It is hard to become a champion in the UFC. Only the best of the best rise to the top, and for these 10 fighters, they never reached the pinnacle.
For some, they had the opportunity but were unable to seize the moment.
Others never even had the shot.
From Dan Henderson to Gilbert Melendez, here are the 10 best UFC fighters to never win a championship inside the Octagon.
10. Gilbert Melendez
“El Nino” won gold in both Strikeforce and WEC, making five successful title defenses in Strikeforce. He was the last champion in the promotion at lightweight before joining the UFC.
In his first appearance with the UFC, he lost to Benson Henderson via split decision for the title. A year later, he got another shot, falling to Anthony Pettis this time. That started five-fight losing skid that ended the career of Melendez.
During his run as champion, he topped the likes of Josh Thomson, Jorge Masvidal and Shinya Aoki, winning 21 of his first 23 pro bouts. he avenged both of those defeats during that time.
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9. Chael Sonnen
Maybe the greatest talker in the sport, Sonnen was able to back up all he said time and time again. He almost won the middleweight title from Anderson Silva in what would have been the biggest upset in MMA history.
And, he nearly derailed the train of Jon Jones when “Bones” suffered a foot injury before finishing their light heavyweight title fight. Sonnen topped the likes of Nate Marquardt, Yushin Okami, former UFC champions Michael Bisping, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Shogun Rua, and Wanderlei Silva.
Sonnen had a chance at WEC gold and did claim regional titles during his first few years of competition.
8. Nick Diaz
A former Strikeforce and WEC champion, Diaz is one-half of the talented brother duo with Nate. He successfully defended his Strikeforce title three times and earned a shot at UFC gold in 2012 and a year later.
His first attempt was for the interim belt vs. Carlos Condit while the second came vs. Georges St-Pierre. Both times, Diaz lost via decision.
During his run as Strikeforce champion, he defeated Paul Daley, Evangelista Santos and K.J. Noons. Diaz, who retired in 2021, is set tor return in August vs. Vicente Luque for the UFC.
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7. Jake Shields
While his social media views have left many feeling cringy towards the former fighter, during his prime, Shields was an elite athlete. A former Strikeforce, Elite XC and Shooto champion, he had a six-year unbeaten run before falling to Georges St-Pierre.
Shields won the Strikeforce title with a win vs. Jason “Mayhem” Miller and defended it vs. Dan Henderson before vacating the belt to sign with the UFC. He topped Martin Kampmann to earn the match with GSP.
He would later join World Series of Fighting, which would become the PFL, failing to win the welterweight title on two occasions there.
6. Jon Fitch
Another fighter denied their shot at glory because of Georges St-Pierre, Fitch was one of the more well-respected athletes in the sport. The native of Indiana did eventually become a champion hen he won the PFL title before vacating it.
Fitch rose to the top of the list of challengers to GSP in 2008, taking the champion to the distance before coming up short. He won 16 consecutive fights prior to the loss.
After a 2020 loss to Neiman Gracie, Fitch announced his retirement with a record of 32-8-2 including a no-contest.
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5. Wanderlei Silva
“The Axe Murderer” won 35 fights during his long MMA career. Included in that were 27 wins under the Zuffa banner, but only one shot at UFC gold. he did win the Pride middleweight title and defended it four times.
In 2000, Silva faced off against Tito Ortiz for the vacant light heavyweight belt. He suffered a decision loss in Tokyo, Japan at UFC 25.
Silva would have legendary fights with Dan Henderson, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Chuck Liddell and many, many others. He last fought in 2018, falling to Jackson while competing for Bellator.
4. Nate Diaz
A win over Conor McGregor, being crowned The Ultimate Fighter winner and numerous bonus finishes all boost the resume of Diaz. He is also part of the ultra-tough brother duo with Nick.
However, Diaz fought just once for the UFC gold. He lost to Benson Henderson in 2012 for the lightweight title after returning to the weight class and besting Jim Miller and Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone.
Diaz also challenged for the WEC title and is now competing as a pro boxer. His last MMA match came in 2022 vs. Tony Ferguson, who he scored a submission victory over.
3. Kenny Florian
One of the brightest minds the sport has ever seen, “KenFlo” is one of only two UFC fighters to compete in four different weight classes. He earned three shots at UFC gold during his career, including a bout vs. Jose Aldo in what would be his retirement fight in 2011.
Florian also fought for the lightweight belt in 2009 vs. BJ Penn and for the vacant title in 2006 vs. Sean Sherk. Between those losses, he topped Roger Huerta, Joe Lauzon and Joe Stevenson.
Overall, Florian finished with a 14-6 mark that included eight submission wins and four more knockout finishes.
2. Urijah Faber
Many regard Faber as one of the elite fighters from the lower weight divisions. “The California Kid” competed 46 times, winning 35 with 27 finishes. His last fight came in 2019 when eh lost to Petr Yan.
Faber’s final shot at UFC gold was in 2016 when he was bested by rival Dominick Cruz for the bantamweight belt. He also fought Renan Barao for that title in 2014 and had a shot at the interim belt vs. Barao in 2012.
In his second UFC appearance in 2011, Faber lost a decision to Cruz. He was also denied WEC gold by Jose Aldo and Mike Brown after winning it in 2007 vs. Cruz.
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1. Dan Henderson
An Olympic wrestler, Henderson was the only fighter to become a double-champion in Pride FC. He challenged twice for the UFC middleweight belt and once for the light heavyweight title, but was never able to climb that final mountain.
Henderson did win the UFC 17 middleweight tournament title and owns the fourth most wins in the Zuffa era. His final match was vs. Michael Bisping for the middleweight belt in 2016, as he lost a decision.
After coming to the UFC as a Pride double-champion, Henderson lost matches with Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Anderson Silva for the belts. He did win the Strikeforce light heavyweight title in 2011 and finished his career with 32 wins including 17 knockouts.
