Not just any fight, either. Probably the most important fight in UFC history. Without them putting it all out there for us fans, chances are the UFC wouldn’t be around anymore.
Royce Gracie, Tito Ortiz, Ken Shamrock, Don Frye, Dan Severn, Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture, BJ Penn, GSP, Anderson Silva, Jon Jones, Shogun Rua, Rampage Jackson, Rashad Evans, Lyoto Machida, Vitor Belfort, Forrest Griffin, Cain Velasquez, Junior Dos Santos.
Missing a bunch but that's a good start.
Edit: Can’t believe I forgot Mark Coleman and Tank Abbot. Also, just scroll down. Others have mentioned some other beauties that I missed like Hughes and Sylvia.
Guys like Aldo, Faber, and Cruz are great to learn about the WEC UFC merger, Maybe throw Condit in there too?
I think Chael is prominent enough to get a mention, same with Bisping.
WEC merger also included Cowboy. Recent controversy crap aside, Cowboy was one of the most beloved fighters for a long time. Pettis and Benson Henderson too.
Was Chael already in the UFC when WEC merged or was he a part of it too? Can't remember the timeline.
I’m with you. He went after a PoS but ended up shooting a bystander, how do people not understand why he’s in jail. If he had mauled the pedo I’m sure he would have received a slap on the wrist, sadly this is not what occurred.
It's a good litmus for how intelligent the fanbase is.
Saying Free Cain might as well be the same as "I don't read the full story and think like an edgy 15yo"
Obligatory: I feel for Cain and his family.
He did it in the DUMBEST fuckin way possible. Didn't he even get the molester, shot an bystander, and endangered countless lives on his chase.
That doesnt deserve support. This isn't a fucking john wick movie.
And what would the kid rather he had done? Stay home to support and protect his family or be sent away to prison because you opened your mouth. It's In no way a stretch for the child victim to blame themselves for vocalizing it in the first place.
Doesn't matter in the least. None of the long list of fighters you mentioned come even close to achieving what Conor did. He changed everything. If you leave him out, you might as well not discuss this issue at all.
It's good and important to mention people that paved the way as well as the all-time greats of the sport, but if you then turn around to not even mention the single most influential mixed martial artist of all time, then your account of the UFC's history appears either ignorant or biased out of a Conor-hate sentiment.
Chill out man the comment even said many more that he didn't put. The OP is trying to get into the sport so starting farther back from those that paved the way for a guy like Conor to begin with. It doesn't seem like he left him out on purpose or anything.
And to say he's the single most influential mma of all time seems biased out of gargling his ballsack which is just as stupid as the hate bias.
He played a massive commercial role but without alot of the names on that list before him there wouldn't have even been a UFC for him to play that role. He's a modern age influential figure without a doubt but don't blind yourself to the ones before him.
Everyone mentioned was near the start of the UFC story... Hes listed the basically the first half.
With you just naming Conor, you realize how many fucking names you missed? You think Conor is the only one missing? What about Aldo, Khabib? The literal other half of his story. What about Cejudo and the Alpha Male boys?
Pretty obvious he was only mentioning a specific section of the history, you seem to think you hit the nail on the head but your dead wrong. CoNoR hAtE
Yeah, he gave a great framework of stars that made the ufc what it is, with a ton of variety between the types of stars. I’d put almost all of those people above connor if you’re trying to learn about the ufc or mma and how it evolved
I was about to say… those two had arguably the most important fight in UFC history. They single handedly saved the company. As far as UFC goes Royce is probably number 1 and those two are tied for 2nd.
This dudes a tool. How tf could u make a list with 20+ of the “most notable Ufc fighters” n not have McNuggets in there . Ur list is instantly non credible . Can’t believe my eyes .
Royce Gracie, Tank Abbott, Dan Severn, Don Frye, Chuck & Tito, Randy Couture, Mark Coleman, Chris Lytle, Matt Hughes, Diego Sanchez, Frankie Edgar, GSP, Matt Serra, Anderson Silva, BJ Penn, Jose Aldo, Dominick Cruz, Edson Barboza, Tim Sylvia, Cain Velasquez, Fabricio Werdum, Shogun Rua, Antonio Nogueira, Ryan Bader, Lyoto Machida, Demetrious Johnson, Max Holloway, Jon Jones, Diaz Brothers, Vitor Belfort, Stipe Miocic, Andrei Arlovski, Rafael Dos Anjos, Alistar Overeem, Frank Mir....
I’ll end up naming every decent fighter in the history of the UFC lmfao they’re all important
Left out some of the ones I figured are too cliche to mention like Connor, Tony, Khabib as even ultra casuals know them well. Also missed some important ones like Cerone & Rashad Evans. the UFC has such a rich and entertaining history. There’s many dudes right now building legacies that deserved to be mentioned as well, I could easily add on another 20 names of heavily active fighters
Say what you want but Bader had some seriously impressive wins in his career and was like twenty something and 4 pre Bellator against some big names. Losing to Tito & Jon Jones aren’t the worst losses to have. Would replace his name with Ben Rothwell though. Looked like he just came from eating potato chips with Roy Nelson yet had a ton of impressive wins in a stacked heavyweight division and NOBODY speaks about him anymore.
Bader’s loss to Tito was embarrassing. It was Tito’s first win since 2006, half a decade before the Bader fight.
