UFC Champions With Most Consecutive Title Defenses

Being a champion is already a monumental achievement in the UFC because of how hard the path to glory is. This is why champions with multiple consecutive title defenses are simply admirable. These champions often have the target on their backs from top contenders who are hungry to end their reign and dethrone them.

But throughout the history of the UFC, there are title holders who fended off a pile of challengers and managed to put on consecutive title defenses. This made them a constant favorite in online sports betting. Who among the list of great UFC champions had the most consecutive title defenses?

UFC Champions With Most Consecutive Title Defenses

Demetrious Johnson – 11 Consecutive Title Defenses

Demetrious Johnson is unquestionably the greatest flyweight mixed martial artist of all time. His 11 consecutive title defenses during his reign as the 125-pound champion from 2013 to 2017 have stamped this status. The “Mighty Mouse’s” all-around and well-rounded skills were key to retaining his coveted belt. Johnson became the UFC Flyweight Champion in September 2012 after outlasting Joseph Benavidez via a split decision.

Then, he went on to beat John Dodson, John Moraga, Joseph Benavidez (in their title rematch), Ali Bagautinov, Chris Caraiao, Kyoji Horiguchi, John Dodson (another title rematch), Henry Cejudo, Tim Elliott, Wilson Reis and Ray Borg en route to 11 consecutive title defenses. In August 2018, Henry Cejudo snapped this streak by beating Johnson in a close split-decision victory. Following this loss to Cejudo in their rematch, Johnson was traded to ONE Championship.

Anderson Silva – 10 Consecutive Title Defenses

Anderson Silva is one of the most entertaining fighters in history, racking up highlight-reel finishes. Along with these incredible stoppage wins, Silva also collected ten consecutive title defenses since winning the belt in October 2006 against Rich Franklin. The Brazilian became an unstoppable force in the middleweight division by beating every contender put in front of him.

Silva defeated opponents during his tenure as champion were Nate Marquardt, Rich Franklin (in their title rematch), Dan Henderson, Patrick Cote, Thales Leites, Demian Maia, Chael Sonnen (twice), Vitor Belfort and Yushin Okami. Chris Weidman halted Silva’s dominant reign as the champion after a gigantic upset knockout win in July 2013. Since that title loss, “The Spider” only won one fight in his next eight bouts.

Georges St-Pierre – 9 Consecutive Title Defenses

Georges St-Pierre is the golden standard of UFC welterweights as he amassed nine consecutive title defenses during his reign as the division’s champion from August 2008 to November 2013. St-Pierre first got a hold of the title in November 2006, but it was short-lived as he failed to defend the belt to Matt Serra. But it became a motivation to the Canadian to pursue back the coveted title.

In April 2008, GSP avenged his loss to Serra and reclaimed the welterweight title, then he went on to defend the belt against Jon Fitch, BJ Penn, Thiago Alves, Dan Hardy, Josh Koscheck, Jake Shields, Carlos Condit, Nick Diaz and Johny Hendricks, before retiring and relinquishing the title in 2013. St-Pierre returned in November 2017 and defeated Michael Bisping to win the middleweight title.

Jon Jones – 8 Consecutive Title Defenses

If Georges St-Pierre, Anderson Silva and Demetrious Johnson were the golden standards of their respective divisions, then Jon Jones is the equivalent in the light heavyweight division. His eight successive title defenses from September 2011 to January 2015 were a great testament to this claim. Jones got the hold of the 205-pound belt in March 2011 after beating Shogun Rua, and since then, he has become a superior champion.

“Bones” racked up victories against Quinton Jackson, Lyoto Machida, Rashad Evans, Vitor Belfort, Chael Sonnen, Alexander Gustafsson, Glover Teixeira and Daniel Cormier. If not for the controversies he faced outside of the Octagon and his failed USADA drug tests, Jones could have collected more consecutive title defenses in his career and set the record in this category. Now, he sets his sights on the UFC Heavyweight Title.

Jose Aldo and Valentina Shevchenko – 7 Consecutive Title Defenses

Jose Aldo and Valentina Shevchenko are tied for the most consecutive title defenses in UFC history with seven. Aldo was the inaugural UFC Featherweight Champion after the merger with WEC in 2011. The Brazilian MMA superstar defeated the top contenders such as Mark Hominick, Kenny Florian, Chad Mendes (twice), Frankie Edgar, Chan Sung Jung and Ricardo Lamas. Conor McGregor snapped his reign in December 2015.

Aldo regained the 145-pound title in July 2016 but lost it again to Max Holloway in his next fight. Before leaving the featherweight division, “Junior” picked up two more victories, then moved down to the bantamweights in December 2019. Since then, he recorded three wins and three losses before retiring from MMA for good in 2022.

On the other hand, Valentina Shevchenko was a bantamweight contender when she arrived in the UFC in December 2015. She fought in the 135-pound division five times and even secured a title shot in September 2017. However, she came up short of winning a championship. This prompted “The Bullet” to fight in the flyweight division and make a winning debut against Priscila Cachoeira in February 2018.

That victory secured her a title showdown with Joana Jedrzejcyk, and Shevchenko unanimously won to realize her dream of becoming a world champion. Since then, the pride of Kyrgyzstan didn’t let go of the title and scored wins over Jessica Eye, Liz Carmouche, Katlyn Chookagian, Jennifer Maia, Jessica Andrade, Lauren Murphy and Talia Santos. If she wins her next title fight against Alexa Grasso on March 2023, she will move up on this list.