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The UFC has some of the most athletic male and female athletes in the world. There’s only a small handful of male fighters who are the cream of the crop, and through the creation of the UFC, these top fighters would be a product of extreme hard work and dedication.
In this article, we’ll outline the top five greatest male UFC fighters of all time and touch on how their career went (and if they’re still fighting), what titles they achieved and how they created their legacy in the sport.
Khabib may be well known in modern UFC as one of, if not the, greatest fighters ever. The 36-year-old Russian concluded his perfect career with 29 wins and 0 losses, defeating some of the biggest fighters in history. He’d win eight fights by KO, 11 by submission, as he was known for his incredible grappling ability, and 10 by decision.
Some of his most notable bouts were against the likes of Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje, all of which fell to Khabib chokeholds. Overall, he is the reigning undisputed lightweight champion and holds the longest undefeated record in MMA with a 27-win streak.
The Brazilian MMA fighter Anderson Silva takes the #4 spot out of the top UFC fighters ever. Silva put out a formidable 34-11 record (1 NC), finishing with a jaw-dropping 45 total fights. He holds the record for longest winning and title defense streaks in the UFC, with 16 consecutive wins and 10 title defenses.
“The Spider” would showcase lethal striking ability, winning 20 fights by KO and six by submission. He is one of the most experienced fighters of all time and reigned as the UFC middleweight champion for quite some time, proving he was capable of challenging AND defending titles.
Canada’s Georges St-Pierre is one of the top undisputed fighters in the UFC of our time, with an impressive 26-2 record. His career came to a close in 2017, but not unsuccessfully whatsoever, as he’d won the welterweight championship three separate times, defending his welterweight belt for 10 straight bouts against some of the toughest fighters on the block, including Carlos Condit, Nick Diaz, Johnny Hendricks and Michael Bisping.
Out of his 28 fights in the octagon, St-Pierre won eight by KO and six by submission, showing himself to be a well-rounded warrior in the ring. Nicknamed “The Rush” Georges St-Pierre certainly showcased his talent, having been ranked as the #1 fighter in welterweight by multiple sources for seven straight years.
Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson may very well have one of the most diverse fighting styles and is often considered one of the best flyweight fighters ever. He holds the record for most consecutive UFC wins in the flyweight division with 13 straight, and was the 2019 ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix Champion and has an overall record of 25-4-1.
In those victories, only five would be from KO and eight from submission, but Johnson would take on some of the toughest names in the sport, including Adriano Moraes and Rodtang Jitmuangnon. Not only did the Mighty Mouse improve to such an impressive career status at 5’3”, he would also win MMA Fighter of the Year from 2012-2017.
The legendary American known as Jon “Bones” Jones takes the top spot for being the best UFC fighter of all time, and sensibly at that. He boasts a career overall record of 28-1, with his first and only loss coming from Matt Hamill in 2009 from his disqualification due to an illegal downward elbow. Unphased by this mishap, however, Jones would win 19 straight in the MMA, with 11 wins by KO and seven by submission.
When it came to tangoing in the octagon with one another, you did not want to dance with Jon Jones. The two-time undisputed light heavyweight champion even held the UFC heavyweight belt for some time while being the youngest UFC champion in history at 23 years old in 2011. To seal it, Jones holds the record for most title fight victories in the UFC, proving nobody’s trophies are safe from “The Bones” Jones.
Liam has been a major sports fan and soccer player for over a decade, with a particular focus on major top-level soccer leagues, including the EPL, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga and MLS. He has written numerous promotional articles for various top sportsbooks and continues to publish historical and factual sports articles covering the NFL, MLS, NHL, MLB, EPL and more.