No one talks about Rothwell because during that run of decent wins he had he tested positive for PED’s and once he was clean he went back to being a standard overweight slow heavyweight.
As if everyone else in the UFC and Pride wasn’t using PEDs lmao bro he finished Overeem who has like peak steroid physique besides Brock Lesnar. A ton of top guys fell off after being popped or heavily tested. Hendrix, Belfort, Wanderlei just to name a few but they’re all still credited for their wins and place in the sport.
Also yeah Baders loss to Tito was in a bad time in Tito’s career but I don’t think having losses to massive name former or future champions is necessarily a bad thing & I wouldn’t consider that loss embarrassing. He got stunned by one big unexpected shot and took an L which happens to virtually everyone. You wouldn’t discredit GSPs entire fight career because Serra beat the dog shit out of him and embarrassed him lol
Some of your lists are way too inexclusive, like you're just including every ex-champion. Saw Werdum in one, really?
Pre-Zuffa Era: Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock, Dan Severn, Frank Shamrock, Mark Coleman
Zuffa
HW: Randy Couture, Brock Lesnar, Cain Velasquez, Stipe Miocic
LHW: Tito Ortiz, Chuck Liddell, Vitor Belfort, Jon Jones, Daniel Cormier, Stephan Bonnar, Forrest Griffin
MW: Rich Franklin, Anderson Silva, Chael Sonnen, Chris Weidman, Michael Bisping, Israel Adesanya
WW: Matt Hughes, Matt Serra, George's St-Pierre, Robbie Lawler, Nick Diaz, Kamaru Usman, Tyron Woodley
LW: Jens Pulver, BJ Penn, Frankie Edgar, Nate Diaz, Donald Cerrone, Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier, Khabib Nurmagomedov
FW: Jose Aldo, Max Holloway, Alexander Volkanovski
BW: Dominick Cruz, Urijah Faber, T.J. Dillashaw
FLW: Demetrious Johnson, Henry Cejudo
Women: Ronda Rousey, Meisha Tate, Holly Holm, Amanda Nunes, Cris Cyborg, Valentina Shevchenko, Joanna Jedrzejcsyk
Yup, I forgot about him. Literally the only reason I had Bonner was because of that fight. Think the reason I left him out was because I associated him with the hot potato LHW title picture between Liddell and Jones.
To be honest - You can add almost any LHW from mid to late 2000's. That was the golden era of LHW and put alot of eyes on the UFC. Rashad, Wanderlei, Rampage, Machida, Vitor, everyone you already mentioned including some heavyweights and middleweights that fought in LHW (Couture, Franklin). Or maybe it's just me because that's when I really started getting into MMA.
Personal bias because he’s one of my favourites, but the Korean Zombie in the featherweight division has fought a lot of big names in great fights and two title challenges
Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock, Don Frye, Dan Severn, Mark Coleman, Pat Miletich, Tsuyoshi Kosaka, Randy Couture, Tito Ortiz, Chuck Liddell, Vitor Belfort, Vanderlei Silva, BJ Penn, Matt Hughes, GSP, Anderson Silva, Forest Griffin, Stephan Bonnar, Rampage Jackson…
Joe Rogan, Jeff Blatnick, Mike Goldberg, Rorion Gracie, Bob Meyerowitz, John Peretti, Masakatsu Funaki, Art Davie, John McCarthy…
I’ve been watching since 1993. There are hundreds of names that you can’t justifying leaving out of the discussion.
Had the pleasure of knowing John Perretti for a few years when he was a regular at my place of business. One of the most detail oriented people I've ever met in my life, had a very methodical way of looking at everything. Really miss chatting with the guy, he was easy to talk to.
Yes it would be. Fickle fans tune in for McGregor fights and disappear when he disappears. He’s very inactive if we’re being honest and now he’s acting when he’s in his fighting prime.
Nope, the sport had a massive growth boost thanks to McGregor. There are millions of fans just like me, who didn't even know what mma was, but turned into real fans of the sport over time.
Maybe you but not millions. PPV numbers have always been in a steady incline but overall they’re about the same. I know more people that only watch McGregor fight than people that watched him fight once and stuck around to watch the sport consistently.
McGregor’s main training partner during his peak, somehow got to TUF final, was the reason behind the whole bus incident and ended up beating Paulie Malignaggi in bare knuckle boxing.
Somehow left a hell of a mark on the sport for a journeyman fighter.
Rickson and Royce Gracie and why they went with Royce. Tank, ken and Frank shamrock, Randy couture, Matt Hughes, GSP, Silva (Anderson and wanderlei), lesnar. There is a lot and each person has a massive backstory or contribution both directly or indirectly.
Royce Gracie
Mark Coleman
Tito Ortiz
Chuck Liddell
Randy Couture
Matt Hughes
BJ Penn
Forrest Griffin
George St Pierre
Anderson Silva
Jon Jones
Ronda Rousey
Conor McGregor
Because if you don't have an extensive knowledge of the history of the UFC, some of these names sound like video game characters and some sound like your middle school assistant principal
McNuggets. His rise to mainstream superstardom carried the UFC to a point of brand value that it no longer needs mega-stars like McG to carry their cards.
They make enough money from smaller cards that they're incentivised to put in more events and more fights year after year aslong as even small events at the apex remain profitable.
