The UFC’s middleweight division has long been one of its most popular and for very good reason. The weight class has the right combination of size, speed, power, and also star power. Over the years, the division has had multiple great champions and legends such as Anderson Silva, Israel Adesanya, and more.
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However, not all champions are created equal. To win UFC gold you have to be great, but no fighter is actually perfect. While all of these former champions are fantastic ones, we’re going to try and rank them by their skill set, and how successful they were inside the octagon.
10 Former UFC Middleweight Champion Sean Strickland
‘Tarzan’ Upset Israel Adesanya To Win Gold Last September
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Sean Strickland |
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6’1″ |
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185 Pounds |
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28-6 Record |
Sean Strickland may be an abrasive personality, but his rise to fame has been a wild ride. Down at welterweight, ‘Tarzan’ was a very overlooked fighter but after getting into a motorcycle accident in 2018 his career looked over. Two years later he returned up at 185.
Strickland then embarked on one of the wildest runs to the title in UFC history. Against Israel Adesanya last year, he upset ‘The Last Stylebender’ to somehow win the middleweight title. While he’s already lost the championship, he’s still set on returning to the title picture.
9 Former UFC Middleweight Champion Evan Tanner
The Middleweight Great Is Overlooked Today
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Evan Tanner |
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6’0″ |
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185 Pounds |
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32-8 Record |
Evan Tanner is such an overlooked and underrated fighter today. A former UFC light heavyweight title challenger, he moved down in weight in 2003. There, Tanner would find massive success, and defeat Robbie Lawler to get a shot at the 185-pound title.
Tanner then dominated David Terrell to win the championship at UFC 51. While his title reign was brief and ended in a war against Rich Franklin, he was still an incredible fighter. For his time, he was especially well-rounded.
8 Former UFC And Strikeforce Champion Luke Rockhold
Rockhold Won Gold In Not Only One But Two Promotions
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Luke Rockhold |
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6’3″ |
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185 Pounds |
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16-6 Record |
Luke Rockhold’s prime was a bit of a brief one, but it was still excellent. He won gold in just his ninth pro fight in Strikeforce by defeating Jacare Souza, and later headed to the UFC. There, Rockhold dominated in his early stint and defeated Chris Weidman to win the gold in 2015.
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Due to injuries and a few bad knockout losses, Rockhold only won one more fight after that title win. Still, in his prime, he was a hard man to stop.
7 Former UFC Middleweight Champion Michael Bisping
‘The Count’ Somehow Won The Title In The Final Years Of His Career
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Michael Bisping |
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6’2″ |
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185 Pounds |
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30-9 Record |
Michael Bisping’s final run to UFC gold is the stuff of legend. ‘The Count’ was viewed as somewhat of a gatekeeper until 2016. The Brit would step up and face a top contender, and almost always lose. That was until he faced Anderson Silva.
Bisping defeated ‘The Spider’ in a Fight of The Year contender in his home country. After Chris Weidman fell out of his rematch against Luke Rockhold that summer, the Brit stepped up on short notice. In one of the most improbable upsets of all time, Bisping won the title by first-round stoppage.
6 Current UFC Light-Heavyweight And Former Middleweight Champion Alex Pereira
‘Poatan’ Is Quickly Becoming An Absolute Legend
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Alex Pereira |
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6’4″ |
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205 Pounds |
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10-2 Record |
Alex Pereira’s already a UFC legend and he’s still so early in his promotional run. After a career in kickboxing, the Brazilian headed to the company in 2021 to chase Israel Adesanya. After wins over Bruno Silva and Sean Strickland, he faced ‘The Last Stylebender’ at UFC 281.
In the first bout, Pereira scored a comeback knockout win over Adesanya to win the gold. While he later lost in the rematch, the Brazilian has already won gold in yet another weight class and even headlined UFC 300.
5 Former UFC Middleweight Champion Rich Franklin
‘Ace’ Dominated The Division Before Anderson Silva
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Rich Franklin |
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6’1″ |
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185 Pounds |
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29-7 (1NC) Record |
Before Anderson Silva dominated the UFC’s middleweight division, Rich Franklin was the one running it. ‘Ace’ won gold in 2005 by defeating Evan Tanner and later captured dominant title defenses over Nate Quarry and David Loiseau.
Franklin lost the gold to ‘The Spider’ in 2006, and later lost the rematch as well. However, the middleweight great remained a contender at 185 pounds, but also 205 pounds, until his retirement in 2015.
4 Former UFC Middleweight Champion Robert Whittaker
‘The Reaper’ Is Currently Hunting For His Second UFC Title
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Robert Whittaker |
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6’0″ |
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185 Pounds |
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25-7 Record |
Robert Whittaker really came out of nowhere. ‘The Reaper’ was on the verge of being cut after back-to-back losses at welterweight, but moved up in weight in 2014. There, he would embark on a nine-fight winning streak.
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Along the way, he captured the middleweight title and defeated names such as Yoel Romero, Jacare Souza, Derek Brunson, and more. Whittaker had his reign ended by Israel Adesanya in 2019 but has remained a contender ever since.
3 Former UFC Middleweight Champion Chris Weidman
The All-American Ended Anderson Silva’s Historic Title Reign
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Chris Weidman |
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6’2″ |
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185 Pounds |
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16-7 Record |
Chris Weidman shot to UFC superstardom in 2013 with an upset knockout win over Anderson Silva. Some fans thought that the victory was a fluke, but he then dominated ‘The Spider’ again in the rematch, although it ended with the Brazilian breaking his leg.
However, Weidman then dominated back-to-back legends Lyoto Machida and Vitor Belfort. While his title reign was ended by Luke Rockhold, the All-American has refused to stay down. Even after breaking his leg against Uriah Hall in 2022, he made a miraculous comeback and is still competing today.
2 Former Two-Time UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya
‘The Last Stylebender’ Could Become A Three-Time Titleholder This Year
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Israel Adesanya |
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6’4″ |
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185 Pounds |
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24-3 Record |
Love him or hate him, Israel Adesanya is an all-time great. The former kickboxing champion was signed to the UFC in 2018 and quickly found success. By the end of 2019, he was the undisputed middleweight champion.
While Adesanya later had his title reign ended by Alex Pereira, he re-captured the gold with a knockout win over ‘Poatan’. He had his second reign ended by Sean Strickland but is now expected to face Dricus du Plessis later this year.
1 Former UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva
‘The Spider’ Is One Of The Greatest Fighters Of All-Time
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Anderson Silva |
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6’2″ |
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185 Pounds |
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34-11 (1NC) Record |
Anderson Silva was so good, that sometimes his fights didn’t even look real. ‘The Spider’ was the UFC champion in his second fight in the company, and would reign in the middleweight division for six years.
Along the way, the Brazilian dominated opponent after opponent. His resume includes names such as Chael Sonnen, Vitor Belfort, Demian Maia, Dan Henderson, Rich Franklin, and more. He even dominated names such as Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar in non-title bouts up at 205 pounds.
