5 UFC champions who seem likely to lose their titles in 2023
With 2023 nearly upon us, it’s worth considering which of the UFC’s champions might be most vulnerable to losing their titles next year.
Any fighter who is able to claim UFC gold is obviously talented, but it’s fair to argue that some of the promotion’s current champions look less secure than others.
Could some of these champions prove their doubters wrong, as bantamweight kingpin Aljamain Sterling did this year? Absolutely, but right now, it’s fair to say that they could be at risk.
Here are five UFC champions who seem likely to lose their titles in 2023.
#5. Leon Edwards – UFC welterweight champion
After he stopped former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman in shocking fashion in August, it’s safe to say that nobody should doubt Leon Edwards any more.
However, while ‘Rocky’ is clearly a talented and dangerous fighter, it’s also hard to believe that his title reign can survive 2023 intact.
The native of Birmingham, England, is competing in arguably one of the UFC’s deepest weight classes right now. With that comes a ridiculous amount of potentially deadly contenders for his title.
Edwards probably won’t be favored to win a rematch with Usman, who was miles ahead on the scorecards until suffering that dramatic fifth-round head-kick knockout.
Kamaru Usman knocked out by Leon Edwards. Usman has no idea where he was for like one minute. History made! Wow. #UFC278
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Even if talk of ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ potentially not making the UFC 286 card, which the promotion seemingly want Edwards headlining, turns out to be true, ‘Rocky’ could still be faced with a hugely difficult first title defense.
Any of the welterweight division’s top five, which includes Colby Covington, Khamzat Chimaev, Belal Muhammad and Gilbert Burns, would stand a good chance of beating the British fighter.
Sure, Edwards could prove everyone wrong again. After all, nobody expected him to dispatch Usman in the way that he did. Despite this, though, it feels like the welterweight title could become a hot potato of sorts in 2023.
Therefore, ‘Rocky’ definitely seems likely to lose his gold.
#4. Glover Teixeira or Jamahal Hill – UFC light heavyweight champion
After the recent fight between Jan Blachowicz and Magomed Ankalaev ended in a semi-controversial draw, the UFC light heavyweight title remains vacant.
That should change in the first month of 2023, as Glover Teixeira is set to face Jamahal Hill in Brazil in the headliner of the first pay-per-view of the year. However, whether Teixeira or Hill can hold onto the title through the year is another question entirely.
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While his approach isn’t exactly the most exciting to watch, Ankalaev would probably be favored to beat both men right now. Hill has never faced a grappler of his caliber, while Teixeira, at the age of 42, might struggle with the Dagestani’s explosive striking.
More to the point, though, at some stage in 2023, former titleholder Jiri Prochazka should be back. Given that he didn’t lose his title in the octagon, ‘Denisa’ should be given a direct shot at the gold – and he’d be favored to beat either Hill or Teixeira too.
Essentially, even if the winner of the upcoming fight gets past Ankalaev, they seem destined to fall to Prochazka at some point down the line, meaning their reign as champion could be a short one.
#3. Valentina Shevchenko – UFC women's flyweight champion
At the start of 2022, anyone considering UFC flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko to be anything but secure in her title reign probably would’ve been labeled crazy.
After all, ‘Bullet’ had run through six title challengers, and none of them had really been able to test her. The idea of her losing her crown was basically laughable.
However, 2022 saw her pushed like never before by challenger Taila Santos. While Shevchenko got the nod from the judges, many fans felt that she deserved to lose the bout. That makes things very interesting going into 2023.
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Essentially, the bout with Santos appeared to expose a hole in the game of ‘Bullet’, namely her defense from the bottom. Given that there are a number of excellent takedown artists searching for a shot at the title – including Santos, Erin Blanchfield and Casey O’Neill – that should be worrying for the champ.
When you also consider that she’s held the title for over four years now, and at the age of 34, could be coming to the end of her athletic prime, 2023 just feels like the right time for Shevchenko’s epic reign to finally end.
#2. Alex Pereira – UFC middleweight champion
The most unlikely title winner of 2022 was definitely Alex Pereira, who stunned longtime UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya to claim the gold in November. Can ‘Poatan’ hold onto his title, though?
It seems likely that the Brazilian’s first defense will come against Adesanya in a rematch. To be fair, that’s a fight that he might be favored to win.
After all, Pereira’s win over Adesanya in the octagon followed two wins over him in the kickboxing ring. It could simply be a case that ‘Poatan’ is kryptonite for ‘The Last Stylebender’.
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However, Adesanya did show that the Brazilian isn’t quite a complete fighter just yet. He took some heavy shots during the fight, and also struggled somewhat on the ground, too. That could be music to the ears of some of the other contenders at 185 pounds.
The likes of Robert Whittaker, Marvin Vettori and Jared Cannonier all lost to Adesanya handily, but might believe they match up better with Pereira, who is still learning his craft in MMA.
With that considered, despite his title win being a memorable one, the chances of ‘Poatan’ still holding his crown when 2023 ends seem slim.
#1. Francis Ngannou – UFC heavyweight champion
The champion who seems most likely to lose his title in 2023 has to be heavyweight kingpin Francis Ngannou. Strangely enough, though, it’s highly probable that he’ll lose it without tasting defeat in the octagon.
As has been widely reported, late January should mark the end of Ngannou’s contract with the UFC (if it hasn't expired already, as some have pondered). At the time of writing, there’s no suggestion that he intends to ink a new one.
Of course, that could all change in the next few weeks. Essentially, this contract dispute is a high-stakes game of chicken. However, given that ‘The Predator’ has stated on numerous occasions that he has aspirations to box, the chances of him coming to terms with Dana White and company seem slim.
Francis Ngannou won't renew UFC contract if there's no option to box: 'I will not fight for $500,000, $600,000 anymore' #UFC270 mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2022/01/ufc-ne…
If that’s the case, then Ngannou could well become the first reigning champion to depart the promotion for pastures new since B.J. Penn back in 2004. ‘The Prodigy’ was stripped of his title, and so there can be no doubt that ‘The Predator’ would be too.
If the Cameroonian does remain with the promotion, is his title reign more secure? On the face of things, it ought to be, given that he outpointed the next-highest ranked fighter in Ciryl Gane earlier this year.
However, ‘The Predator’ is also coming off serious knee surgery, and so there’s a chance he may not be the same fighter when he does return. This, of course, would make him vulnerable to the likes of Gane, Sergei Pavlovich and Curtis Blaydes.
Therefore, given everything surrounding him right now, it’s hard to imagine 2023 ending with Ngannou still holding the heavyweight title.