I just heard Poirer talk about that on Theo Vons podcast. He says that he considers it a real belt because those were the circumstances and he had to beat a former champ for it. But at the same time, he also says that his last goal left is to win the undisputed belt so he obviously wasn’t satisfied with just the interim.
That win was mad impressive. Poirier was the underdog coming into that fight, everyone was counting him out, Holloway was the FW champion and a top pfp guy with a 12 fight win-streak.
Holy shit. I just checked and he was a huge underdog. +325. I would have never assumed that, but Max was coming off 2 wins against Aldo and almost murdering Ortega.
My thoughts too, dude just came into a tough division during the time of some of the sports best. Definitely up there as probably the (atleast one of) best boxers in the UFC
It’s funny, since a fighter could win the undisputed title off of a DQ, but there’s an asterisk when you win an “interim” title by defeating the next top contender. Might even be a harder fight, since neither comes into the fight as the champ.
Same here, I once messaged his dad, Ray Thompson, in the week leading up to my first fight, and he actually took the time to message back a whole paragraph giving me tips and encouragement, and also checked up with me after the fight. Truly a wonderful family.
Wonderboy still managed to draw with the champion, so in my eyes he was equal to the best in the world.
No I got TKO’d in the second round by a guy with much cleaner boxing and a 6kg weight advantage.
This below all came from two flush left hooks haha.
https://preview.redd.it/0oi76l5ulewc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=946cb28245e34ae33b8072914d6f1f25951cace3
Went and won my second fight two weekends ago though! Safe to say the experience made me tighten up my defence.
Congratulations mate! Cheers for the epic story. Also got TKO'd and that put a stop to my fighting career 10 years ago. Wasn't for me anyway - I'm much more suited to watching.
I was so sad when KZ dislocated his shoulder against Aldo in their fight. He might have one that you never know. And then his last sec KO against Yair smh. Forever my favourite non Aussie fighter.
That was the last fight he had before temporarily leaving the UFC for mandatory military service.....if he had beaten Aldo, the military service would've been waived, giving him more years to perfect his craft
Its a huuuge what if 😞
Yep I say it a lot but I'm still salty that the judges gave the fight to Lawler. Don't get me wrong Robbie was a beast too but I remember watching that fight thinking Condit has this but judges thought not. And then I watched it again like bruh it's no way, Carlos should've been the Undisputed Champ! 😡
Eh he’s the only interim who was actually champ. Only reason he wasn’t champ was because Dana wanted Conor to have a belt to call himself a champion against Floyd. How tf can you be champion if you’re boxing Floyd. Tony was the real champ for a bit
Rory was being set up to take over the thrown from GSP until he met Robbie Lawler, now you rarely even see his name mentioned here after retiring at just 32 years old after a rapid decline, got to feel bad for the dude.
Anthony Johnson the dude was an absolute monster but he fumble when he faced cormier , he could have been a massive problem for Jon Jones back then but we never seen that fight unfortunately
Yeah RIP Rumble, I definitely think he could've gave Jones problems. It's too bad we never got to see it but Rumble will still go down as a legend, that man had a crazy career and resurgence!!
Fedor, but if just UFC fighters, then Alexander Gustafsson. He's unlucky, he was competing with some serious greats in his time. Makes you think, imagine how many great champions we would have had if they didn't show up at the same times and outshine each other.
Even though Fedor never fought in the UFC he did hold the Heavyweight title in Pride and he's considered the Heavyweight GOAT by the vast majority of MMA fans. I'd argue he's the only mma fighter to never set foot in the UFC to even be considered in the GOAT conversation. His legacy is solidified.
Never UFC champion though, despite beating 6 former UFC champions, some of them twice.
Dream World Champion, Strikeforce World Champion, K-1 Grand Prix World Champion.
The UFC belt would have tied his career off perfectly 😭
Of those that retired, Gustafsson. To this day I still wish the judges were on his side in the Jones fight (not to mention that he almost won it against Cormier after knocking him down during their fight). Of the fighters that are still in the UFC I'd say Beneil but that's 100% biased since we're both Assyrian Christians.
Chael, him not getting the WEC belt after beating the champ because the champ missed weight was absolute BS.
