5 Greatest UFC Heavyweight Championship Fights

The UFC Heavyweight Championship is considered to be the most prestigious championships in all of Mixed Martial Arts. Sure, the UFC has done a great job in terms of elevating other titles in importance, but the reality is that the "heavyweight" tag adds a certain prestige to it. It also helps that there weren't too many interim champions in the last few years (though there were a few over a decade ago).

Either way, from Mark Coleman to Daniel Cormier and beyond, the title has always been to decide the baddest man on the planet. Packed with power, the heavyweight title has switched hands more often than you think, with Stipe Miocic being the only champion to defend the title on 3 consecutive occasions.

The Heavyweight Championship has been defended and passed on in wars of all sorts, and we take a look at the five greatest UFC Heavyweight Championship fights ever!

#5 Cain Velasquez (c) vs Fabricio Werdum - UFC 188

After finishing his incredible trilogy with Junior Dos Santos, then-Heavyweight King Cain Velasquez set his sights on the Brazillian superstar Fabricio Werdum. He was scheduled to face him at UFC 180 but had to pull out of the fight due to injuries.

He was replaced by Mark Hunt, who Werdum beat to become Interim Champion. Around 8 months later, Werdum and Velasquez finally met at UFC 188 in Mexico City, which was a big moment for Velasquez given his Mexican heritage.

They would have an absolutely incredible back-and-forth classic, with Velaquez, unfortunately, running into a guillotine. Werdum handed Velasquez only the second defeat of his career, dethroning him and becoming Heavyweight Champion of the world.

His run would last less than a year, with Stipe Miocic dethroning him a year later in his home country of Brazil.