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Fighting in the UFC is naturally an individual sport, but we’ve seen on numerous occasions that throwing down inside the octagon can run in the family.
Over the years, the UFC has seen a number of sets of brothers competing inside the octagon, but most of the time, one sibling is more successful than the other.
Whether that’s down to talent, application – or even differences in the weight classes that a pair of brothers compete in – is always up for debate. However, it’s safe to say that when it came to the following siblings, one was simply able to outshine the other.
With that in mind, here are five fighters who had more success in the UFC than their brothers.
#5. Dominick Reyes has had more UFC success than Alex Reyes
Dominick Reyes might be on the worst skid of his MMA career to date right now, as he’s lost his last three UFC fights, but he’s still widely recognized as one of the world’s best light heavyweight fighters.
‘The Devastator’ debuted in the UFC back in 2017 with a quick victory over Joachim Christensen, and followed it up with another five wins on the bounce. After a knockout of former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman in October 2019, he found himself in line for a UFC light heavyweight title shot.
Reyes was defeated in that fight by Jon Jones, but he arguably pushed ‘Bones’ harder than any fighter had done in his UFC career, and was unlucky not to come away with the title wrapped around his waist.
However, even if ‘The Devastator’ never regains the form he displayed to earn a UFC title shot, it’s safe to say that he’s had far more success inside the octagon than his older brother Alex.
In fact, it’d be easy to forget that Alex Reyes was a UFC fighter altogether. That’s because to date, he’s had just one fight in the UFC. Reyes was brought in as a late replacement for Thiago Alves in a fight with Mike Perry in late 2017, and lost via a vicious knockout.
The older Reyes brother has not fought in the UFC since, despite holding a solid record of 13-3, and may well have quietly hung up his gloves – ensuring that Dominick will definitely be known as the more successful of these two brothers.
#4. Jim Miller has had more UFC success than Dan Miller
The Miller brothers – Jim and Dan – debuted in the UFC within a month of one another back in 2008, and both did so in style. Dan choked out Rob Kimmons with a standing rear naked choke, while Jim outwrestled and eventually submitted France’s David Baron.
Interestingly enough, in their early days in the UFC, it looked like older brother Dan would turn out to be the more successful of the two. He reeled off three straight wins, and appeared to be en route to a UFC middleweight title shot before he fell to Chael Sonnen at UFC 98.
Dan then lost his next two UFC fights, and while he did recover to win a further three bouts in the octagon, he also lost a further four and hung up his gloves after one final loss in the summer of 2015.
Jim meanwhile saw himself knocked out of title contention after a loss to Gray Maynard in his third visit to the octagon. However, he recovered from the defeat to reel off seven wins in a row in arguably the UFC’s toughest division – lightweight – putting him on the cusp of a UFC title shot in mid-2011.
That dream went up in smoke when he was defeated by Benson Henderson, but in the years that have followed, Miller headlined multiple UFC shows and picked up wins over the likes of Melvin Guillard, Takanori Gomi, Joe Lauzon and Clay Guida.
The younger Miller brother is still competing in the UFC today, and holds the record for the most fights in UFC history, as well as the most wins in the history of the UFC lightweight division. It’s safe to say that of the two brothers, Jim will be remembered as the more successful.
#3. Anthony Pettis had more UFC success than Sergio Pettis
When it comes to MMA, the Pettis name is synonymous with flashy strikes, underrated submission skills and plenty of success.
However, while the younger brother Sergio has gone onto plenty of glory in Bellator MMA – where he holds the Bellator bantamweight title – it’s safe to say that older brother Anthony was more successful in the UFC.
Anthony – better known by his ‘Showtime’ nickname – debuted in the UFC in 2011 as the reigning WEC lightweight champion. And while he failed to pick up a win in his UFC debut against Clay Guida, he quickly began to climb the ranks, stopping the likes of Joe Lauzon and Donald Cerrone with explosive strikes.
And at UFC 164 in August 2013, Pettis finally reached the top of the mountain when he submitted Benson Henderson with an armbar to become the UFC lightweight champion.
Three months later, his younger brother Sergio debuted in the octagon to plenty of fanfare, outpointing Will Campuzano in a bantamweight bout.
However, despite putting together a solid UFC record of 9-5, ‘The Phenom’ never really made a proper mark in the promotion, and never really came close to earning a UFC title shot at bantamweight or flyweight.
Anthony meanwhile defended his UFC lightweight title just once – against Gilbert Melendez – before he was unseated by Rafael dos Anjos.
But despite never replicating that success again, he did go on to defeat fighters such as Charles Oliveira, Stephen Thompson and Michael Chiesa, ensuring that his UFC legacy would always outshine that of his younger brother.
#2. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira had more UFC success than Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
A rare pair of twins to compete in the UFC, the Nogueira brothers – Rodrigo and Rogerio – surprisingly competed in two different weight classes despite being identical.
And despite plenty of success in his own right, it’s probably fair to say that Rogerio – better known as ‘Lil Nog’ – never quite escaped the shadow of his more successful brother Rodrigo, both during their tenure in Pride FC and also when they joined the UFC.
Rodrigo had been Pride’s first heavyweight champion, and at one point he was widely recognized as the best fighter on the planet, period. His wins over the likes of Mark Coleman, Heath Herring and Bob Sapp are part of MMA legend.
And while he was slightly past his prime when he first came to the UFC, he was still able to capture the interim UFC heavyweight title and picked up major wins over the likes of Tim Sylvia, Randy Couture and Brendan Schaub.
Rogerio, meanwhile, never quite reached the heights of his brother in Pride despite beating the likes of Dan Henderson and Kazushi Sakuraba. He also joined the UFC about two years after his brother, and despite beating Luiz Cane and Tito Ortiz, losses to the likes of Phil Davis and Ryan Bader always kept him away from a UFC title shot.
Both brothers eventually got old, but even then it was Rodrigo who chose to hang up his gloves at the right time, stepping away following a 2015 loss to Stefan Struve.
Rogerio on the other hand hung around for an extra five years, but rather than surpass his brother, he instead suffered a number of bad losses before retiring in 2020.
#1. Nate Diaz has had more UFC success than Nick Diaz
The Diaz brothers are perhaps MMA’s most popular and infamous pair of siblings. And it’s probably fair to suggest that both brothers accomplished a similar amount in the UFC, with both unsuccessfully challenging for UFC titles on one occasion each.
However, while older brother Nick arrived in the UFC first and picked up some huge wins over the likes of Robbie Lawler and Josh Neer, it’s definitely arguable that his younger brother Nate has been the more successful fighter in the octagon.
Nate Diaz actually entered the UFC during Nick’s period away from the promotion, coming in during the summer of 2007 after winning the fifth season of The Ultimate Fighter.
And while it looked like he’d never quite reach his potential – with losses to the likes of Clay Guida and Joe Stevenson keeping him away from the top of the lightweight division – a surprising resurgence in 2012 saw him eventually fight Benson Henderson for the UFC lightweight title in a losing effort.
Nick meanwhile returned to the UFC in 2011 and managed to secure a shot at UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, but after losing that fight, stepped away from the UFC for an extended period. Since March 2013, he’s fought just once.
In the interim, Nate of course became one of the UFC’s biggest-ever stars thanks to his two fights with Conor McGregor.
And while his activity levels since have been sporadic to say the least, he remains one of the UFC’s most bankable stars, and adds plenty of intrigue whenever he appears on a UFC card.
Both Diaz brothers have been highly successful in the UFC in their own right, but at this stage, Nate is almost definitely the bigger star – meaning that his UFC career has been more successful.
