A Look at the Longest Unbeaten Streak in Each UFC Division
In mixed martial arts, winning streaks are a testament to skill, endurance, and supremacy. In the UFC, fighters have achieved extraordinary accomplishments, leaving an indelible mark on the sport. Let's look at the longest winning streak in each division over the years, from Strawweight to Heavyweight.
Women's Strawweight: Tatiana Suarez (5)
Our list kicks off with the #10 ranked Strawweight, Tatiana Suarez. Suarez started her UFC career in 2016 when she participated in the 23rd season of The Ultimate Fighter, where Cláudia Gadelha coached her against Team Joanna Jedrzejczyk. She beat three fighters during her TUF run before defeating Amanda Cooper in the finals to become the season's winner. Since then, she's won five fights at Strawweight and one at Flyweight, going undefeated in all her bouts. Racking up wins against the former Champion Carla Esparza and current Champion Alexa Grasso, Suarez has proven she's one of the best in the division. However, knee surgery in 2020 kept her out of the sport for three and a half years, halting her devastating run through the division. Her next bout is vs. Virna Jandiroba, back in the Strawweight division, and a victory will put her into the title picture. If she wins, her current streak will rise to six victories, just two away from tieing Joanna Jędrzejczyk's streak.
Women's Flyweight: Alexa Grasso and Erin Blanchfield (5)
In the Women's Flyweight division, we have our only tie on the list, with the record going to the current Champion, Alexa Grasso, and rising contender Erin Blanchfield.
The current Champion, Grasso, has persisted in an unexpected tear through the division since 2020. Pre-2020, she was 4-2 in the UFC and decided to move to the Flyweight division following her majority decision loss to Carla Esparza. In her Flyweight debut, she dominated Ji-Yeon Kim en route to a 30-27 victory, and since then has claimed wins over Maycee Barber, Joanna Wood, and Viviane Araujo. In her last bout, she upset former Champion Valentina Shevchenko, submitting her in the fourth round. Grasso is expected to rematch Shevchenko later in the year, where she'll have the opportunity to bring the record to six.
Alternatively, Erin Blanchfield has only had five fights in the UFC so far and has dominated every single one. Her debut came in 2021, where she overwhelmed Sarah Alpar so much that two judges scored the fight 30-25. Blanchfield then secured wins against Miranda Maverick, JJ Aldrich, and Molly McCann. Her last fight was vs. veteran Jessica Andrade, where she submitted the Brazillian in the second round. Though currently unbooked, we can expect "Cold Blooded" to return at some point this year, likely vs. a top-5 opponent.
Flyweight: Amir Albazi (5)
This one may be controversial, but we're reporting statistics here, not opinions. Amir Albazi is yet to lose inside the UFC octagon, at least as far as the judges are concerned. He debuted in 2020, defeating Malcolm Gordon via submission. He went on to dominate his next three fights, securing a submission vs. Zhalgas Zumagulov, a decision vs. Francisco Figueiredo, and a knockout against Alessandro Costa.
Albazi's last performance came against Kai Kara-France in his first UFC main event. He found success with his wrestling, nearly submitting the Kiwi with a rear-naked choke in the third round, but ultimately was outstruck in rounds 4 and 5, which made most people lean towards giving KKF the victory. However, the judges saw it differently and gave Albazi the split decision victory, bringing his current win streak to five. He's got a long way to go if he wants to overtake Demetrious Johnson's thirteen consecutive wins but never say never in this unpredictable sport of MMA.
Women's Bantamweight: Raquel Pennington (5)
Perhaps surprising to some, but Raquel Pennington currently holds the longest win streak in the Women's Bantamweight division. Pennington was also a TUF member, participating in the show's eighteenth season, where she was defeated in the semi-finals. However, the UFC still allowed her to debut, and since her victory vs. Roxanne Modafferi, she hasn't looked back. In 2020, she began to put things together. She's won fight straight victories, including an impressive showing against Ketlen Vieira in her last outing. Pennington was supposed to face Irene Aldana in a title eliminator bout, but Aldana ended up facing Amanda Nunes due to her bout with Juliana Pena falling out. She'll likely be facing the winner or loser of that matchup.
Bantamweight: Aljamain Sterling (9)
This one is going to be contentious. Though disliked by many, you can't deny that Aljamain Sterling is on a phenomenal run in the Bantamweight division right now. After suffering a devastating knockout loss to Marlon Moraes in 2017, he's put together a nine-fight win streak which has seen his capture the Bantamweight title and defend it three times. After racking up four victories, he faced Cory Sandhagen in a title eliminator bout and put on a career-best performance, submitting "The Sandman" in the first round. He then faced Petr Yan for the Bantamweight throne, and despite losing the latter end of the contest, he was illegally kneed in the fourth round and could not continue. But, in the rematch, he was able to write his wrong, executing a far better gameplan vs. Yan and securing a split decision win.
He then defeated T.J. Dillashaw by second-round TKO, and in his last bout, he beat Henry Cejudo by split decision. Though Sterling's reign has been critiqued by many, you can't discredit his skills and ability to fight against the best fighters in the world in one of2918 u the most stacked weight divisions. In his next bout, he'll face Sean O'Malley at UFC 292, where he can increase his run to double digits at ten.
Women's Featherweight: Amanda Nunes (3)
The Women's Featherweight division is empty now, with just seven fighters signed. That said, Nunes holds the crown over it, albeit short. She defeated Cris Cyborg with a devastating first-round KO in 2018 and has defended the title twice since then against Felicia Spencer and Megan Anderson. There's been no sign that she'll fight again in the division, mainly because there are no contenders for Nunes. Many fans believe the division should be scrapped altogether, and with how stagnant it's been in the last few years, it's difficult to disagree with that opinion. But we'll have to see how it unfolds as Nunes continues to add to her legacy.
