stripped)0511 days
4 Georges St-PierreWelterweightNov 18, 2006 (UFC 65)Apr 7, 2007 (UFC 69)0140 days2,237 days
Dec 29, 2007 (UFC 79)Apr 19, 2008 (UFC 83)0-
Apr 19, 2008 (UFC 83)Dec 13, 2013 (vacated)92,064 days
MiddleweightNov 4, 2017 (UFC 217)Dec 7, 2017 (vacated)033 days
5 Daniel CormierLight HeavyweightMay 23, 2015 (UFC 187)Dec 28, 2018 (vacated)31,315 days1,722 days
HeavyweightJul 7, 2018 (UFC 226)Aug 17, 2019 (UFC 241)1407 days
6 Amanda NunesWomen's BantamweightJul 9, 2016 (UFC 200)Dec 11, 2021 (UFC 269)51,981 days3,940 days
Jul 30, 2022 (UFC 277)Jun 20, 2023 (vacated)1325 days
Women's FeatherweightDec 29, 2018 (UFC 232)Jun 20, 2023 (vacated)21,634 days
7 Henry CejudoFlyweightAug 4, 2018 (UFC 227)Feb 29, 2020 (vacated)1574 days926 days
BantamweightJun 8, 2019 (UFC 238)May 24, 2020 (vacated)1352 days
8 Jon JonesLight HeavyweightMar 19, 2011 (UFC 128)Apr 28, 2015 (stripped)81,501 days2,517 days
Apr 23, 2016 (UFC 197)Nov 19, 2016 (stripped)0-
Dec 29, 2018 (UFC 232)Aug 17, 2020 (vacated)3597 days
HeavyweightMar 4, 2023 (UFC 285)Incumbent0419 days
9 Alex PereiraMiddleweightNov 12, 2022 (UFC 281)Apr 8, 2023 (UFC 287)0147 days314 days
Light HeavyweightNov 11, 2023 (UFC 295)Incumbent1167 days

Simultaneous two division champions

  • Note: Defenses shown are while champion was a two division champion.
ChampionDivisionPeriodDefensesReign
1 Conor McGregorFeatherweightNov 12, 2016 – Nov 26, 2016014 days
Lightweight0
2 Daniel CormierLight HeavyweightJul 7, 2018 – Dec 28, 20180174 days
Heavyweight1
3 Amanda NunesWomen's BantamweightDec 29, 2018 – Dec 11, 202121,078 days
Women's Featherweight2
4 Henry CejudoFlyweightJun 8, 2019 – Feb 29, 20200266 days
Bantamweight1
5 Amanda Nunes (2)Women's FeatherweightJul 30, 2022 – Jun 20, 20230325 days
Women's Bantamweight1
  • 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.

EventDateChampionshipResultNotes
UFC 56Nov 19, 2005 WelterweightMatt Hughes (c) (170 lb)def.Joe Riggs (172.5 lb)Fight changed to non-title contest
UFC 67Feb 3, 2007 MiddleweightAnderson Silva (c) (185 lb)def.Travis Lutter (187 lb)Fight changed to non-title contest
UFC 206Dec 10, 2016Interim FeatherweightMax Holloway (145 lb)def.Anthony Pettis (148 lb)Only Holloway was eligible to win title
UFC 221Feb 11, 2018Interim MiddleweightYoel Romero (187.7 lb)def.Luke Rockhold (185 lb)Only Rockhold was eligible to win title
UFC 225Jun 9, 2018 MiddleweightRobert Whittaker (c) (185 lb)def.Yoel Romero (185.2 lb)Fight changed to non-title contest
UFC Fight Night: Benavidez vs. FigueiredoFeb 29, 2020 FlyweightDeiveson Figueiredo (127.5 lb)def.Joseph Benavidez (124.5 lb)Only Benavidez was eligible to win title
UFC 274May 7, 2022LightweightCharles 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

External links