5 best UFC fighters who are not champions
Charles Oliveira was stripped of the UFC lightweight championship last weekend after missing weight for his UFC 274 fight. Despite that, he submitted Justin Gaethje in the first round and may now be one of the most dominant non-champions we have seen in the sport.
Oliveira has finished three of the best lightweights on the planet in the early rounds of his fights. He would be considered one of the more dominant champions in MMA were it not for the unfortunate events on the scale last Friday. For now, however, he will have to settle for being arguably the best non-champion in the sport today.
That's not to say he doesn't have any competition. There are some incredible talents on the roster who don't currently possess championship gold. Some of these fighters have already held straps, while others seemed destined to do so before too long.
Here are the five best fighters in the UFC who are not currently champions:
#5. Petr Yan - UFC bantamweight
Petr Yan is already a former interim and undisputed bantamweight champion. While he recently lost his title unification bout against Aljamain Sterling, Yan looked good late in the fight, winning multiple rounds.
Dana White even questioned the judges' verdict on that night, suggesting that he felt the Russian deserved to win.
The Sterling rematch did expose some holes in Yanβs game as he had his back taken multiple times. However, there is no reason why he cannot make the necessary adjustments needed to get back to the top of the division. As for strengths, many feel that 'No Mercy' may be the best pure boxer on the roster.
Yan has been dominant in the UFC with the exception of his disqualification and split decision losses to 'Funk Master'. Should he pick up a few more wins, he could easily work his way back into the title picture before long.
At just 29 years old, he could easily be remembered as an all-time great by the end of his career.