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Becoming a world champion in Mixed Martial Arts is one of the toughest prospects in professional sports which demands a humungous amount of hard work, discipline, and focus from a fighter.
Even after putting all that effort in, many fighters find themselves to be unfortunate via untimely injuries in a sport where more than 50% of the injuries are inflicted while training.
Today we will be taking a look at fighters who managed to win a world championship in the UFC but found themselves on a downward trajectory ever since losing the belt:-
# 10 Tyron Woodley
Probably the third greatest welterweight fighter in UFC's history behind George Saint-Pierre and Matt Hughes, "T-Wood" has not been himself in his last two fights.
After defending his title four times after an epic knockout victory against Robbie Lawler at UFC 201, Kamaru Usman finally proved to be the kryptonite to the native from Ferguson, Missouri.
Woodley seemed unable to pull the trigger and looked indecisive as he was dominated both in the feet and on the ground. Woodley ended up landing just 60 strikes in that 25-minute fight as Kamaru Usman out-landed him by a ratio of 5:1.
Woodley's next appearance in the octagon came on May 31 last weekend where the man from Missouri ended up getting dropped in the first few exchanges by Gilbert Burns, a training partner of Kamaru Usman.
"T-Wood" again found himself outworked and out hustled by a hungry contender as the Brazilian managed to land three times as many significant strikes as the former champion.
Woodley ranks tenth on this list as he hasn't looked the same since UFC 235 and seems to be questioning his decision-making inside the octagon.
# 9 Rafael Dos Anjos
Once a feared fighter in the lightweight division who dominated Anthony Pettis even with an MCL injury to win the belt, dos Anjos has turned into a gatekeeper for UFC's welterweight division lately.
Dos Anjos, who holds the record for the fastest finish in a lightweight title bout against Donald Cerrone, would lose his belt against Eddie Alvarez after a fight against Conor McGregor fell through after Dos Anjos broke his foot while training.
Dos Anjos moved up to welterweight after finding himself on the losing end against Tony Ferguson in the Ultimate Fighter Latin America 3 Finale: Dos Anjos vs Ferguson.
His record since then has been patchy as he has gone 4-4 in his eight fights since and has been used by the UFC as a litmus test for new up and comers in the division.
Dos Anjos currently finds himself on a two-fight losing streak after defeats against top contenders Leon Edwards and Michael Chiesa and is ranked ninth in his division.
# 8 Anthony Pettis
Anthony "Showtime" Pettis was one of UFC's main draw in a pre-Conor McGregor era with his arsenal of tricks and flicks inside the octagon which would culminate in a title reign for the Milwaukee native.
As his nickname suggests, Pettis's fight style would earn him many admirers with his head kick against Benson Henderson in the WEC a particular highlight.
After losing his title against another guy on this list in Rafael Dos Anjos, Pettis would find himself changing weight classes in a bid to regain his form back.
But everything hasn't gone to plan as Pettis currently holds a record of 5-7 after losing his belt at UFC 185 and has looked like a shell of the fighter he was.
At the age of 33, Pettis doesn't have much to prove in terms of his quality and his legacy will always be safe as one of the flashiest to ever hold a UFC belt alongside the likes of Anderson Silva.
His story should also serve as a cautionary tale of a fighter who fell off his level by a cliff after losing UFC gold.
# 7 Eddie Alvarez
The third straight Lightweight titleholder in the list, the Underground King was the first fighter in Mixed Martial Arts history to hold belts at both Bellator and the UFC.
His crowning moment in the UFC came against the aforementioned Rafael Dos Anjos at UFC Fight Night 90 where Alvarez knocked Dos Anjos out inside the first round despite being a three-to-one underdog.
He would never successfully defend his title as he would be decimated by a masterful Conor McGregor performance in his first title defense at UFC 205, a historic card which saw UFC host its first event at the Big Apple.
Alvarez would run out his contract in the UFC after fighting the likes of Dustin Poirier twice and defeating Justin Gaethje in a Fight of the Night performance.
Alvarez ended up signing for Asian MMA organization ONE Championship after his contract ended in the UFC and he has lost and won a fight since in the two bouts he has contested.
