5 UFC titles that have changed hands the most times
With a total of 12 different titles now active in the UFC, every year is almost guaranteed to see at least a couple of title changes. However, some titles seem more likely to change hands than others.
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Over the years, we’ve seen some of the UFC’s titles change hands like a hot potato, with no fighters being able to truly dominate the division for a lengthy time.
Does this make those titles less credible? Of course not. In fact, it could be argued that a title that’s hard to hold onto is worth more than one that a champion can defend with ease.
Here are the five UFC titles that have changed hands the most.
Note: For the purposes of this article, interim titles have not been considered.
#5. UFC lightweight title – 11 champions
When the lightweight title is mentioned, names like B.J. Penn, Khabib Nurmagomedov and Frankie Edgar instantly come to mind as some of the more dominant 155-pound champions that the promotion has had.
However, surprisingly enough, the lightweight title has actually changed hands on more occasions than fans might think, with 11 different title reigns taking place over the two decades since its inauguration in February 2001.
The division’s first champion was actually one of its more dominant titleholders. Jens Pulver claimed the inaugural title by defeating Caol Uno, and then went onto defend it twice, beating Dennis Hallman and Penn.
When ‘Lil Evil’ departed the promotion due to a contract dispute in 2002, though, it took another four years to crown another champion, as Sean Sherk outpointed Kenny Florian for the vacant belt in late 2006.
It was Penn’s title reign, which began in 2008, that really put the title and the lightweight division as a whole on the map, though. ‘The Prodigy’ was the first 155lber to become a true pay-per-view draw, although his reign only lasted two years and encompassed just three defenses before he was unseated by Edgar.
Following that, the title switched hands on multiple occasions, with the likes of Anthony Pettis, Rafael dos Anjos and Eddie Alvarez having short reigns before Conor McGregor’s time as champ threw the division into flux due to his lengthy reign seeing no defenses.
In 2018, though, Nurmagomedov claimed the title and immediately brought the prestige back, holding it for 1077 days and defending it three times.
Khabib Nurmagomedov put Justin Gaethje to sleep with a triangle choke 🤯 #UFC254 https://t.co/E2f3jCmt6M
Right now, though, the title is vacant due to previous champion Charles Oliveira missing weight for his latest bout, meaning that a 12th lightweight champion will need to be crowned soon.