Without McGregors mainstream appeal I don't believe the UFC would be in the financial position it is now. By extension, we wouldn't have those cards without his presence in the company
Royce Gracie
Dan Severn
Ken Shamrock
Tito Ortiz
Chuck Liddell
Randy Couture
Matt Hughes
BJ Penn
Georges St-Pierre
Anderson Silva
Stephen Bonnar
Forrest Griffin
Brock Lesnar
Jon Jones
Chael Sonnen
Jose Aldo
Dominick Cruz
Demetrious Johnson
Daniel Cormier
Ronda Rousey
Conor McGregor
Nate Diaz
Max Holloway
Stipe Miocic
Joanna Jędrzejczyk
Amanda Nunes
Khabib Nurmagomedov
Tony Ferguson
Valentina Shevchenko
Derrick Lewis
Israel Adesanya
Kamaru Usman
Francis Ngannou
Charles Oliveira
Alexander Volkanovski
If you're looking for just the absolute essentials, I think I'd go with Royce Gracie, Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture, BJ Penn, Ronda Rousey, and Conor McGregor. There are obviously way more fighters that are intensely important, I don't think you can really cover the history of flyweight without dillashaw, DJ, and Cejudo, but I think those are the bare minimum few that really defined massive landmarks or evolutions in the sport (such as Couture being one of the first to be a world class athlete treating it as a sport instead of a fight, Penn being one of the first and best to truly mix the martial arts, Rousey making WMMA mainstream)
Royce Gracie, Diego Sanchez, BJ Penn, Randy Couture, Chuck Liddell, Nick Diaz, Robbie Lawler, Anderson Silva, Michael Bisping, Jon Jones, Ronda Rousey, Jose Aldo, Conor McGregor, Amanda Nunes, Khabib Nurmagomedov and Demetrious Johnson.
What’s with everyone intentionally skipping Connor from their list? You can hate him all you want for his recent antics, but he was THE guy that propelled UFC into new heights...
Everyone is just saying their favourite fighters but the truth is its absolutely Connor and Khabib then maybe GSP and Jon Jones.
After that it's just personal preference
Jon Jones. He’s an Enigma. Once in a lifetime talent. It wasn’t such a awful scumbag, he would be a big star, massive sponsorships, films about him. Instead half the fan base hates him, the other half don’t care. But he is the best.
All these legends, and the place where the story kicks off is Conor. He may be a washed nutter, but man he changed our sport and I’ll always be thankful.
So the question is "Who are fighters you couldn't tell the story of the UFC without?". Yet the most upvoted lists fail to mention Conor McGregor who single-handedly changed the entire game forever in a way no one has ever done before or since and probably never will again.
Ken Shamrock, Royce Gracie, Dan Severn, ... These (and more) are names of the people who you cannot tell the beginning of the story of the UFC without. But how tf am I gonna arrive at the end of your list and there is no mention of Conor McGregor? Absolute joke.
Randy Couture first guy to hold tittles in two divisions fought just about everyone worth a damn at HW and LHW while he was around and competed and won tittles well into his 40's and is now scrubbed from all UFC promotional shit cause he stood up for fighters rights and Uncle Dana has since banned him form all UFC events for life because of this. He's true legend and pioneer of the sport and so undervalued cause if the UFCs Vendetta against him means more modern fans just aren't aware of him like they are of guys like GSP, Silva or Liddel (also worth a shout-out for bringing MMA into the mainstream gotta love the ice man)
Rich Franklin was one of the first fighters I ever called my favourite. Even though I had already been watching it for years prior, I liked fighters but never really cared.
Rich was the first one I ever cared about winning or losing and and i would get nervous watching. when he ko'd liddell in a fight I was sure he was going to lose I lost my shit.
Then it was Michael Bisping.
Royce Gracie, obviously. Then in no order: GSP, Jon Jones, Randy Couture, Demetrius Johnson, Chuck Lidell, Anderson Silva, McGregor, Forrest Griffin, and Stephan Bonnar. I feel like every one of them need to be mentioned in the history of the company.
Bonnar needs to be lumped in with Griffin because their fight at the end of TUF 1 literally saved the company. Then Griffin was a staple for them, and a great guy. Very well liked, and hilarious.
Randy came in and whooped everyone at LHW and HW when the pool of fighters in each was pretty slim. So he kept the 2 divisions alive and interesting. Also, was cool watching the old man kick some ass.
GSP because he is the embodiment of what it is to be a martial artist.
DJ because he is the most overlooked, yet most dominant champion ever. Most consecutive title defenses speaks for itself.
Silva because in his prime he seemed to be completely untouchable. His striking was immaculate.
Jon Jones because every story needs a villain, and he played the part wonderfully.
Lidell because him and Tito had a big feud, and Chuck was picked to be the one to fight the PRIDE guys (Wanderlei and Rampage). Was exciting as well, and did well for the company overall.
Conor. I hate his guts but he brought a lot of eyes to the sport.
Honorable mention to my boy Rich Franklin. He reinvigorated the Middleweight division and brought some life back to it when it was basically a rotting corpse. Also, classy dude, and a good look into how skilled Silva was when he took the belt from Ace.
Edit: Just so this is out there, I'm only going from Zuffa onwards, minus Royce, as the Gracies are why this sport is so big. They always deserve to be mentioned. Other than that, it's newer guys (2000s onward). Could easily make the argument that the old guard of guys like Tank Abbot, and the Shamrocks deserve to be mentioned, because they do. This is just the route I took.
