Crownless champions? Highlighting the boogeymen and women of each UFC division

The boogeyman is a frightening mythical creature, lurking in the shadows, never seen, causing mayhem.

In MMA, there are some equivalent fighters to such a character. There are actually a lot more than one might realize. In this instance, we’ll look at the top fighter from each division who has been the most successful, winning, winning, and winning with a title shot perfectly justifiable as their next move. Some may even argue they are the best in class without holding their division’s gold.

However, for some reason, they haven’t been granted their shot. So, who are the top boogeymen and women of the UFC?

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Strawweight - 115lbs: Tatiana Suarez (10-0)

If we were to rank all the fighters on this list, Tatiana Suarez would be near the top when it comes to the likelihood of getting a title shot. The Ultimate Fighter 23 (TUF) winner essentially has her opportunity to vy for gold locked up, it’s just a matter of staying healthy, Suarez’s biggest obstacle thus far.

Outside of an injury-hampered performance against Nina Nunes before her four-year hiatus in 2019, the 33-year-old Suarez has been as dominant as any contender in MMA. Before the departure, she smashed and submitted her way to impressive finishes of former and future champions, the two-time strawweight titlist Carla Esparza and current flyweight queen, Alexa Grasso.

Upon Suarez’s return to action last year, she picked right back up where she left off, earning consecutive second-round guillotine wins, first at 125 pounds against Montana De La Rosa (watch highlights) before taking out another former 115-pound champion, Jessica Andrade (watch highlights). If Suarez can maintain consistent health, a Zhang Weili collision will happen and will be exactly what the suddenly stagnant division needs.

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Women’s Flyweight - 125lbs: Manon Fiorot (12-1)

Manon Fiorot is in a similar-ish position to Suarez in the sense that she is as blatantly obvious of a No. 1 contender as anyone. However, divisional circumstances have not just set her back, but the whole division.

Fiorot has been flawless since losing her first career bout, an 138-pound catchweight split decision loss against Bellator featherweight contender Leah McCourt. Unfortunately for her, the title saga between the champion Grasso and former champion Valentina Shevchenko has stalled progression after their rematch last September. The pair fought to a split draw (watch highlights), leading to an expected trilogy at Noche UFC this coming September.

Meanwhile, Fiorot has had little resistance getting through Top 10 opposition like rising talents Erin Blanchfield, a former champion in Rose Namajunas, or former title challengers Katlyn Ceminara, Jennifer Maia, and Mayra Bueno Silva. France’s finest is one of the best strikers in the division with championship potential written all over her. She’ll just have to wait until the rivalry atop her class is settled for good. Expect her to root for a Grasso win against “The Bullet.”

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Men’s Flyweight - 125lbs.: Amir Albazi (17-1)

Amir Albazi is another Suarez-like case. If it weren’t for his recent injuries that pulled him from a clash with former champion Brandon Moreno in February, he’d have possibly fought the current titleholder Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 301 in May. Instead, Albazi has yet to compete in 2024 with a close split decision win over Kai Kara-France as his last time out in June 2023.

The inactivity bug will need to be defeated before Albazi gets his crack at the top prize, but once he does, he’ll give whoever the champion is a good test after putting together a nice six-fight winning streak (five in the UFC).

Ultimately, the delay may be the best thing for Albazi as Kara-France was his first ranked opponent.

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Women’s Bantamweight - 135lbs.: Amanda Nunes (23-5)

Okay, here’s our longshot of this list. Honestly, there is no other good option. That’s just the rough state of affairs that is bantamweight.

It’s pretty unlikely we see anyone give either the current champion Raquel Pennington or top contender Kayla Harrison a real threat of defeat all too soon. Therefore, the only hope is the most legitimate boogeywoman option possible, the final boss of the sport, the all-time great Amanda Nunes.

Nunes, 36, retired last year after getting tired of cementing her legacy and beating her opposition senseless. With Harrison’s emergence, she’s mentioned her interest in drawing out “The Lionness” and Nunes has teased her comeback. No indications of the latter have seemed too serious, but if all the stars align, she’d return for an instant title shot, and reclaiming her title would be an incredibly likely outcome.

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Men’s Bantamweight - 135lbs.: Merab Dvalishvili (17-4)

Mereb Dvalishvili’s time in the sun looks like it’s finally about to come. At the time of publishing, however, his title shot is not yet official.

Dvalishvili, 33, has set the record for the longest winning streak in the loaded UFC bantamweight division at 10, a far cry contrast to its female equivalent. That’s coming from me so silence your complaints, comment section.

No contender has arguably ever been as clear or overdue as Dvalishvili. Literal friendship stalled Dvalishvili’s titles hopes during Aljamain Sterling’s reign. Hey, you can’t blame him there. Fights are 25 minutes, and friendship lasts forever (ideally).

With dominant wins over former champions Jose Aldo, Henry Cejudo, Petr Yan, and Marlon Moraes as some of the notables on his run, Dvalishvili can no longer be denied.

