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UFC champions are the main points of attraction for most MMA fans. Everyone tunes in to either watch a new fighter get crowned, or an existing titleholder defend their throne against their latest challenger. Occasionally, the UFC features dominant champions that seem unlikely to lose their belts.
However, throughout 2022, some champions who were once thought invincible lost their titles in spectacular fashion. Kamaru Usman, Israel Adesanya, and Charles Oliveira were dominant champions at one point this year. Furthermore, they were the top-three ranked fighters in the UFC's P4P rankings.
Yet all three men lost their titles and were finished by their opponents, no less. The same could happen to some of the promotion's existing champions next year.
A fighter who has never touched UFC gold would probably capture an undisputed title in 2023, and this list details five potential candidates.
#5. Ciryl Gane, UFC heavyweight
Ciryl Gane is a former UFC interim heavyweight champion and one of the finest strikers in the 265 lbs weight class. The Frenchman is a superb athlete with quick feet and surprising speed for a man of his size. He is a dynamic and powerful kicker who uses distance management to great success.
His quick footwork and head movement render him difficult to hit cleanly. This further frustrates opponents who can't reach him with their punches, causing them to overextend. This approach has earned 'Bon Gamin' eight wins in the UFC. The reigning heavyweight champion, Francis Ngannou, struggled to strike with him.
'The Predator' lost every striking exchange and only managed to win by shocking everyone with a wrestling-heavy game plan. No one expected the Cameroonian knockout artist to shoot for takedowns, so it's easy to forgive Ciryl Gane's poor defensive wrestling. He was expecting a striking contest.
With a rematch between the two former training partners on the horizon, the Frenchman's chances of capturing UFC gold remain decent. He can and has outstruck Ngannou. If a rematch happens and Gane is prepared to defend takedowns against a foe with inferior cardio, his chances of winning skyrocket.
#4. Sergei Pavlovich, UFC heavyweight
Besides Francis Ngannou, Sergei Pavlovich is the most terrifying force of nature in the UFC heavyweight division. The Russian power puncher is riding the wave of a five-fight win streak. Not only does he have five consecutive victories, but the fearsome knockout artist won all those bouts via first-round KOs.
His two recent wins over Tai Tuivasa and Derrick Lewis were sub-minute knockouts against elite contenders. The Russian behemoth is improving. But it's not just his power that's crushing his foes, it's also his speed.
The quick-footed 265'er is blindingly fast for a man of his size. He's fast enough to enter striking exchanges and use his natural speed to easily evade his opponents. Once his foes are out of position due to missing a punch, they must reset their stance. Unfortunately, this is when Pavlovich catches most of his foes.
If the UFC books him in a matchup with Francis Ngannou, 'The Predator' will have to exercise caution. The reigning heavyweight kingpin is prone to overextending. This could be a fatal mistake against an opponent as powerful and as fast as Sergei Pavlovich.
#3. Shavkat Rakhmonov, UFC welterweight
Shavkat Rakhmonov is the dark horse of the welterweight division. The Kazakh is an undefeated fighter who has finished every single foe he's ever faced. He has exactly eight knockouts and eight submissions on his record. As a fighter, he matches up well with both Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman.
'The Nomad' is taller and possesses a longer reach than 'Rocky'. Furthermore, he typically starts his fights from the outside and uses his reach advantage to outbox his foes from range. He stands just outside his opponent's kicking range to counter their range-finding tools like jabs and low kicks.
This enables him to throw feints and non-committal strikes to assess his foe's reactions, ultimately informing his reads from a safe distance - the reason behind his superb accuracy and high-finishing rate.
He hits his opponents with strikes they never see coming. This will be especially troubling for 'Rocky' due to his penchant for trying to force the perfect exchange. Since he stands on the outside, 'The Nomad' is also too far away for wrestlers like Kamaru Usman to grab his hips or legs.
#2. Khamzat Chimaev, UFC welterweight
Khamzat Chimaev is a future UFC champion in the making. He is a perfect combination of knockout power and overpowering wrestling. Not only is 'Borz' a fearsome wrestler, but he possesses elite-level grappling skills on the mat.
The only time he's ever looked vulnerable was against Gilbert Burns. However, that was due to the Chechen's fear of the Brazilian's vaunted ground game. He was in full control of the fight when he had no fear of wrestling 'Durinho'. It was only after his foe tried an armbar from the bottom that 'Borz' stopped wrestling.
This is not something he'll have to fear from almost anyone else at 170 lbs. The title will be contested between Kamaru Usman and Leon Edwards in a rematch. Neither man has an offensive BJJ on the mat, and their grappling is very limited. Without a true submission threat to trouble him, 'Borz' will be a problem.
He is much larger and stronger than every welterweight. He was so strong that he managed to outwrestle Jack Hermansson in a freestyle wrestling match. The Swede, meanwhile, is a foe far too large to ever fight at welterweight. If 'Rocky' faces the undefeated Chechen, he'll struggle against his wrestling.
Despite his years of improving his defensive wrestling, Edwards still faced enormous difficulties against Usman in their rematch. Meanwhile, Usman's overreliance on the jab will be ill-equipped against Chimaev. The Chechen applies a tremendous amount of pressure that will deprive him of the space needed to jab.
Usman will be forced to fight from mid-range, where he throws sloppy looping punches with improper form. The Chechen's chances of capturing a title are as good as any once he's booked in a title fight.
#1. Jamahal Hill, UFC light heavyweight
At UFC 283, Jamahal Hill will face Glover Teixeira for the promotion's 205 lbs title. He has never held a title in the UFC before, and January will be his first crack at divisional immortality. Unfortunately, he must first defeat the former light heavyweight kingpin Glover Teixeira to fulfill his dream.
While he might not be the most skilled fighter in the world, 'Sweet Dreams' is well-equipped to win. The American knockout artist is an exceptionally powerful puncher who is currently riding a vicious streak of KOs. Meanwhile, Glover Teixeira is 43 years old and damaged from his last bout - a five-round war.
It was a grueling affair against Jiří Procházka, another extremely powerful striker. The amount of damage that the Brazilian sustained in that bout could potentially compromise his ability to absorb Jamahal Hill's strikes.
If Teixeira is, in any way, less durable than he used to be due to the effects of his most recent bout, he'll undoubtedly struggle mightily against Hill. Thus, 'Sweet Dreams' could be crowned the new 205 lbs champion in January.