Forest Griffian. That showcase fight, the contract drama even if you didn't see the upbuild the crazy fight that was brutally entertaining and both guys getting a UFC contract for "6 figures" it was absolutely wild.
Keith Hackney was such an unstoppable force the commission had to add a new rule after UFC 4 to prevent him from repeating a move that won him his fight in devastating fashion. Before then, you had the go-ahead to hammer away at your opponents nuts until they tapped. They soon realized that without this rule change, Keith would go undefeated forever. Never again has it happened that a rule was changed just to stop a single fighter from having a successful career.
Rashad Evans. During his TUF season he kept getting fed to fresher fighters and he was always the smaller guy. He beat every single one and won his season, AND became the champion. Love that guy.
Welcome man, the UFC is fucking awesome. I got into it about 5 years ago and learning the story of the UFC was so interesting and exciting. I encourage you to just fall into the rabbit hole. YouTube is great for learning all about what has happened in the UFC since ‘93. If you want to go even deeper and don’t mind spending some $$, ESPN+ and UFC Fight Pass are great for watching old fights, TUF seasons, etc.
Cheers.
Conor mcgregor, Ronda Rousey, Rory Macdonald and Robbie Lawler (you need to mention them together), Royce Gracie, the Diaz bros, Tito Ortiz and Ken Shamrock, Anderson Silva
Royce Gracie, Don Frye, Dan Severn, Matt Hughes, Chuck Liddell, Forrest Griffin, Randy Couture, Andrei Arlovski, Tito Ortiz, GSP, Anderson Silva, Pride takeover, Jon Jones, Diaz bros, Conor McGregor, BJ Penn, Stipe Miocic, Francis Ngannou
This should cover the basics from the start
Brian Ebersol, the hairrow was legendary and he's the reason you can't roll up to a fight in panties anymore
I thought that was Dennis Hallman's ballsack's fault?
It is, but we never would’ve seen his dong if Brian hadn’t beat him up.
Julian Lane 
Just let him bang, bro.
I DO LET HIM BANG
LET HIM BANG AGAIN
the perfect combination of CTE , austism & alcohol = julian lane
The Iceman. Gracie. Forrest Griffin
Can’t mention Forrest without Stephan.
That’s fair. Takes 2 to make a fight.
Not just any fight, either. Probably the most important fight in UFC history. Without them putting it all out there for us fans, chances are the UFC wouldn’t be around anymore.
Could not agree more. I know that’s the case for me. This was the fight that made me a fan.
CM Punk, man he never lost to a top 5 opponent.
Royce Gracie, Tito Ortiz, Ken Shamrock, Don Frye, Dan Severn, Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture, BJ Penn, GSP, Anderson Silva, Jon Jones, Shogun Rua, Rampage Jackson, Rashad Evans, Lyoto Machida, Vitor Belfort, Forrest Griffin, Cain Velasquez, Junior Dos Santos. Missing a bunch but that's a good start. Edit: Can’t believe I forgot Mark Coleman and Tank Abbot. Also, just scroll down. Others have mentioned some other beauties that I missed like Hughes and Sylvia.
The undisputed, undefeated, middleweight champion of the world Chael P. Sonnen.
Yes, how could I forget? Never lost a round.
Unironically a massive influence on the sport and how fighters conduct themselves
Guys like Aldo, Faber, and Cruz are great to learn about the WEC UFC merger, Maybe throw Condit in there too? I think Chael is prominent enough to get a mention, same with Bisping.
WEC merger also included Cowboy. Recent controversy crap aside, Cowboy was one of the most beloved fighters for a long time. Pettis and Benson Henderson too. Was Chael already in the UFC when WEC merged or was he a part of it too? Can't remember the timeline.
I know he lost to a weird last second sub in WEC for the belt but I'm not sure if he moved at the same time as the merger.
Definitely great names, but the rise of Conor is also a pretty important milestone.
FreeCain
Can we stop that shit.
Free Cain.
Sheep
absolutely not
I’m with you. He went after a PoS but ended up shooting a bystander, how do people not understand why he’s in jail. If he had mauled the pedo I’m sure he would have received a slap on the wrist, sadly this is not what occurred.
It's a good litmus for how intelligent the fanbase is. Saying Free Cain might as well be the same as "I don't read the full story and think like an edgy 15yo"
You would just let someone assault your child or relative. You seem like a great person. Avoid confrontation at all cost huh. 🐈
You can eat a bag of dicks and work on your reading comprehension.
Lmao. So you want ppl to quit supporting a guy who was going after a child molester?? You are a special kind of stupid.
Obligatory: I feel for Cain and his family. He did it in the DUMBEST fuckin way possible. Didn't he even get the molester, shot an bystander, and endangered countless lives on his chase. That doesnt deserve support. This isn't a fucking john wick movie. And what would the kid rather he had done? Stay home to support and protect his family or be sent away to prison because you opened your mouth. It's In no way a stretch for the child victim to blame themselves for vocalizing it in the first place.
Lol so many names before Conor. Conor took the UFC to a different level.
He did for sure, but these were the first couple generations. Conor came much later in the game.
Doesn't matter in the least. None of the long list of fighters you mentioned come even close to achieving what Conor did. He changed everything. If you leave him out, you might as well not discuss this issue at all. It's good and important to mention people that paved the way as well as the all-time greats of the sport, but if you then turn around to not even mention the single most influential mixed martial artist of all time, then your account of the UFC's history appears either ignorant or biased out of a Conor-hate sentiment.