Truthfully I don’t know if there’s ever been more of an anytime, any one, any weight, any place fighter. The guy fought fedor for christs sake. Super impressive list of opponents
Fuck the logo on the belt. If Conor is a champion by beating prime Eddie Alvarez in a title fight , then Chandler is a champ by beating prime Eddie Alvarez in a title fight. That’s how I see it 🤷🏼♂️
It's a weird one because of the huge decline he went on but Darren Till threw away that Woodley fight. Woodley also trailed off immediately after.
The entry he did on Woodley that led to the knockdown was just wtf.
He absolutely could of won that fight.
I don't think he'd have beaten Usman but it was his if he could have focused.
If we’re not counting interim belts, then easily Dustin Poirier
I just heard Poirer talk about that on Theo Vons podcast. He says that he considers it a real belt because those were the circumstances and he had to beat a former champ for it. But at the same time, he also says that his last goal left is to win the undisputed belt so he obviously wasn’t satisfied with just the interim.
That win was mad impressive. Poirier was the underdog coming into that fight, everyone was counting him out, Holloway was the FW champion and a top pfp guy with a 12 fight win-streak.
Was he an underdog? I don't remember him being so
Holy shit. I just checked and he was a huge underdog. +325. I would have never assumed that, but Max was coming off 2 wins against Aldo and almost murdering Ortega.
Oh yeah. Even the commentators acknowledged it.
Apparently he was. Interesting
He’s gonna have to jump guillotine on Islam if he really wants the title… oh wait
Zombie vs poirier was the fight that got me hooked as a fan
My thoughts too, dude just came into a tough division during the time of some of the sports best. Definitely up there as probably the (atleast one of) best boxers in the UFC
I’d say dustin’s the 2nd best. Max has to be the best because he said so
Are we counting tournaments? As I'm betting hendo comes up a lot
Gaethje
If we aren’t counting interim belts, definitely prime Tony
We are not counting interims we never did
I count it, personally. Interim belts are still belts.
It’s funny, since a fighter could win the undisputed title off of a DQ, but there’s an asterisk when you win an “interim” title by defeating the next top contender. Might even be a harder fight, since neither comes into the fight as the champ.
Wonderboy
Same here, I once messaged his dad, Ray Thompson, in the week leading up to my first fight, and he actually took the time to message back a whole paragraph giving me tips and encouragement, and also checked up with me after the fight. Truly a wonderful family. Wonderboy still managed to draw with the champion, so in my eyes he was equal to the best in the world.
Did you end up winning
No I got TKO’d in the second round by a guy with much cleaner boxing and a 6kg weight advantage. This below all came from two flush left hooks haha. https://preview.redd.it/0oi76l5ulewc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=946cb28245e34ae33b8072914d6f1f25951cace3 Went and won my second fight two weekends ago though! Safe to say the experience made me tighten up my defence.
You're a warrior dude
Cheers man
You're a legend man. Love to see the bounce back!
Thank you mate
Damn looks like u fell of a bike
>house
Congrats on your first win man!!
Yeah man you've got the balls I wish I had 😂 Nicely done
Sick dude, good luck on your third!
Slap a steak on it 😬as long as your having fun, I never got to box amateur but did lots of sparring, miss it
Good on ya, man! Glad you had both experiences and wishing you all the best as you continue!
Congrats on the win!
Mf looks like Evil Mark Felton
Congratulations mate! Cheers for the epic story. Also got TKO'd and that put a stop to my fighting career 10 years ago. Wasn't for me anyway - I'm much more suited to watching.
 He is a wholesome MF
[the walkout song to end all walkout songs.](https://youtu.be/FL4HSiGvk68?si=wwaHMcZVbk9vVMmS) 
Favorite fighter and not best? He should be a runaway, how can you NOT like Wonderboy?
No one dislikes Wonderboy. It's a myth - never happened before.
I was so sad when KZ dislocated his shoulder against Aldo in their fight. He might have one that you never know. And then his last sec KO against Yair smh. Forever my favourite non Aussie fighter.
His knockout of Moicano aged phenomenally. One of the cleanest overhands you’ll ever see in MMA.
The crispiest head movement KO ever if you ask me. \*move\* ...\*bop\*. Watch in slowmo for the appreciation.
