10 Best UFC Bantamweights Of All Time, Ranked

Highlights

• Bantamweight division in UFC thrives with fast, skilled fighters.
• Urijah Faber a solid foundation, despite never winning title.
• Cory Sandhagen impresses with versatile skill set, eyeing title shot.

In 2010, the UFC announced that they would be adopting the bantamweight division from World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) the following year. The WEC bantamweight championship would become the UFC bantamweight championship. Prior to this announcement, the best lower-weight fighters in the world were not fighting in the UFC.

Since then, the 135-pound division has been home to some of the fastest and technically-sound fighters in the mixed martial arts industry. Over the past decade, some of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world have come from the bantamweight division. Notably, 10 specific fighters have made their claim to being the best to ever compete in the weight class.

10 Best UFC Featherweights Of All Time, Ranked

10 Urijah Faber Was A Constant Contender

Faber Helped Build UFC's Bantamweight Buzz

"The California Kid" Urijah Faber was one of the first stars in the UFC bantamweight division, as he was already established as a former WEC featherweight champion. Faber first fought then-champion Dominick Cruz at UFC 132 for bantamweight gold -- the first time the division headlined a PPV event.

Despite his mobility, wrestling and power-punching, Faber lost that fight, another Cruz rematch for the belt, and two title shots against Renan Barão. Despite never winning the championship, Faber would go on to earn 11 wins in the UFC bantamweight division, asserting himself as one of the rocks upon which the division was built before retiring in 2019.

9 Cory Sandhagen Has Helped Evolve Bantamweight

'The Sandman' Proves What Mixing It Up Really Means

Apart from being one of its nicest fighters, Cory Sandhagen is one of the UFC's most proficient, dynamic and diminutive bantamweights. He can strike, grapple and control the rhythm of a fight remarkably well. He has TKOs over Austin Arnett, Iuri Alcântara, Marlon Moraes and Song Yadong. Not to mention, that wild flying knee that slept Frankie Edgar in 2021.

Sandhagen also boasts a submission win over Mario Bautista, and decisions over Rob Font and contender, Marlon 'Chito' Vera. Many are expecting the versatile 'Sandman' to fight for the title soon, deeming him inevitable due to how good he has been in such a short span.

8 Merab Dvalishvili Is Truly A Bantamweight Machine

Dvalishvili Doesn't Know What Slowing Down Means

Merab Dvalishvili is one of the UFC's best wrestlers. He weaponizes cardio unlike any other, always seeming like he can go 10 rounds on any given night. He came into the promotion with some buzz, after winning and defending the Ring of Combat bantamweight belt. But he lost his first two to Ricky Simón and Frankie Saenz.

Since then, Dvalishvili has been on a tear, racking up an unbeaten 10-fight win streak. He had a TKO stoppage over Marlon Moraes, and decision wins over José Aldo, Petr Yan and Henry Cejudo. His takedown pedigree, relentless pressure, and ability to get back to his feet has drawn comparisons to Khabib Nurmagomedov, which is why UFC president and CEO, Dana White, views Dvalishvili as next in line.

7 Sean O'Malley Is Quite The Character

'Sugar' Backs His Talk Up

UFC's Sean O'Malley has made waves in rapidfire time, suffering a single loss to Chito at UFC 252 and a No-Contest with Pedro Munhoz due to an accidental eye poke. Recently, 'Sugar' was able to beat Aljamain Sterling to capture his first UFC title in the bantamweight division.

O'Malley also earned quite a list of accolades with multiple Performance and Fight of the Night rewards in matches against names like Petr Yan, Sterling, and Raulian Paiva. He is one of the most elite strikers in MMA, which is why he wants a boxing crossover against Gervonta Davis at some point, and even a scrap with new featherweight champion, Ilia Topuria.

6 Henry Cejudo Was A Double Champion

'The King of Cringe' Brought A Diverse Game

Henry Cejudo cut his teeth with the flyweights, eventually winning the belt from Demetrious Johnson. He then defended the belt against T.J. Dillashaw, came up to bantamweight and became a "champ-champ" by beating Marlon Moraes. He even defended the bantamweight crown against Dominick Cruz before retiring in 2020. On the heels of three dominant finishes, many felt this was the wrong move, but Cejudo felt undervalued.

Cejudo came back, only to lose a decision for the title against Aljamain Sterling in 2023, and another decision to Dvalishvili a year later. That said, while the 2008 Olympic gold medalist in the 55kg wrestling category is 2-2 at bantamweight, the fact he hasn't been finished says a lot. His grappling and tenacity are still talked about by his opponents, although it feels like the last loss is the nail in the career coffin.