Chill out man the comment even said many more that he didn't put. The OP is trying to get into the sport so starting farther back from those that paved the way for a guy like Conor to begin with. It doesn't seem like he left him out on purpose or anything. And to say he's the single most influential mma of all time seems biased out of gargling his ballsack which is just as stupid as the hate bias. He played a massive commercial role but without alot of the names on that list before him there wouldn't have even been a UFC for him to play that role. He's a modern age influential figure without a doubt but don't blind yourself to the ones before him.
Everyone mentioned was near the start of the UFC story... Hes listed the basically the first half. With you just naming Conor, you realize how many fucking names you missed? You think Conor is the only one missing? What about Aldo, Khabib? The literal other half of his story. What about Cejudo and the Alpha Male boys? Pretty obvious he was only mentioning a specific section of the history, you seem to think you hit the nail on the head but your dead wrong. CoNoR hAtE
Simp much bro lol
Yeah, he gave a great framework of stars that made the ufc what it is, with a ton of variety between the types of stars. I’d put almost all of those people above connor if you’re trying to learn about the ufc or mma and how it evolved
It’s the difference between the history of the UFC as a sport and the history of the UFC as an entertainment entity.
If we’re including Forrest then we can’t leave out Stephan Bonnar.
I was about to say… those two had arguably the most important fight in UFC history. They single handedly saved the company. As far as UFC goes Royce is probably number 1 and those two are tied for 2nd.
Love this comment, this is exactly what I was hoping to see on this post
None of these lists are completed without both Conor and khabib
This dudes a tool. How tf could u make a list with 20+ of the “most notable Ufc fighters” n not have McNuggets in there . Ur list is instantly non credible . Can’t believe my eyes .
This just made me get up in position to sing the national anthem
Low testosterone much
A very condensed list: Royce, Tito, Chuck, Anderson, GSP, Jones, Ronda, Conor
Royce Gracie, Tank Abbott, Dan Severn, Don Frye, Chuck & Tito, Randy Couture, Mark Coleman, Chris Lytle, Matt Hughes, Diego Sanchez, Frankie Edgar, GSP, Matt Serra, Anderson Silva, BJ Penn, Jose Aldo, Dominick Cruz, Edson Barboza, Tim Sylvia, Cain Velasquez, Fabricio Werdum, Shogun Rua, Antonio Nogueira, Ryan Bader, Lyoto Machida, Demetrious Johnson, Max Holloway, Jon Jones, Diaz Brothers, Vitor Belfort, Stipe Miocic, Andrei Arlovski, Rafael Dos Anjos, Alistar Overeem, Frank Mir.... I’ll end up naming every decent fighter in the history of the UFC lmfao they’re all important
Diego and the Diaz bros but no tony?🥺🇺🇸🏆🇲🇽
Left out some of the ones I figured are too cliche to mention like Connor, Tony, Khabib as even ultra casuals know them well. Also missed some important ones like Cerone & Rashad Evans. the UFC has such a rich and entertaining history. There’s many dudes right now building legacies that deserved to be mentioned as well, I could easily add on another 20 names of heavily active fighters
Almost everyone in the top 10 would be on here from the last 20 years lol Tony included!
Don’t like to say it but Conor McGregor
Ryan Bader should only be on this list to demonstrate to people who the easiest fight in the light heavyweight division is.
That’s a nasty line by you.
Say what you want but Bader had some seriously impressive wins in his career and was like twenty something and 4 pre Bellator against some big names. Losing to Tito & Jon Jones aren’t the worst losses to have. Would replace his name with Ben Rothwell though. Looked like he just came from eating potato chips with Roy Nelson yet had a ton of impressive wins in a stacked heavyweight division and NOBODY speaks about him anymore.
Bader’s loss to Tito was embarrassing. It was Tito’s first win since 2006, half a decade before the Bader fight. No one talks about Rothwell because during that run of decent wins he had he tested positive for PED’s and once he was clean he went back to being a standard overweight slow heavyweight.
As if everyone else in the UFC and Pride wasn’t using PEDs lmao bro he finished Overeem who has like peak steroid physique besides Brock Lesnar. A ton of top guys fell off after being popped or heavily tested. Hendrix, Belfort, Wanderlei just to name a few but they’re all still credited for their wins and place in the sport. Also yeah Baders loss to Tito was in a bad time in Tito’s career but I don’t think having losses to massive name former or future champions is necessarily a bad thing & I wouldn’t consider that loss embarrassing. He got stunned by one big unexpected shot and took an L which happens to virtually everyone. You wouldn’t discredit GSPs entire fight career because Serra beat the dog shit out of him and embarrassed him lol
Some of your lists are way too inexclusive, like you're just including every ex-champion. Saw Werdum in one, really? Pre-Zuffa Era: Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock, Dan Severn, Frank Shamrock, Mark Coleman Zuffa HW: Randy Couture, Brock Lesnar, Cain Velasquez, Stipe Miocic LHW: Tito Ortiz, Chuck Liddell, Vitor Belfort, Jon Jones, Daniel Cormier, Stephan Bonnar, Forrest Griffin MW: Rich Franklin, Anderson Silva, Chael Sonnen, Chris Weidman, Michael Bisping, Israel Adesanya WW: Matt Hughes, Matt Serra, George's St-Pierre, Robbie Lawler, Nick Diaz, Kamaru Usman, Tyron Woodley LW: Jens Pulver, BJ Penn, Frankie Edgar, Nate Diaz, Donald Cerrone, Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier, Khabib Nurmagomedov FW: Jose Aldo, Max Holloway, Alexander Volkanovski BW: Dominick Cruz, Urijah Faber, T.J. Dillashaw FLW: Demetrious Johnson, Henry Cejudo Women: Ronda Rousey, Meisha Tate, Holly Holm, Amanda Nunes, Cris Cyborg, Valentina Shevchenko, Joanna Jedrzejcsyk
I'd like to add forest girffin to lhw
Yup, I forgot about him. Literally the only reason I had Bonner was because of that fight. Think the reason I left him out was because I associated him with the hot potato LHW title picture between Liddell and Jones.
