Best MMA champions of all time
MMA is the world’s third most popular sport, with millions of viewers watching it every year. But which MMA champions have been the best throughout all this time?
Here are the best MMA champions of all time, based on their achievements and popularity.
Anderson da Silva
Anderson Da Silva is a Brazilian-American MMA fighter and boxer. He was born on April 14th, 1975. As a young child, Da Silva had a difficult upbringing, living in poverty. He spent most of his time with his aunt and his uncle.
Before his fighting career, Da Silva worked at McDonald’s and as a file clerk. One of his heroes is his mother. Today, Da Silva has three sons and two daughters of his own with his wife Dayane.
Da Silva has reigned the longest in Ultimate Fighting Champion (UFC) history. Starting in 2006 and ending in 2013, his reign was 2,457 days long. He has scored a total of 34 wins, out of which 23 were by knockout.
Jon Jones
Jon Jones is an American MMA fighter. Jones was born on July 19th, 1987 in Rochester, New York. Jones went to Union-Endicott High School, where he was a wrestler and state champion. He also played football. Initially, Jones went to college to study Criminal Justice. He, however, later dropped out to start his fighting career.
Jones first started MMA in 2008. In three months, he hit a record of 6-0 wins. He became the youngest Ultimate Fighting Champion (UFC) champion. He is a former Ultimate Fighting Champion (UFC) Light Heavyweight Champion. He held this title from 2011 to 2015, and from 2018 to 2020. In 2016, he held the interim Ultimate Fighting Champion (UFC) Light Heavyweight Championship title. He lost the title for some time between 2015 and 2017, due to controversies regarding acts he was involved in.
Jones has a total of 26 wins, out of which 10 are by knockout.
Conor McGregor
Conor Anthony McGregor was born on July 14th, 1988, in Crumlin, Dublin He developed his passion for the sport when he played football in secondary school, and later started boxing. He started to play MMA in February 2007. He played an amateur fight against the fighter Kieran Campbell. He won and became a professional after this fight. It is the biggest pay-per-view in the history of MMA fights. He is also the first Ultimate Fighting Champion (UFC) to hold two weight classes at the same time. McGregor is a former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) featherweight and lightweight double-champion. Forbes ranked McGregor the highest-paid athlete in 2021.
McGregor has 22 wins, 19 of them being by knockout.
Fedor Emelianenko
Fedor Vladimirovich Emelianenko was born in Rubizhne, Luhansk Oblast, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union on September 28th, 1976. He started to play sports at a young age. He graduated high school in 1991. In 1995 until 1997, he served as a Military Firefighter in the Russian Army. He started competing in MMA in the year 2000.
Emelianenko won the title of MMA Pride Fighting Championships Heavyweight Champion between 2003 and 2007. Even though Emelianenko lost in December 2000, he afterward scored 28 straight wins until June of 2010. Many sources called Emelianenko the best MMA fighter of the 2000s, including Sports Illustrated. He has scored 40 wins, and 16 of those were by knockout.
José Aldo
José Aldo da Silva Oliveira Júnior was born on September 9th, 1986 in Manaus, Brazil. Aldo loved sports as a child. Initially, he in fact wanted to become a professional football player. He experienced street violence growing up. Getting tired of living this way, he started to learn self-defense and fighting. Today, Aldo competes in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in the Bantamweight division. He was also the fourth and final WEC Featherweight Champion when he competed at Featherweight. Many consider Aldo to be the all-time best MMA fighter.
Aldo faced his first MMA fight defeat in the year 2005. Since then, he won 18 matches straight, making him a straight-winner for over ten years. He has a total of 31 wins and 17 of those are by knockout.
10CRIC MMA betting provides betting options to bet on champions like Aldo.
Randy Couture
Randy Duane Couture was born on June 22nd, 1963 in Everett, Washington. He started wrestling in Middle school when he attended Alderwood Middle school in Lynnwood. When he then moved on to Lynnwood high school, he continued wrestling. Couture became a State Championship winner during his high school senior year. Couture also served in the United States army. He was a Sergeant in the 101 Airborne. He started his service in the year 1982 and left the military in 1988.
Couture is the first out of seven MMA fighters that hold the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) titles in two divisions at the same time. In total, he has completed 16 title fights. He is a six-time Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Champion and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) 13 Heavyweight Tournament winner. Couture is a three-time Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Heavyweight Champion, and a two-time Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Light heavyweight Champion. In addition, Couture also became an interim Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Light heavyweight Champion. He has a total of 19 wins. 7 of his wins are by knockout.
Stipe Miocic
Stipe Miocic was born on August 19th, 1982, in Euclid, Ohio. He was encouraged to pursue sports by his mother from a young age. As a result, he played a variety of sports in high school, including football, baseball, and wrestling. He played Division II baseball in college, where he majored in marketing and communication studies. Major League Baseball also expressed interest in him. Then, Miocic moved on to fighting. He was at first very much involved in boxing. Miocic started his career in MMA fighting when he won his first six fights.
Today, Miocic competes in the Heavyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is a former-time Ultimate Fighting Champion (UFC). He kept his title four times. Many sources rate Miocic as the best Ultimate Fighting Champion (UFC) fighter ever. Miocic has the record for his number of Ultimate Fighting Champion (UFC) fights and the longest defending streak in the division. He won three defenses in a row, among other records.