Featherweight: Movsar Evloev (7)
Movsar Evloev has been an absolute machine since joining the UFC in 2019. He's fought seven times, won seven times, and won seven decisions. Despite that, Evloev has proven you don't need finishes to be a dominant fighter, with some of his most dominant performances coming vs. Dan Ige, Mike Grundy, and Seung Woo Choi. His last bout was one of the first times he's faced difficulty in his career. Evloev fought Diego Lopez at UFC 288, a short-notice bout for both men, and was nearly submitted several times. But, he gutted through them and outstruck Lopez on the feet, leading to a decision victory. He doesn't have a matchup booked at the moment. However, Bryce Mitchell has called him out for a fight, and since the two were previously scheduled to fight, we could expect to see the two fight next.
Lightweight: Islam Makhachev (11)
The current Lightweight Champion of the world has a name, and it's Islam Makhachev. Since his KO loss to Adriano Martins in his second UFC fight, Makhachev has put on an incredible run in the Lightweight division. His run to the title saw him dominate fighters like Drew Dober, Thiago Moises, and Dan Hooker. He also secured a victory vs. Arman Tsarukyan, which has aged like fine wine. However, he started to impress after his Catchweight victory vs. Bobby Green. He dominated Charles Oliveira at UFC 280, submitting him in the second round to claim the Lightweight throne.
Then, shortly after, he faced the Pound-For-Pound king and Featherweight Champion Alexander Volkanovski in a double champ showdown. After an incredibly competitive bout, Makhachev won via unanimous decision. Despite being criticized early for lack of names on his resume, his recent outings have blown away the doubters. He'll be looking to increase his unbeaten streak to thirteen in his next bout, speculated to be against the winner of Charles Oliviera vs. Beniel Dariush at UFC 294.
Welterweight: Leon Edwards (11)
Leon "Rocky" Edwards. The nickname "Rocky" has never been so fitting for a fighter. He is the UFC Welterweight Champion and had to work hard to get to it. Edwards leveled up after going 2-2 in his first four UFC fights. He won his next eight fights (including two main events), racking up wins against Vicente Luque, Donald Cerrone, and Rafael Dos Anjos. Edwards faced a setback in 2021, accidentally eye-poking Belal Muhammad, resulting in a No Contest. Undeterred, he fought Nate Diaz in his next bout, winning via unanimous decision. Then, at UFC 278, he fought Kamaru Usman in a rematch and secured one of the biggest comebacks in UFC history, KOing Usman in the fifth round with a minute left to go.
With many still doubtful Edwards' was a Championship caliber fighter, the two engaged in a trilogy at UFC 286, and Edwards went on to win by majority decision, stamping his name as the Welterweight king. His undefeated streak now stands at eleven, and he'll be looking to make it twelve in his next bout vs. Colby Covington.
Middleweight: Dricus du Plessis (5)
Dricus du Plessis debuted with a bang in 2020, KOing Markus Perez in the first round. Since then, he's taken no easy matchups and, in just three years, has secured himself a #1 contender fight, facing Robert Whittaker at UFC 290. Coming off his win, "Stillknocks" slept Trevin Giles with a lethal left hand, securing himself a matchup against #11th ranked Brad Tavares. He won this bout via decision, the first and only of his career.
To bring his win streak to five, du Plessis engaged in back-to-back wars against Darren Till, submitted in the third round, and Derek Brunson, who du Plessis TKOed in the second. These victories stamped him into the top of the Middleweight division, and now he'll look to earn a title shot by conquering Whittaker, which will also bring his streak to six.
Light-Heavyweight: Magomed Ankalaev (9)
Magomed Ankalaev is a Russian technician of the highest level. Ankalaev is one of the most dangerous fighters in the division, but he didn't start his UFC career with a win. Instead, his run began after his last-second submission loss to Paul Craig. He scored seven wins, including devastating KOs vs. Dalcha Lungiambula, Marcin Prachnio, and Ion Cutelaba. Now, riding seven wins, he fought Anthony Smith in a title eliminator and defeated the veteran via second-round TKO. This win earnt him a shot at the vacant Light-Heavyweight title.
He fought Jan Blachowicz at UFC 282, engaging in an incredibly competitive bout. During the first three rounds, Blachowicz edged Ankalaev out on the feet and nearly finished the Russian with leg kicks. But, Ankalaev pushed on and dominated Blachowicz in rounds four and five. The judges ended up scoring the contest a draw, meaning Ankalaev wasn't the Champion, but still kept his win streak intact. There has been no news for his next fight since the loss.
Heavyweight: Sergei Pavlovich (6)
We have the Russian wrecking ball Sergei Pavlovich to close out our list. Much like Ankalaev, he lost his debut by finish, a first-round TKO against UFC, and GLORY veteran Alistair Overeem. But, since 2019, the Heavyweight has looked unstoppable. He blasted through his next three opponents to secure a big name in Derrick Lewis at UFC 277. In just fifty seconds, Pavlovich defeated Lewis, taking his ranking and improving his streak to six. Then he outgunned Tai Tuivasa at almost the same time, earning a shot at one of the division's strongest wrestlers, Curtis Blaydes.
Many fans speculated this would be his peak, believing Blaydes would easily win. However, Pavlovich continued his finishing streak, TKOing Blaydes in the first round with a barrage of shots. He's now deep inside the top-5 of the division and is eyeing a matchup vs. Jon Jones or Ciryl Gane for his next fight, and if he wins, he'll bring his winning streak to seven.
As you can see, the UFC has plenty of impressive winning streaks. Some are controversial, some are dominant, but all are praiseworthy. Who do you think will keep their win streak for the longest? As a member of the Verdict Community, let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