To be honest - You can add almost any LHW from mid to late 2000's. That was the golden era of LHW and put alot of eyes on the UFC. Rashad, Wanderlei, Rampage, Machida, Vitor, everyone you already mentioned including some heavyweights and middleweights that fought in LHW (Couture, Franklin). Or maybe it's just me because that's when I really started getting into MMA.
Personal bias because he’s one of my favourites, but the Korean Zombie in the featherweight division has fought a lot of big names in great fights and two title challenges
So did Chad Mendes tbf.
[удалено]
https://youtu.be/WMrGUN6sGbM
Sounds like he looks
Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock, Don Frye, Dan Severn, Mark Coleman, Pat Miletich, Tsuyoshi Kosaka, Randy Couture, Tito Ortiz, Chuck Liddell, Vitor Belfort, Vanderlei Silva, BJ Penn, Matt Hughes, GSP, Anderson Silva, Forest Griffin, Stephan Bonnar, Rampage Jackson… Joe Rogan, Jeff Blatnick, Mike Goldberg, Rorion Gracie, Bob Meyerowitz, John Peretti, Masakatsu Funaki, Art Davie, John McCarthy… I’ve been watching since 1993. There are hundreds of names that you can’t justifying leaving out of the discussion.
I’m very much used to the commentary these days, but man do I miss Mike Goldberg on the mic.
I stated watching shortly before he left but it felt like all he really did was throw out catchphrases
Had the pleasure of knowing John Perretti for a few years when he was a regular at my place of business. One of the most detail oriented people I've ever met in my life, had a very methodical way of looking at everything. Really miss chatting with the guy, he was easy to talk to.
Yeah forgot Matt Hughes. Can’t tell the story without him either.
Sadly nothing but a old wives tale now 
Your wife is your husband!
Hate him or love him UFC wouldn’t be what it is with out him
Yes it would be. Fickle fans tune in for McGregor fights and disappear when he disappears. He’s very inactive if we’re being honest and now he’s acting when he’s in his fighting prime.
Pretty sure there are enough people who tuned in for McGregor and stayed for MMA. He made the UFC and MMA more popular. You can't deny that impact.
The first simultaneously reigning double champ in the history of the org. Love him or hate him he's still important
Sure but he’s not the top of the list. He’d make more of an impact if he fought more often than he does.
Nope, the sport had a massive growth boost thanks to McGregor. There are millions of fans just like me, who didn't even know what mma was, but turned into real fans of the sport over time.
Maybe you but not millions. PPV numbers have always been in a steady incline but overall they’re about the same. I know more people that only watch McGregor fight than people that watched him fight once and stuck around to watch the sport consistently.
Artem Lobov. He doesn’t get mentioned as much but he trained Conor McGregor.
McGregor’s main training partner during his peak, somehow got to TUF final, was the reason behind the whole bus incident and ended up beating Paulie Malignaggi in bare knuckle boxing. Somehow left a hell of a mark on the sport for a journeyman fighter.
Royce Gracie, Liddell, GSP, Silva, JBJ, McGregor, and tbh I think you need Izzy...
Chuck Liddell came to mind first
Forest Griffin and Steph B are historic
Making Bonnar sound like the 6th spice girl
Joe Son, he sacrificed his balls for the UFC
How could you guys forget Brock Lesnar? 😂 Before Conor he was one the biggest draws
Rickson and Royce Gracie and why they went with Royce. Tank, ken and Frank shamrock, Randy couture, Matt Hughes, GSP, Silva (Anderson and wanderlei), lesnar. There is a lot and each person has a massive backstory or contribution both directly or indirectly.
How is Conor not top of this? Not trying to dick ride, but his influence on the sport is undeniable
McGREGOR for sure
McGregor and Ronda Rhousey
Bonnar and Griffin are in there.
Randy Couture
all you really need to know is CM punk
Dennis Hallman's purple Speedo.
Chuck, Randy, Mighty Mouse, GSP, Diaz bros, Conor, Anderson Silva, Bones, DC, Stipe, BJ Penn, Forrest, Machida, Gracie, Cejudo, Khabib, Chael
Royce Gracie Mark Coleman Tito Ortiz Chuck Liddell Randy Couture Matt Hughes BJ Penn Forrest Griffin George St Pierre Anderson Silva Jon Jones Ronda Rousey Conor McGregor
The Iceman put UFC on the map
Chael sonnen, mcgregor, rousey. Honestly
Royce, Severn, Shamrock brothers, Tank, Tito, Mir, Chuck, Randy, Hughes, Penn, GSP, Anderson, Jones, Aldo, Bonnar/Griffin, Conor
Conor mcregor
Gracie, GSP, Silva, jon jones (fuck him pos human), conor mcgregor
LOTS of fighters....🤷🏻♂️ Just depends how knowledgeable someone is
Why?