# 6 Holly Holm
"The Preacher's Daughter", who was a key player behind the biggest upset in Mixed Martial Arts history, Holly Holm is one of the baddest women to have set foot in the octagon.
While her performances are still elite for her division, she has been unlucky to find herself on the wrong end of a judge's decision or making a bad decision in crucial moments of the fight.
After a landscape changing victory over Ronda Rousey before a record-setting crowd at UFC 193, to win the women's bantamweight championship.
She would never successfully defend her belt as she would be choked via rear-naked choke in her first title defense against Miesha Tate in a match where she was surely ahead on the judges' scorecard.
Holm has since then been on a terrible run of four losses in the seven matches she has taken part in against opponents like Amanda Nunes, Cris Cyborg, and Valentina Shevchenko.
# 5 Luke Rockhold
"Conceive, Believe, Achieve... Shut the f*** up", came the retort from Michael Bisping as Luke Rockhold explained the mentality of a champion at the pre-fight press conference for UFC 199.
Bisping would shut him up with a left hook in the first round as Rockhold's reign as champion ended before really gaining any sort of momentum.
Rockhold, who had fought off staph infection to defeat Chris Weidman for the belt had defeated Bisping before and was too overconfident which gave Bisping the opening to capitalize on his mistakes.
The Californian native has lost twice in the three matches he has contested since and was last seen at UFC 239 where he would again be finished by Jan Blachowicz in the light heavyweight division.
UFC president Dana White has even urged him to 'hang it up' as White feels he has already enjoyed a good career in the UFC and that he would be better off focusing on modeling for Ralph Lauren.
# 4 Renan Barao
Renan Barao was one of the phenoms in Mixed Martial Arts in the early 2010s as he accumulated a record of 32 fights where he had never lost once.
The Brazilian would find himself crowned undisputed UFC Bantamweight champion after Dominick Cruz tore his groin to be stripped of the title.
Barao would impressively win his first title defense by finishing Urijah Faber in the first round but would lose in his second title defense against massive underdog T.J Dillashaw.
This loss would unravel everything Barao had done up to that point in his career as he would win just two of his next nine bouts.
After suffering a defeat against Douglas Silva de Andrade on November 16, 2019, his fifth straight loss, he was finally released from the UFC.
# 3 Miesha Tate
Miesha Tate was one of the early pioneers of Women's Mixed Martial Arts alongside the likes of contemporaries Ronda Rousey and Cris Cyborg.
Miesha claimed her belt after a rear-naked choke in the fifth round of a dramatic fight against Holly Holm at UFC 196, which had till that point been controlled by the Albuquerque native.
Miesha would immediately lose her belt though against Brazillian contender Amanda Nunes in the main event of UFC 200 as she was emphatically overpowered by the striking of Nunes and ironically finished via a rear-naked choke in the first round itself.
She would never recover from that brutal beat down by Nunes and would lose her next match against Raquel Pennington in what would be her last fight before retirement.
# 2 Ronda Rousey
Her downfall as an athlete has been one of the most documented subjects in Mixed Martial Arts in recent times.
Rousey, who had been an unstoppable force inside the octagon and also in the mainstream media for UFC found herself unraveled at UFC 193 in front of a record-setting crowd by Holly Holm.
That second-round KO changed the perception of the world regarding Rousey and her blackout from media duties perpetuated a growing theory at the time that she does not have the mental fortitude to handle defeats.
That assessment about her proved to be pretty accurate as she avoided the pre-fight press conference for her return at UFC 207, where she would be crushed by Amanda Nunes inside a minute to close out her career in the UFC as a whole.
# 1 Nicco Montano
The inaugural Women's Flyweight champion of the world, Nicco Montano won her belt after competing in the Ultimate Fighter, where she ended up defeating Roxanne Modafferi in the finals.
The problems for Nicco all started when she was scheduled to face "Bullet" Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 228 on September 8, 2018.
Montano had to be transported to a hospital due to the effects of weight cutting on her body and the bout itself was called off.
Montano would be stripped of her title after the weight cutting incident and she has not fought since then. The former champion currently finds herself residing 15th in the women's flyweight division ranking.
