Who are the greatest UFC Light Heavyweight fighters of all time?

Undeniably, one of the most competitive brackets throughout the UFCs history is the Light Heavyweight division. Arguably, some divisions at either end of the weight spectrum are easier to fight in. However, the Light Heavyweight category is notorious for producing well rounded fighters who excel at practically every given skill set in MMA.

This weight is between 84-93KG (186lbs-205lbs) which means most fighters are walking around 90KG. With this said, taking a hit from these guys would not be fun and the division is not for the fainthearted. Read on for our list of the greatest UFC Light Heavyweight fighters of all time.

Jon Jones

At the time of writing, Jon Jones has a record of 26-1 in MMA, and that one loss was due to a DQ because of elbows. What’s more, 20 of those wins came in the UFC and a staggering 11 of those wins have been defending his Light Heavyweight title. In other words, Jon Jones makes a solid claim as MMA’s greatest of all time due to his incredible record. Wins over the likes of Ryan Bader, Rampage Jackson, Lyoto Machida, Vitor Belfort and Daniel Cormier are perhaps why Jon Jones is so highly rated.

However, putting his controversial personal life aside, Jones has certain question marks over his record. Firstly, one of his defeats against Daniel Cormier got overturned due to substance abuse. He’s also been banned previously for steroids as well as supposedly hiding under an MMA ring in a gym to avoid a drugs test. Undoubtedly, if Jones was all-natural then he’d still be a fantastic fighter, but these allegations and facts have certainly tainted his image.

Daniel Cormier

Before entering the UFC, Daniel Cormier was already an established D1 wrestler and Heavyweight Champion in Strikeforce. However, few could have foreseen his UFC run at Light Heavyweight. Cormier would eventually retire with a solid record of 22-3. Sadly, two of those losses were against Stipe Miocic at the end of his career, and one was earlier on against Jon Jones.

Talking of which, without Jon Jones in the picture, DC would have probably been at the top of this list. Although they had a personal beef and an exciting rivalry, sadly for Cormier it seemed that Jones would often get the better of him in the octagon. Nonetheless, his record was also elite and wins over the likes of Anderson Silva and Dan Henderson proved just how great Cormier was.

Interestingly, unlike most in the Light Heavyweight division, Cormier mostly relied on his grappling ability to win matches. Although you could argue this division was mostly for strikers, Cormier bucked the trend and proved that with the right strategy and IQ, wrestling could work against some of the heaviest hitters in UFC history.

Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua

Sadly, Shogun never quite hit the same highs in the UFC as he did in Japan. Previously in PRIDE, he’d lost once in 13 fights including wins over Antonio Noguiera, Alistair Overeem, Rampage Jackson, and others. In fact, on arrival in the UFC, he lost his debut against Forrest Griffin. This didn’t stop Shogun though, who eventually won the Light Heavyweight title by defeating Lyoto Machida in a re-match. At this point, his record was a respectable 19-4 but he then lost against Jon Jones who held onto the belt ever since.

Shogun never recaptured the title and ended up retiring with a fairly patchy record of 27-12. During this time, his record was sporadic but he still defeated some pretty big names. Perhaps the most frustrating thing about Shogun is that he’d arrived at the UFC a few years too late. Had he left PRIDE earlier, he would have undoubtedly had more of a dominant run in Light Heavyweight division. Nonetheless, Shogun will be remembered for beating some of the best on the planet and putting on a show.

Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson

Another PRIDE import, Rampage Jackson quickly established himself on the UFC scene in 2007 where he won the Light Heavyweight belt in just his second fight after knocking out Chuck Lidell. Rampage was one of those fighters who looked like they could easily be in the weight category above and cut a physically imposing figure. This is so much so that Jon Jones genuinely dreamed of being killed by Jackson in the build up to their title fight. What’s scarier, is that one of his signature moves was literally slamming opponents unconscious which was like something out of a video game.

Rampage Jackson retired from MMA with a 38-14 record, but at his peak was a physical specimen and racked up various knockout of the night bonuses which showed off his scary knockout power. Furthermore, he never got a single submission victory in the UFC which cemented his reputation as a knockout artist.