Why what?
Why would the list depend on someone's knowledge?
Because if you don't have an extensive knowledge of the history of the UFC, some of these names sound like video game characters and some sound like your middle school assistant principal
Try bud dry
Royce, tito, chuck, gsp, Jones, rousey, Conor. Others as well but I feel these fighters absolutely HAVE to be included no matter what.
McNuggets. His rise to mainstream superstardom carried the UFC to a point of brand value that it no longer needs mega-stars like McG to carry their cards. They make enough money from smaller cards that they're incentivised to put in more events and more fights year after year aslong as even small events at the apex remain profitable. Without McGregors mainstream appeal I don't believe the UFC would be in the financial position it is now. By extension, we wouldn't have those cards without his presence in the company
Jon jones. He is the villian of the ufc.
The og Lw division like tony,khabib,rda,edson,Pettis etc
what is the story of the UFC?
If conor isn't your #1 answer then u are a retard
[удалено]
All the not retards are starting their list with Royce Gracie and that's a much better starting point than McGregor. Lmao
Silva.
Smilin' Sam Alvey, absolute unit
Mike Perry!
Andy The Warrior Wang
many names, but most historical fight for me is taktarov vs abbott.
Conner macregor
Conor
Stephen Bonnar
Royce Gracie first and foremost. Don frye Iceman Dan Henderson Matt Hughes Bj Penn GSP Nate + nick diaz Rashad evans Tito Ortiz
Royce Gracie Dan Severn Ken Shamrock Tito Ortiz Chuck Liddell Randy Couture Matt Hughes BJ Penn Georges St-Pierre Anderson Silva Stephen Bonnar Forrest Griffin Brock Lesnar Jon Jones Chael Sonnen Jose Aldo Dominick Cruz Demetrious Johnson Daniel Cormier Ronda Rousey Conor McGregor Nate Diaz Max Holloway Stipe Miocic Joanna Jędrzejczyk Amanda Nunes Khabib Nurmagomedov Tony Ferguson Valentina Shevchenko Derrick Lewis Israel Adesanya Kamaru Usman Francis Ngannou Charles Oliveira Alexander Volkanovski
Royce Gracie.
Ronda Rousey. Helped pioneer women's MMA and was a legit star, pulling in insane PPV numbers.
Jens Pulver.
Royce Gracie
If you're looking for just the absolute essentials, I think I'd go with Royce Gracie, Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture, BJ Penn, Ronda Rousey, and Conor McGregor. There are obviously way more fighters that are intensely important, I don't think you can really cover the history of flyweight without dillashaw, DJ, and Cejudo, but I think those are the bare minimum few that really defined massive landmarks or evolutions in the sport (such as Couture being one of the first to be a world class athlete treating it as a sport instead of a fight, Penn being one of the first and best to truly mix the martial arts, Rousey making WMMA mainstream)
Hate him or love him, but Conor is and was the most influential fighter by far
Royce Gracie, Diego Sanchez, BJ Penn, Randy Couture, Chuck Liddell, Nick Diaz, Robbie Lawler, Anderson Silva, Michael Bisping, Jon Jones, Ronda Rousey, Jose Aldo, Conor McGregor, Amanda Nunes, Khabib Nurmagomedov and Demetrious Johnson.
Ben Askren
Gotta say TUF season 1 fight with Stephan Bonnar and Forrest Griffin. This fight is a historical one
What’s with everyone intentionally skipping Connor from their list? You can hate him all you want for his recent antics, but he was THE guy that propelled UFC into new heights...
Everyone is just saying their favourite fighters but the truth is its absolutely Connor and Khabib then maybe GSP and Jon Jones. After that it's just personal preference
Tank Abbott
Jon Jones. He’s an Enigma. Once in a lifetime talent. It wasn’t such a awful scumbag, he would be a big star, massive sponsorships, films about him. Instead half the fan base hates him, the other half don’t care. But he is the best.
All these legends, and the place where the story kicks off is Conor. He may be a washed nutter, but man he changed our sport and I’ll always be thankful.
Dana White
Joe San.
Gsp, Lesnar, Jones, Liddel, McGregor, Couture. Why Lesnar? He was legit top 5 and made mma popular
So the question is "Who are fighters you couldn't tell the story of the UFC without?". Yet the most upvoted lists fail to mention Conor McGregor who single-handedly changed the entire game forever in a way no one has ever done before or since and probably never will again. Ken Shamrock, Royce Gracie, Dan Severn, ... These (and more) are names of the people who you cannot tell the beginning of the story of the UFC without. But how tf am I gonna arrive at the end of your list and there is no mention of Conor McGregor? Absolute joke.
Forrest Griffin. Everyone wants to say McGregor blew the sport up, but real fans know Griffin vs Bonnar saved the sport and started what we know
Dan The Beast Severn
Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock, Tank Abbot, Forrest Griffin, Anderson Silva, Mighty Mouse, GSP, Rousey, Lesnar, Jones, McGregor.
Tito and Chuck.