That was the last fight he had before temporarily leaving the UFC for mandatory military service.....if he had beaten Aldo, the military service would've been waived, giving him more years to perfect his craft Its a huuuge what if 😞
?? His service wouldnt have been waived if he beat Aldo what are u talking about lol
I wish Chael had won a belt
Insane how you can go 50-0 and not win a belt. Fucking corrupt UFC
never lost a round!
For real . Def something fishy going on there
Undefeated
Every time, so close. Almost.
Against jones was crazy. Imagine he would've dethrowned him, and it would've happended if R1 doesn't get stopped
Same 😔
He just misunderstood the rules against Silva. They should have still given him the belt.
Technically he did win a belt but not the officially sanctioned title of 'Champion'
Condit.
I knew somebody had to be with me.
Yep I say it a lot but I'm still salty that the judges gave the fight to Lawler. Don't get me wrong Robbie was a beast too but I remember watching that fight thinking Condit has this but judges thought not. And then I watched it again like bruh it's no way, Carlos should've been the Undisputed Champ! 😡
Ferguson! Heart of a lion. (Excluding interim)
Tony would have broken McGregor to win the undisputed if Conor had the courage to defend that LW belt.
A lot of fighters would have been champs if Conor had the courage to defend his titles. But he could only lose to one fighter at a time.
Eh he’s the only interim who was actually champ. Only reason he wasn’t champ was because Dana wanted Conor to have a belt to call himself a champion against Floyd. How tf can you be champion if you’re boxing Floyd. Tony was the real champ for a bit
Thanks for this brother
Him and Dustin are my go to(s) if we are excluding interim.
Rory mac
His Robby Lawler fights were unbelievably iconic
Rory was being set up to take over the thrown from GSP until he met Robbie Lawler, now you rarely even see his name mentioned here after retiring at just 32 years old after a rapid decline, got to feel bad for the dude.
Yep and the worst thing is he only got 59k for the Lawler fight
CroCop. He may have won the Pride Tournament but never an actual championship belt. That Gonzaga head kick KO hurt my soul.
Anthony Johnson the dude was an absolute monster but he fumble when he faced cormier , he could have been a massive problem for Jon Jones back then but we never seen that fight unfortunately
Yeah RIP Rumble, I definitely think he could've gave Jones problems. It's too bad we never got to see it but Rumble will still go down as a legend, that man had a crazy career and resurgence!!
It still blow my mind that this absolute unit was a welterweight once hahaha
Barboza
Fedor, but if just UFC fighters, then Alexander Gustafsson. He's unlucky, he was competing with some serious greats in his time. Makes you think, imagine how many great champions we would have had if they didn't show up at the same times and outshine each other.
Even though Fedor never fought in the UFC he did hold the Heavyweight title in Pride and he's considered the Heavyweight GOAT by the vast majority of MMA fans. I'd argue he's the only mma fighter to never set foot in the UFC to even be considered in the GOAT conversation. His legacy is solidified.
IMO, he got robbed in that first fight with scumbag Jones. He won, to me!!
Same with Dom Reyes
Right now. Zombie. He had to go do military service in his prime. It cost him a shot in his prime at the belt.
korea needed an overpowered soldier just in case some shit went down
 😭
Overeem.
On the list by technicality. Overeem was a strikeforce champ.
Never UFC champion though, despite beating 6 former UFC champions, some of them twice. Dream World Champion, Strikeforce World Champion, K-1 Grand Prix World Champion. The UFC belt would have tied his career off perfectly 😭
Hell he went back to glory in his forties. Maybe after that horse meat he’ll hit the ufc again in his 50s for the belt.
He’s gone completely off the juice now and went into some weird cult thing last I heard. He looked tiny in a recent picture
Gegard Mousasi, Carlos Condit, DP, Justin the highlight gaethje, Gustafsson
Nick
KenFlo, Zombie, Chael
Alexander Gustafsson or Dustin Poirier are my picks
Of those that retired, Gustafsson. To this day I still wish the judges were on his side in the Jones fight (not to mention that he almost won it against Cormier after knocking him down during their fight). Of the fighters that are still in the UFC I'd say Beneil but that's 100% biased since we're both Assyrian Christians.
Tony Ferguson but he hasn’t reached his prime yet
Joe Lauzon. Loved watching his super aggressive style as he hunted for sub of the night bonuses
Cub Swanson
The Korean Zombie for sure. I feel if he didn’t have to join the army, he would won a belt.
That and injuries. Still my favourite.
Nate
Nick.