5 Petr Yan Showed His 'No Mercy' Skills Off

Yan Bruised And Battered Many Opponents

Petr Yan burst onto the scene with high expectations as a former ACB bantamweight champ. He rattled off victories over Faber, Aldo and Sandhagen, among the many. He did so in impressive fashion, with some of the nastiest KOs and TKOs in the game.

10 Strongest Fighters In MMA History

Unfortunately, after taking the belt from Aldo, he lost it with a silly illegal knee to Sterling. More bad luck would ensue, because after winning the interim title against Sandhagen, he got dominated by Sterling in a rematch. This led a three-fight skid he is yet to rebound from. Still, Yan has only been beaten by elite names (including O'Malley and Dvalishvili), which is why UFC still has high hopes for him. After all, when he was winning, he turned people into highlight reels as one of the best strikers around.

4 Aljamain Sterling Had An Amazing Unbeaten Run

'Funkmaster' Showed What High-Level Grappling Was

After capturing the bantamweight title due to bizarre circumstances with that DQ victory over Yan, Sterling went on to have a decent run with the belt, scoring defenses against Yan, Dillashaw, and Cejudo. His true mettle came before, though.

To earn his title fight, Sterling won five straight, including a submission against Cory Sandhagen. He notched decisions over Pedro Munhoz, Jimmie Rivera, and former UFC bantamweight champion, Renan Barão. After dropping the title to O'Malley at UFC 292, Sterling is moving up to featherweight for UFC 300 against Calvin Kattar. Still, what he achieved at bantamweight cannot be diminished, with a nine-fight unbeaten run from 2018 to 2023 proving why he was worth the hype.

3 Renan Barão Was One Of The Best

Barão Beat Down Opponents Without Fear

From 2005 to 2014, former UFC bantamweight Champion, Renan Barão, was unbeaten, having earned 32 wins in a row. Seven of those fights took place in the famous UFC cage. During his streak, Barão won four title fights. Due to Cruz being injured, Barão copped UFC interim gold after defeating Urijah Faber in 2012. He went on to defend his interim title twice. He submitted Michael McDonald and knocked out former WEC champion Eddie Wineland.

Barão was later promoted to the undisputed champion and defended the title once in a rematch against Faber. He lost the title in 2015 to Dillashaw, submitted Mitch Gagnon, and lost another title fight to Dillashaw. After that, Barão never recovered, going 1-7 before retiring from MMA in 2023. No matter what, though, his legacy was secured due to how ruthless and aggressive he was with his striking and submissions.

2 T.J. Dillashaw Was A KO Machine

Dillashaw Was A Controversial Pocket Rocket

Since his UFC debut in 2011, T.J. Dillashaw was a firecracker in the 135 pound division. Despite failing to win The Ultimate Fighter in his debut, Dillashaw won five of his next six fights to earn a title opportunity. Dillashaw shocked the world when he knocked out Barão to win the bantamweight title.

Belal Muhammad Denied UFC 300 Title Shot Against Leon Edwards

Dillashaw has not just shown dominance during his UFC tenure, he has also shown resilience. In his first title defense, Dillashaw lost the title by a split decision to Cruz. He followed that loss with wins against John Lineker and Raphael Assunção to earn another title shot. He won the bantamweight title for a second time by defeating Cody Garbrandt. He defended the title once in a rematch against Garbrandt, but was later stripped due to a failed drug test. Dillashaw returned: lost to Cejudo, beat Sandhagen, and then retired after a bantamweight title loss to Sterling in 2022. Despite his controversies, his slick boxing style and grappling have left fans wondering if such a raw talent will return.

1 Dominick Cruz Reigned Supreme

The 'Dominator' Laid The Template Down

Dominick Cruz is the UFC's first bantamweight titlist. He came over as the WEC bantamweight champ, with names like Ian McCall and Joseph Benavidez under his belt. Fans adored his unorthodox movement, cage-cutting, angle work, and sniping in terms of striking. He would then beat the likes of Faber, Johnson, Dillashaw and Pedro Munhoz. Granted, his career has been hampered by injuries.

It's why, after losses to Garbrandt (where he relinquished his belt), Cejudo and a brutal head kick KO by Chito in 2022, Cruz has spent more time recovering and doing commentary and analysis work for the UFC. Whatever he decides, he is a future Hall of Fame candidate. At the peak of his career, Cruz won 13 fights in a row from 2008 to 2016. Seven of those fights resulted in him winning or defending championships, reiterating the man is indeed the G.O.A.T. of this division.