UFC In 2025 | The Year In Champions

Zhang’s departure left the door open for a new champion to be crowned, and at UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi, Mackenzie Dern defeated Virna Jandiroba to take over the mantle and add UFC champion to a glittering resumé of Brazilian jiu-jitsu honors.

Women’s Flyweight

Champion on Jan 1, 2025: Valentina Shevchenko 

Champion on Jan 1, 2026: Valentina Shevchenko 

The longest-reigning active champion in UFC maintained her vice-like grip on the women’s flyweight title throughout 2025.

Valentina Shevchenko faced a dangerous new threat in Manon Fiorot, and a fellow pound-for-pound great in Zhang Weili, but despite the marked differences in the two challengers’ respective fighting styles, Shevchenko ensured the end result was the same on both occasions.

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Shevchenko was pushed hard by French contender Fiorot at UFC 315 in May, but “Bullet’s” fight IQ ensured she did enough to claim the unanimous decision victory.

And at Madison Square Garden in November, Shevchenko was simply untouchable as she leaned on her wrestling and grappling to dominate former strawweight champ Zhang en route to a shutout victory on the scorecards.

It meant Van was crowned flyweight champion, and while a rematch will be at the top of former champ Pantoja’s wish list for 2026, the likes of Manel Kape, Tatsuro Taira, and the returning Kyoji Horiguchi have all made their championship intentions clear.

Women’s Bantamweight

Champion on Jan 1, 2025: Julianna Peña

Champion on Jan 1, 2026: Kayla Harrison

There’s a new queen on the women’s bantamweight throne. Kayla Harrison added the undisputed UFC women’s 135-pound title to her honors list with a second-round Kimura finish of previous incumbent Julianna Pena at UFC 316, and immediately set her sights on the women’s GOAT, Amanda Nunes.

Nunes has been away from the sport since announcing her retirement in the summer of 2023, but now “The Lioness” is back and will challenge Harrison in a massive fight between the sport’s two biggest female stars at UFC 324 on January 24.

In the end, it proved to be one title defense too many, as Yan produced one of the great title fight performances to dethrone “The Machine” and head into 2026 as a two-time undisputed bantamweight champ.

Featherweight

Champion on Jan 1, 2025: Ilia Topuria

Champion on Jan 1, 2026: Alexander Volkanovski

Alexander Volkanovski is back on the featherweight throne as the two-time king at 145 pounds.

The Aussie reclaimed the title at UFC 314 following Ilia Topuria’s decision to vacate the belt to move up to challenge for the lightweight title. 

That meant a new champion was needed at 155 pounds, and at UFC 317 in Las Vegas, Ilia Topuria knocked out Charles Oliveira in the first round to capture the vacant belt as he became only the 10th athlete in UFC history to capture championships in two different weight classes.

Welterweight

Champion on Jan 1, 2025: Belal Muhammad

Champion on Jan 1, 2026: Islam Makhachev

That list of two-division champions quickly grew to 11 in 2025 as, hot on the heels of Topuria’s lightweight title victory, the man he replaced at lightweight went on to do the same at 170 pounds.

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But let’s rewind to the start of the year first. Belal Muhammad started 2025 as the undisputed welterweight champion, having dethroned Leon Edwards in July 2024. But “Remember The Name’s” title run lasted just one fight, as he was dethroned at UFC 315 by Australia’s Jack Della Maddalena.

“JDM” then put his newly-won title on the line at Madison Square Garden as he welcomed former lightweight champion Islam Makhachev to the division at UFC 322. Any question marks people had over Makhachev’s ability to carry his skill set up to 170 pounds were swiftly erased as he dominated Della Maddalena over five rounds to claim a shutout win on the scorecards and capture the undisputed welterweight crown.

With a host of talented contenders vying for a shot at welterweight gold, Makhachev looks set for a busy year as he looks to maintain his grip on the 170-pound title.

Middleweight

Champion on Jan 1, 2025: Dricus Du Plessis

Champion on Jan 1, 2026: Khamzat Chimaev

The international flavor of the middleweight title continued in 2025 with the crowning of a new champion, as Khamzat Chimaev dethroned South Africa’s Dricus Du Plessis to take over at the top of the 185-pound class.

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The division, which has seen champions from the United States, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand/Nigeria, and South Africa over the past decade, now has the UFC’s first champion to carry the flag of the United Arab Emirates.

He’ll face stiff competition to retain his belt in 2026, with the likes of Nassourdine Imavov, Anthony Hernandez, and Brendan Allen, plus former champs Du Plessis and Sean Strickland, all still in the mix at the top of the middleweight rankings as we kick off the new year.

Light heavyweight 

Champion on Jan 1, 2025: Alex Pereira

Champion on Jan 1, 2026: Alex Pereira

The undisputed light heavyweight title changed hands twice in 2025, but ended the year in the hands of the same man who kicked off the year with the belt.

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Alex Pereira entered 2025 with the title, but at UFC 313, “Poatan” was knocked off his perch by Russia’s Magomed Ankalaev, who finally fulfilled his championship potential with a smartly executed performance to outwork Pereira over five rounds to capture the title.

Pereira went back, healed his injuries – most notably to an injured hand that he claimed had severely affected his performance in the first fight – got into the best fighting shape of his career, and came back with a vengeance at UFC 320 in October. 

Pereira loaded up, came flying out of his corner, and battered Ankalaev with strikes to claim a first-round TKO finish as he reclaimed his title in just one minute, 20 seconds at T-Mobile Arena. 

“Poatan” is officially back, and back to his best.

Heavyweight

Champion on Jan 1, 2025: Jon Jones, Tom Aspinall (interim)

Champion on Jan 1, 2026: Tom Aspinall

The heaviest weight class in UFC had the roughest ride in 2025, as a long-standing interim champion finally got his hands on undisputed gold before injury denied him the chance to defend it in the only title fight of the calendar year.

Tom Aspinall had captured interim heavyweight gold back in November 2023 with a stunning knockout of Sergei Pavlovich, but his hopes of a title unification bout with then-undisputed champion Jon Jones disappeared into the ether when “Bones” announced his retirement from the sport in June 2025. 

It meant Aspinall was promoted to undisputed champion and booked to face fellow former interim champ Ciryl Gane at UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi. Hopes were high that the bout would serve as a kick-start for the heavyweight division heading into 2025, but an accidental double eye-poke from Gane left Aspinall unable to continue, and their title bout was ruled a no-contest.

As we head into the new year, Aspinall is undergoing treatment to recover from eye injuries sustained in the fight, and the heavyweight division eagerly awaits the Englishman’s return.