5 champions whose title reigns ended earlier than the UFC would've liked feat. Sean O'Malley and Khabib Nurmagomedov

While the UFC is generally a meritocracy, it's clear that the promotion does favor some fighters over others. Most of the time, this is because Dana White and company can see their star power and their potential to draw big money.

Over the years, we've seen examples of these fighters winning UFC titles - only for their reigns to end sooner than the promotion would've liked.

Given their popularity, the end of some of these title reigns has been disappointing for the fans, too. Below are five champions whose title reigns ended earlier than the UFC would've liked.

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#5. Sean O'Malley - former UFC bantamweight champion

Former bantamweight champ Sean O'Malley is an interesting case, even for this list.

Most of the fighters here rose to fame and into title contention before the UFC pegged them as a potential megastar. That wasn't the case for 'Sugar', who was recognized for his star potential when he appeared on Dana White's Contender Series in 2017.

That meant that he was allowed an almost unique build-up through the ranks, fighting lower-level foes for a long period despite his clear talents.

Eventually, the approach paid off massively, as when it was time for O'Malley to step up, he did so in incredible fashion. After edging out former champion Petr Yan, he sparked out reigning kingpin Aljamain Sterling to claim the gold in the summer of 2023.

With his knockout of Sterling immediately going viral, Dana White and company unsurprisingly put all of their promotional muscle behind 'Sugar'. Naturally, it looked like they had a new superstar on their hands.

Unfortunately, after avenging his only career loss against Marlon Vera, O'Malley then stumbled in his second title defense, losing his crown to Merab Dvalishvili.

This must've been disappointing for the UFC. With an exciting fighting style, tons of charisma and a unique look, O'Malley is essentially a marketing dream.

This may explain why he's been given a rematch so quickly - and while they'd never say it, the promotion will probably be hoping that he comes out on top.

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#4. Anthony Pettis - former UFC lightweight champion

Few fighters arrived in the UFC with the levels of hype that Anthony Pettis did in 2011. Not only did he come in as the reigning WEC champion, but he also had one of the all-time viral highlight reel moments - the 'Showtime kick' in his back pocket.

Pettis actually lost his octagon debut in disappointing fashion, but just over two years later, he found himself in a lightweight title bout with his old WEC rival Benson Henderson.

When 'Showtime' beat Henderson with a first-round armbar to win the title, it felt like a new era had begun at 155 pounds. Realistically, for the first time since BJ Penn had lost the title in 2010, the lightweight division had a potential superstar at the top.

Unfortunately for Dana White and company, Pettis' reign with the title didn't go to plan.

His first year as champion saw him stuck on the shelf with injuries, but when he returned to submit Gilbert Melendez in stunning fashion, it looked like the 'Showtime' train would roll on.

However, despite the promotion building the second quarter of 2015 around him by using the tagline 'Welcome to the Show', he ran out of steam in his second title defense. He was beaten down by Rafael dos Anjos, and his career never really recovered.

The UFC continually gave Pettis big opportunities for the remainder of his time there, but the magic was seemingly gone, and he eventually departed in 2020. There's no doubt, though, that they'd have loved his title reign to last far longer than it did.

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#3. Lyoto Machida - former UFC light-heavyweight champion

Joe Rogan has made plenty of famous calls during his time as a UFC color commentator. However, it's arguable that his most iconic came back in 2009, when he made a proclamation about the future of the light-heavyweight division.

Rogan's statement? "Welcome to the Machida era".

It was, of course, easy to see why Rogan felt this was the case. Not only had Lyoto Machida made mincemeat of Rashad Evans to claim the 205-pound title, but nobody had even come close to solving the puzzle of his karate-based style.

Machida was 15-0, had barely even absorbed a clean strike during his seven-fight octagon career, and had shaken off a reputation as a dull fighter to become a true star with the fans.

Unfortunately for both 'The Dragon' and the UFC itself, though, the 'Machida era' did not last long at all.

The Brazilian was matched with former PRIDE champ Shogun Rua in his first defense. Despite many fans believing Shogun to be washed up, he actually solved the Machida puzzle - using low kicks and body shots to break him down rather than swing at his head and miss.

Machida was handed a gift of a decision in their first bout, and then suffered the first knockout loss of his career in the rematch, and just like that, his 'era' was over.

What made this one even worse for the promotion was the fact that Shogun instantly headed off to have knee surgery, essentially putting the light-heavyweight title on ice for a year.

Sure, Machida's reign probably would've been ended by Jon Jones eventually anyway. From a promotional point of view, though, it's definitely fair to say that 'The Dragon' holding the title for a little longer would've been much better.

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#2. Brock Lesnar - former UFC heavyweight champion

When former WWE champion Brock Lesnar was signed by the UFC in 2008, his arrival split the opinion of the fans.

Some believed him to be nothing more than a gimmick fighter, brought in purely because of his star status from his pro-wrestling days. Others focused more on his natural athleticism and his background as a two-time NCAA Division I national champion.

Of course, as we all know, the latter camp were largely proven right. After a thrilling debut against Frank Mir ended in defeat, Lesnar regrouped, smashed through veteran Heath Herring, and then knocked out Randy Couture to claim the heavyweight title.

Naturally, the UFC got behind Lesnar, marketing him as 'the baddest man on the planet', and unsurprisingly, pay-per-view buyrates skyrocketed. Years before Ronda Rousey and Conor McGregor, Lesnar was easily the promotion's biggest drawing card.

Unfortunately for Dana White and company, Lesnar's reign as champion lasted for only three fights, largely due to his battle with diverticulitis.

He defeated Mir in a rematch and a year later, submitted Shane Carwin to make a second defense. In his third, though, he was violently stopped by Cain Velasquez, and the Lesnar Era was over.

Following the end of his title reign, the promotion got just one more fight out of Lesnar - a 2011 loss to Alistair Overeem - before he returned to WWE.

While it's probably fair to argue that he never could've beaten Velasquez, diverticulitis or not, the UFC undoubtedly would've liked his title reign to last a bit longer at least. In its 2009-10 peak, Lesnar as heavyweight champion was the very definition of a money fighter.

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#1. Khabib Nurmagomedov - former UFC lightweight champion

The only champion in UFC history to retire undefeated is, of course, the legendary Khabib Nurmagomedov.

'The Eagle' hung up his gloves in 2020 after taking his record to 29-0 by submitting Justin Gaethje, leaving the lightweight title behind in the process.

However, despite Khabib being adamant that he'd promised his mother that his fight with Gaethje would be his final one, it took another six months for Dana White to accept that this was the case.

That's because, of course, at the time he retired, Khabib wasn't just a regular champion. Instead, he'd largely transcended the sport to become an icon in his own right.

'The Eagle' wasn't always a big drawing card, of course, and even when he first won the lightweight title in 2018, he was never the promotion's biggest star.

When he firmly won his legendary rivalry with Conor McGregor, though, the Dagestani rose to a new level of fame. His legend only grew with his wins over Dustin Poirier and finally Gaethje.

That's why it felt almost too abrupt for him to retire when he did, even if it made sense for him from a personal perspective.

However, while it was eventually easy for fans to accept his decision, it was much harder for UFC, purely because they'd essentially lost one of their biggest drawing cards at the peak of his powers.

Had Khabib continued fighting - particularly given he retired during the COVID-19 era - he could've drawn huge crowds and buyrates against the likes of Michael Chandler, Charles Oliveira and Alexander Volkanovski.

For that reason, he's the epitomy of a champion whose title reign the UFC probably would've liked to have lasted longer.