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Featherweight - 145lbs.: Movsar Evloev (18-0)

UFC CEO Dana White just didn’t like Movsar Evloev’s last win over Arnold Allen at UFC 297, or he was confused about who was who. There’s still no solid explanation.

Regardless, the fight was fun and continual evidence of Evloev’s talent. The guy is nearly 20-0 after all.

No matter what Evloev does in the octagon, he’ll need to start getting some finishes as he’s yet to do so in his eight UFC wins. He’s a clear well-rounded threat to become a champion, but if you don’t draw the eyeballs with great entertainment value and highlights, the UFC will take as long as they possibly can to keep you away from the title.

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Lightweight - 155lbs.: Mateusz Gamrot (24-2)

Mateusz Gamrot might be the weakest name mentioned and that’s more of a testament to the lightweight elite being so damn good.

No one believes “Gamer” will beat Islam Makhachev if given the opportunity. Stylistically, he could, and would have a good shot to make the fight competitive at the very least. The former KSW champion is technically one of the most proficient and exciting grapplers to watch at 155 pounds. On the feet, he’s pretty sharp as well. He can do it all but still needs that one signature win to get the world to believe in his full potential.

Gamrot’s latest wins over the likes of top contenders Arman Tsarukyan, Rafael Fiziev, Jalin Turner, and former champion Rafael dos Anjos prove he’s a divisional staple.

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Welterweight - 170lbs.: Shavkat Rakhmonov (18-0)

We’ve fallen into a bit of a weird spot with Shavkat Rakhmonov.

This guy is just f*cking awesome. There’s no other way to put it. 18-0 with 18 finishes. It doesn’t get any better. That’s about as mythical of a stat as you could ask for from a fighter making their rise. So, what’s the problem?

Rakhmonov’s last win in December, a second-round rear-naked choke of Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson (watch highlights), resulted in a hand injury that’s kept him sidelined since. The man is deserving of a title shot as many have received one for lesser success. However, he’s now vocally open to any matchup, whether with a former champion like Kamaru Usman or a fellow surging undefeated contender, Ian Machado Garry.

Rakhmonov will have to fight again while waiting for the champion Leon Edwards and Belal Muhammad to (presumably) finish their rivalry at UFC 304 this month (Sat., July 27, 2024). Regardless, Rakhmonov is a shoo-in vote for most likely to become a UFC champion.

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Middleweight - 185lbs.: Khamzat Chimaev (13-0)

Another one of the fighters who has been their own worst enemy.

In the blink of an eye, Khamzat Chimaev became one of the all-time greatest boogeymen in MMA history. Unfortunately, his otherworldly meteoric rise to superstardom in the UFC wasn’t meant to last.

Don’t get me wrong, Chimaev is still a supremely talented dominating force with all the makings of a world champion. However, he went from the uber version of Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone with his activity levels to fighting once a year at best, and it’s cost him title shots in two divisions now.

Things haven’t been the same for Chimaev and his health since his battle with COVID-19 in 2020. His performances haven’t been impacted, but his ability to make it to the octagon has. Once, and if, he can clear that all up and get back on track, he’ll be back atop most peoples’ lists as a future champion. First and foremost, we just hope the guy gets better physically.

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Light Heavyweight - 205lbs.: Magomed Ankalaev (19-1-1, 1 NC)

Magomed Ankalaev is the best light heavyweight on the planet.

Yeah, I said it. Had the judges gotten the decision right against Jan Blachowicz at UFC 282 in December 2022 we wouldn’t even be having this conversation, as this whole article’s inception was spawned off this man. A correctly scored version of the Ankalaev split draw, which 23 of 25 media members and 54 percent of 2032 fans believe he won per MMA Decisions, would have led to the Russian successfully defending against any two of the three names of Alex Pereira, Jiri Prochazka, and Jamahal Hill.

Instead, White took out his frustration of the result on Ankalaev and he’s been cursed ever since, battling Johnny Walker twice, destroying him in their rematch (watch highlights). “Ankalaev is a boring fighter” has been an odd myth created during his unbeaten run post-UFC debut. He’s knocked out six of his opponents in the 10 wins, and battled back from serious adversity in the Blachowicz draw. He’s as dangerously well-rounded as nearly anyone in the sport at present.

Yes, Pereira’s reign has been massively entertaining, and quite frankly insane, but he’s been kept safe from the best fighter in the division, which can only last for so long.

Honestly, I’d try and leave the UFC if I was Ankalaev and got passed over again. All of the guy’s goodwill died at the end of 2022.

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Heavyweight - 265lbs.: Tom Aspinall (14-3)

This guy’s a champion. Arguably the real champion, I know.

Tom Aspinall gets the nod for heavyweight simply because there are no good options, and again, because he’s not technically the “No. 1” champion. However, he’s the best active heavyweight in the world and will be an undisputed champion with or without a fight against Jon Jones or Stipe Miocic in the future. Even if he loses his Curtis Blaydes rematch at UFC 304, Aspinall is too young and talented for a division this easy to succeed in late. He’ll get there before all is said and done.

The Brit has lived up to the hype and the sky is the limit.