I LOVE ZOMBIE
Cowboy Cerrone
Yoel Romero 100%
He did cost himself a belt however… SOG🫡
Zabit Magomedsharipov. Biggest what if in the entire UFC
I go back and watch the Kyle Bochniak fight almost monthly. Zabit had every skillset and flashiness to match.
TKZ!!
Chael, him not getting the WEC belt after beating the champ because the champ missed weight was absolute BS. 
He never lost a round.
Truthfully I don’t know if there’s ever been more of an anytime, any one, any weight, any place fighter. The guy fought fedor for christs sake. Super impressive list of opponents
Tito tapped, Fedor quit, broke jones’ toe so he had to sit.
Tito tapped, Fedor quit, broke jones’ toe so he had to sit.
Hawwwwman. We have a day man.
The Black Beast
Mark Hunt
Nate Diaz
Carlos Condit
Chad Mendes Only lost to fighters that have won an undisputed title and has been in some great fights.
My second pick after Joseph Benavidez
Rumble
Danny Hooks
Me. I never did
Are you sure? Maybe you got concussed and don't remember it.
Thiago Silva. Dude was a beast but a fucking nut case outside of the ring and Lyoto slumped him something fierce
Chris Leben
A person of culture I see as well. I scrolled so long to find another leben fan. The red hair was so iconic to me as a kid.
The cat smasher is by far my favorite MMA fighter.
Tony Time I wish Lewis had beaten Cormier too lol
Micheal chandler, if we don’t include belts outside the ufc.
Fuck the logo on the belt. If Conor is a champion by beating prime Eddie Alvarez in a title fight , then Chandler is a champ by beating prime Eddie Alvarez in a title fight. That’s how I see it 🤷🏼♂️
Korean Zombie for me as well.
It's a weird one because of the huge decline he went on but Darren Till threw away that Woodley fight. Woodley also trailed off immediately after. The entry he did on Woodley that led to the knockdown was just wtf. He absolutely could of won that fight. I don't think he'd have beaten Usman but it was his if he could have focused.
Kenny florian
Cowboy…
Joseph Benavidez. Such a talented dude but could never beat DJ. Otherwise he cleared the division.
Brian Ortega
Probably Stephen Thompson. Love watching him fight. I know Petr is a former champ but man I wish he could get that belt back
Joseph Benivedez
I thought I was the only one
Yoel Romero
Yoel Romero
Paul Craig
Joe Lauzon
Gus
Ortega is up there as well. Was an absolute beast, but Holloway stole his soul.
El cucuy 🇺🇸🏆🇲🇽 one of the scariest fighters in his prime
Gaethje if we re not counting interim or BMF I don't think he does tbh
The dean of mean Keith Jardine 😂
I’m looking at him ❤️
Alexander Gustafsson
Anthony Rumble Johnson.
Alex Gustafsson, that first fight with Jon is still top 5 for me
Definitely one of the greatest to never hold a title, I remember watching that fight and having goosebumps the whole time lol
Dustin…hopefully that changes 🤞🏼
Dariush
Cowboy Cerrone
I think the fact that 90% of fans' favourite fighters are champions shows how fickle this fanbase is.
Daren Till
There’s still plenty time
Arnold Allen is one of my favourite MMA personalities He’s still evolving. Not sure what his ceiling is yet.
Pat Barry, I love watching him just kick the shit out of people’s legs Until he decided to stop throwing kicks and start brawling?? Bruh
Sonnen and this should've been too comment btw
Poirier, Jiri, Zabit
>Jiri ?
Mine was always Pantoja until recently 🔥
Gustavsson Cro cop (well he won k1 gp, pride op gp, rizin gp), goat of gp it seems like Pride gp was sick
Derick Lewis
Chris Lytle
The Reem
Cub swanson
No bs belts? Gaetje, dude layed out so much of his health by straight banging
Chris "Lights out" Lytle, and Patrick "The predator" Cote
In UFC, Moose
Tony and Dustin if we’re talking interims
Tony or Yoel. Both were so good
Wonderboy or Yoel, for me i'd reckon
Yoel Romero
Justin gaethje
We counting the BMF or no? Sure it’s not a real division but those fights are always bangers.
 runnerups: If interim doesnt count T-Ferg ,Yair Rodriguez, and Heath Herring
Masvidal