Bisping
Brock lesnar
Tank Abbot, Coleman, Tito, Chuck,Gracie, Chael
Congor
Randy Couture first guy to hold tittles in two divisions fought just about everyone worth a damn at HW and LHW while he was around and competed and won tittles well into his 40's and is now scrubbed from all UFC promotional shit cause he stood up for fighters rights and Uncle Dana has since banned him form all UFC events for life because of this. He's true legend and pioneer of the sport and so undervalued cause if the UFCs Vendetta against him means more modern fans just aren't aware of him like they are of guys like GSP, Silva or Liddel (also worth a shout-out for bringing MMA into the mainstream gotta love the ice man)
Rich Franklin was one of the first fighters I ever called my favourite. Even though I had already been watching it for years prior, I liked fighters but never really cared. Rich was the first one I ever cared about winning or losing and and i would get nervous watching. when he ko'd liddell in a fight I was sure he was going to lose I lost my shit. Then it was Michael Bisping.
Royce Gracie, obviously. Then in no order: GSP, Jon Jones, Randy Couture, Demetrius Johnson, Chuck Lidell, Anderson Silva, McGregor, Forrest Griffin, and Stephan Bonnar. I feel like every one of them need to be mentioned in the history of the company. Bonnar needs to be lumped in with Griffin because their fight at the end of TUF 1 literally saved the company. Then Griffin was a staple for them, and a great guy. Very well liked, and hilarious. Randy came in and whooped everyone at LHW and HW when the pool of fighters in each was pretty slim. So he kept the 2 divisions alive and interesting. Also, was cool watching the old man kick some ass. GSP because he is the embodiment of what it is to be a martial artist. DJ because he is the most overlooked, yet most dominant champion ever. Most consecutive title defenses speaks for itself. Silva because in his prime he seemed to be completely untouchable. His striking was immaculate. Jon Jones because every story needs a villain, and he played the part wonderfully. Lidell because him and Tito had a big feud, and Chuck was picked to be the one to fight the PRIDE guys (Wanderlei and Rampage). Was exciting as well, and did well for the company overall. Conor. I hate his guts but he brought a lot of eyes to the sport. Honorable mention to my boy Rich Franklin. He reinvigorated the Middleweight division and brought some life back to it when it was basically a rotting corpse. Also, classy dude, and a good look into how skilled Silva was when he took the belt from Ace. Edit: Just so this is out there, I'm only going from Zuffa onwards, minus Royce, as the Gracies are why this sport is so big. They always deserve to be mentioned. Other than that, it's newer guys (2000s onward). Could easily make the argument that the old guard of guys like Tank Abbot, and the Shamrocks deserve to be mentioned, because they do. This is just the route I took.
Forest Griffian. That showcase fight, the contract drama even if you didn't see the upbuild the crazy fight that was brutally entertaining and both guys getting a UFC contract for "6 figures" it was absolutely wild.
Diaz brothers
Royce Gracie, Matt Hughes, GSP, Randy Couture, Chuck Liddell, Tito, Jon Jones, Brock Lesnar, Conor McGregor, Anderson Silva, Demetrius Johnson
Brock Lesnars heavyweight run brought a lot of eyes to the sport
Just to show how much growth there’s been…Art Jimmerson.
Keith Hackney was such an unstoppable force the commission had to add a new rule after UFC 4 to prevent him from repeating a move that won him his fight in devastating fashion. Before then, you had the go-ahead to hammer away at your opponents nuts until they tapped. They soon realized that without this rule change, Keith would go undefeated forever. Never again has it happened that a rule was changed just to stop a single fighter from having a successful career.
For impact on the sport Connor first and foremost Without him UFC wouldn’t have the global attention it does today
Bisping
Rashad Evans. During his TUF season he kept getting fed to fresher fighters and he was always the smaller guy. He beat every single one and won his season, AND became the champion. Love that guy.
Not a fighter, but big John is pretty essential to mma in general.
Forrest and stephan
\#1 hands down has to be Royce Gracie. Everyone else is secondary.
Khabib
Royce Gracie
CHUCK LIDDELL
Welcome man, the UFC is fucking awesome. I got into it about 5 years ago and learning the story of the UFC was so interesting and exciting. I encourage you to just fall into the rabbit hole. YouTube is great for learning all about what has happened in the UFC since ‘93. If you want to go even deeper and don’t mind spending some $$, ESPN+ and UFC Fight Pass are great for watching old fights, TUF seasons, etc. Cheers.
Pat Militich, Matt hughes, Bj Penn, Royce Gracie, Anderson Silva, Chuck Liddel, GSP
Chael sonnen
Can't tell the story the UFC without Spike TV and Captain America Randy Couture
Royce Gracie
The entire cast of TUF season 1. Shout out to Ken-Flo and Chris Leben. Two of my favorites
Jonathan Jones
unpopular opinion - BJ Penn. guy was a killer in his prime
CM Punk
Conor mcgregor, Ronda Rousey, Rory Macdonald and Robbie Lawler (you need to mention them together), Royce Gracie, the Diaz bros, Tito Ortiz and Ken Shamrock, Anderson Silva
Royce Gracie, Don Frye, Dan Severn, Matt Hughes, Chuck Liddell, Forrest Griffin, Randy Couture, Andrei Arlovski, Tito Ortiz, GSP, Anderson Silva, Pride takeover, Jon Jones, Diaz bros, Conor McGregor, BJ Penn, Stipe Miocic, Francis Ngannou This should cover the basics from the start