A casual’s guide to MMA: The UFC featherweight champions

One of the UFC’s most interesting and deepest divisions, let’s take a look at every past featherweight champion in the company’s history

The featherweight division in the UFC ranges from 136 to 145 pounds. It’s one of the company’s most exciting divisions, with nearly all athletes having a good mix of cardiovascular energy and solid punching power. In 2010 the UFC officially brought in the featherweight division, after their purchase of World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC). They’ve had a number of recognizable champions over the years, so let’s take a look at the timeline from the division’s inauguration until now.

Jose Aldo – Nov. 2010 to Dec. 2015

For more than five years Jose Aldo terrorized the UFC’s featherweight division. After being named the official champion prior the UFC 123 (he was the WEC’s champion when they were bought out and brought into the UFC) Aldo made his first official title defence at UFC 129, by defeating Mark Hominick in April 2011. He then went on to make several other defenses of the belt before he was finally defeated.

Conor McGregor – Dec. 2015 to Nov. 2016

Conor McGregor defeated Chad Mendes for the interim featherweight title at UFC 189, after Aldo was forced to withdraw from the bout. McGregor then unified the belts in Dec. 2015, when he needed just 13 seconds to finish Aldo, in spectacular fashion.

Jose Aldo – Nov. 2016 to Jun. 2017

After defeating Frankie Edgar, for the interim title at UFC 200, Aldo was then officially promoted to undisputed champion in Nov. 2016. McGregor moved up and won the UFC’s 155-pound title, vacating the belt at 145 pounds shortly after.

Max Holloway – June 2017 to Dec. 2019

Yet another interim belt was needed at 145 pounds and Max Holloway defeated Anthony Pettis in the main event of UFC 206 to claim it. He then went on to unify then belts in June 2017, when he defeated Aldo via TKO in the third round. He defended the belt on multiple occasions and gained notoriety as one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the UFC, during this time.

Alexander Volkanovski – Dec. 2019 to present

The current champion in the UFC’s featherweight division, Alexander Volkanovski defeated Holloway via unanimous decision in December 2019. It was an impressive performance, for the 31-year-old, and brought his current MMA win-streak to 20 in a row. Will he be the one to carry the featherweights on his back for the foreseeable future? Only time will tell.