Chuck Liddell

With four Light Heavyweight title defenses to his name, Liddell was one of the original big names in the UFC division and helped put the roster on the map. Sadly, like many MMA stars, his career ended on bad terms with a poor losing streak. Nonetheless, at the time of his last defense of the strap, his record was an impressive 20-3. Here, he held multiple wins over both Randy Couture and Tito Ortiz, who were both top names in the division at the time.

Like Rampage Jackson, Liddell was known as being a top knockout artist and was known for easily putting people to the ground. His emergence as a top fighter also came during an era when the UFC began to blow up in popularity. This was in part down to Liddell and his exciting displays. He also represented a more technical fighter compared to the earlier days when bouts seemed more chaotic and less skilled.

Wanderlei Silva

In fairness, the inclusion of Wanderlei Silva on this list can be labeled a little controversial. This is because when he signed to the UFC, his best fighting days were far behind him. In fact, it was actually PRIDE in Japan were he was at his peak, earning the chilling nickname of ‘The axe murderer’. Here, he was arguably the greatest Middleweight champion ever in PRIDE and beat Quinton Jackson, Kazushi Sakuraba, Dan Henderson and more.

Sadly, by the time Wanderlei joined the UFC he had definitely taken a few heavy blows to the head and so his record actually wasn’t that good. However, he certainly left his mark on the company, earning a Knockout of the year award, as well as other bonus-winning fights. Like Shogun, he probably joined a bit too late and is certainly a case of what could have been. Although he never won a title, his time in the UFC will still be remembered fondly by fans.

Lyoto Machida

By the time he won the Light Heavyweight championship in UFC, Lyoto Machida had won 15 fights in a row and did it in style, knocking out Rashad Evans in the process. Perhaps the greatest feat that Machida bought to the UFC though wasn’t his title, it was his Karate. At the time of winning, the UFC had rarely had many capable Karate practitioners and its reputation was on the slide. However, Machida helped bring Karate to the front of MMA and proved that it could work against the best in the world.

He even scored a knockout using a rare crane kick, like the one in Karate Kid. As a result, Machida quickly created a fearsome reputation based on his head kicks which end a fight in a second. Although his run may have ended a while back, there hasn’t been a UFC champion since who has excelled in Karate, nor was there one before Machida. This shows just how good he was in the martial art and unique his fighting style was too.

Randy Couture

Perhaps Randy Couture could be higher on this list. Regardless, he is still one of the greatest ever UFC champions ever, who also earned a Heavyweight belt as well. What’s even more staggering about Couture is that before he was a professional fighter, he was actually in the military. He went pro in the late 90s and was in the earlier UFC’s, then retiring after a 20 year career aged 48. In other words, there will never be another like Randy Couture who rightly earned his spot in the UFC hall of fame.

Wins over Chuck Liddell, Tito Ortiz, and Lyoto Machida cemented his spot as a UFC legend, but in the Heavyweight category he also beat Kevin Randleman and Pedro Rizzo. As if this wasn’t enough, he took part in the first ever UFC hall of famer fight where he beat Mark Coleman. Newer MMA fans may not talk about Couture as much anymore, but this man was iconic and helped pioneer the wrestling-MMA style of fighting that is so commonly used today.

Tito Ortiz

Although Tito Ortiz is a bit of a laughing stock these days, it’s fair to say that he was a UFC beast in his prime. Interestingly, although his career started to falter, he also turned it around towards the end. Ortiz went on a six fight win streak which saw him obtain and defend the Light Heavyweight championship. Here, he fended off Wanderlei Silva, Ken Shamrock, and others.

If not for his bad patch which included 7 losses in 9 bouts, Ortiz would have a far greater reputation. Even with this bad run, he is still considered as one of the greatest ever in the UFC division and rightly earned his rank on this list.

Dan Henderson

By the time he reached the UFC, Dan Henderson had already been fighting for 10 years in Japan with PRIDE and also over at Strikeforce. Whilst at these promotions, he had won the title at each company. However, sadly the UFC Light Heavyweight belt alluded him. Although he beat Shogun and Hector Lombard, he never quite replicated his earlier form during his MMA career which saw him knockout Fedor Emelianenko.

Age may have had something to do with it though, as Henderson fought in UFC during his 40s. Still, when he fought he put on a show and everyone will remember his infamous diving punch named ‘The H Bomb’ which knocked out Michael Bisping. Once again, Henderson falls into the category of joining the UFC past his prime which meant he didn’t get a belt.