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In the world of the UFC, winning fights is obviously the most important thing that anyone on the roster can do. But for some fighters, it feels like wins and losses don’t really matter.
Only a handful of fighters in UFC history have ever ascended to a level where they don’t need wins to remain big stars in the eyes of the fans.
These fighters simply have an X-factor that makes them stand out, whether that’s an exciting fighting style, unmatched charisma, or money in the bank from previous big wins.
With this in mind, here are five current UFC fighters who don’t need wins to remain big stars in the eyes of the fans.
#5. Derrick Lewis – UFC heavyweight contender
Derrick Lewis is neither a former UFC champion nor one of the promotion’s biggest drawing cards. However, it’s undeniable that ‘The Black Beast’ is viewed as a star by the fans.
Lewis routinely gets some of the biggest reactions from live crowds at events. Fans almost always look forward to his fights and he’s a reliable headline act for smaller Fight Night shows.
Remarkably, though, in recent years, Lewis simply doesn’t have a truly outstanding record inside the octagon.
‘The Black Beast’ has won just once in his past five fights, stopping Chris Daukaus via knockout in late 2021.
Outside of that single win, he’s fallen to defeat at the hands of Ciryl Gane, Tai Tuivasa, Sergei Pavlovich, and Sergei Spivac, with all four men stopping him.
Despite this, Lewis’ spot on the roster does not seem under threat at all, nor does his status as a highly popular fighter with the fans.
Put simply, this is because whenever ‘The Black Beast’ fights, extreme violence seems to ensue. In 26 trips to the octagon, he’s been the distance just four times, a truly remarkable feat even if he’s lost nine of those bouts.
Add in his charisma on the microphone, and Lewis is the definition of a fighter who doesn’t need to win to remain popular, purely because he’s so much fun to watch.
#4. Nick Diaz – UFC welterweight contender
It seems outright bizarre that a fighter who hasn’t actually won inside the octagon since 2011 could remain one of the most popular men on the UFC roster.
However, that’s certainly the case when it comes to Nick Diaz. When the Stockton-based fighter announced his return to action in 2021, his bout with Robbie Lawler instantly became a must-see affair.
Of course, the fight couldn’t have gone much worse for Diaz, who looked like a shadow of his former self and fell to a third-round TKO.
Despite this loss, when rumors of a 2023 return for the veteran began to swirl around, once again the majority of fans seemed excited.
Diaz is now 39 years old and probably isn’t capable of beating many fighters. In all honesty, though, that doesn’t matter.
The former welterweight title challenger has been able to largely transcend the sport’s usual rules for popularity. Despite his best performances coming well over a decade ago now, he remains a huge star.
Perhaps most bizarrely, Diaz has never attempted to ascend to stardom. He’s never really cared what the fans think of him, doesn’t really like to build up his fights as such, and doesn’t really seem to like fighting.
Despite all of this, wins and losses simply don’t matter when it comes to how the fans view him. In that sense, he’s almost a completely unique case.
#3. Justin Gaethje – former interim UFC lightweight champion
Prior to his recent bout with Rafael Fiziev, Justin Gaethje labeled himself the most exciting fighter in UFC history. Despite this being a pretty outlandish claim, it’s actually hard to disagree with him.
‘The Highlight’ has stepped into the octagon on eleven occasions since his debut in 2017, and every time, he’s produced something memorable.
Gaethje has given fans crazy brawls with the likes of Michael Chandler and Dustin Poirier. He has brutally knocked out the likes of Donald Cerrone and Edson Barboza.
Remarkably, every one of his fights has earned him a performance bonus award.
It’s hardly difficult, then, to see why ‘The Highlight’ is considered one of the UFC’s biggest stars, whether or not he ends a fight with his hand raised.
Simply put, Gaethje is one of those fighters who is always worth watching regardless of the result.
He might not be the most charismatic fighter on the microphone, but ‘The Highlight’ is a must-see attraction. That said, he’s now at the point where the results of his fights don’t really matter.
#2. Jorge Masvidal – UFC welterweight contender
Few fighters in UFC history have been able to transform into a star quite so suddenly as Jorge Masvidal did a few years ago.
Prior to that year, ‘Gamebred’ seemed destined to be a high-level gatekeeper, whose most memorable octagon moments tended to see him lose narrow decisions in semi-controversial fashion.
However, after taking over a year away from fighting following a loss to Stephen Thompson, Masvidal returned in 2019 with a new image, a new attitude, and far more aggression than before.
When he then stopped Darren Till, Ben Askren, and Nate Diaz, he was instantly transformed into a major superstar.
Remarkably, Masvidal has not won a single fight since then. He fell twice to Kamaru Usman in title bouts and then to Colby Covington in a largely one-sided affair last year.
Despite this, ‘Gamebred’ remains not only one of the UFC’s most popular fighters but their biggest drawing cards, too.
His reputation has outstripped his actual fighting abilities to the point where Joe Rogan claimed in a recent interview that he could’ve beaten the great Georges St-Pierre.
More realistically, at the age of 38, Masvidal’s best days are probably behind him. He’s likely to fall to Gilbert Burns in his next fight.
Despite this, it’s unlikely that his popularity will take a hit. Masvidal’s reputation is such that he’ll probably remain a major star and drawing card with the fans for some time – a truly remarkable transformation indeed.
#1. Conor McGregor – former UFC featherweight and lightweight champion
Given that he remains by far the UFC’s biggest star and drawing card despite winning just one fight in the octagon since 2016, it’s probably safe to say that for Conor McGregor, wins and losses don’t mean a lot.
‘The Notorious’ rose to fame almost a decade ago by slaughtering every opponent put in front of him en route to claiming both the featherweight and lightweight titles. At that point, wins seemed like the only thing that mattered to the Irishman.
However, since that point, McGregor has completely transcended the sport of MMA to the point that every time he steps into the octagon, it’s a huge deal.
Fans who wouldn’t normally tune into even the biggest title fights will stop what they’re doing to watch the Irishman in action. He’s probably the only fighter in UFC history to ever reach that point.
McGregor’s last two fights ended badly for him. He was knocked out by Dustin Poirier and then suffered a badly broken leg in their trilogy fight, resulting in him losing via TKO.
Despite this, his comeback fight with Michael Chandler already promises to be the biggest of 2023. If he can pull off a win there, then a title shot is likely in his future, regardless of how much it’d anger hardcore fans.
If he loses to Chandler, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see ‘The Notorious’ hang up his gloves for good. If he were to fight again, though, millions of eyes would still be on him, and he’d likely still make more money than any other fighter on the roster.
To be frank, there’s only one Conor McGregor, and at his level, results don’t mean a lot at all.
