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The UFC’s welterweight division has always been a shark tank of sorts. Today’s 170-pound class, headed by champion Kamaru Usman, is certainly no different.
Right now, there are a number of undefeated welterweights competing in the UFC. While not all of them have ascended into title contention just yet, it seems like only a matter of time before they do.
Whether they can retain their undefeated status as they continue to climb the ranks is another question entirely, but it’s safe to say that to date, they’ve shown plenty of talent in the octagon.
Here are five undefeated welterweights currently competing in the UFC.
#5. Michael Morales – 13-0 (1-0 in UFC)
While it’s very early on in his UFC career to make a genuine judgment of exactly how good he is, with a record of 13-0, Michael Morales is one of the few undefeated welterweights competing inside the octagon right now.
A native of Ecuador, Morales made his way into the promotion following a victory over Nikolay Veretennikov on Dana White’s Contender Series. While he wasn’t able to finish his opponent, his combination of aggressive striking, explosive takedowns and strong ground-and-pound impressed White enough to hand him a contract.
In his octagon debut proper, he faced off with a far more experienced opponent in the form of Trevin Gile. While Morales did eventually win, the victory didn’t come all that easily.
The bout saw Giles stun the Ecuadorian early on with a devastating right hand. Later, Giles came close to finishing him off with an arm triangle choke. However, Morales recovered well and then demonstrated his own dangerous skills.
After dropping ‘The Problem’ with a sharp right hand, he followed with an uppercut that basically put him out and quickly finished him off with a series of heavy shots on the ground.
How far Morales can go in such a stacked division remains a question mark, as he showed clear vulnerability in his debut. However, with 11 finishes to his name, it’s clear that he’s talented and dangerous, making him a fighter to watch going forward.
Read about: Top Ranked Fighters in the UFC Welterweight Division
#4. Ian Garry – 9-0 (2-0 in UFC)
One of the most highly-touted prospects to hit the UFC in a long time, Irish welterweight Ian Garry currently holds an unbeaten record of 9-0. He has won his first two bouts in the octagon in pretty impressive fashion.
Prior to signing with the promotion, ‘The Future’ had captured gold in the Cage Warriors promotion. So, given this and his background, it’s hardly surprising that he’s been compared by numerous observers to Conor McGregor, who skyrocketed to superstardom just under a decade ago.
Unlike ‘The Notorious’, though, Garry has chosen to train in the US with the Sanford MMA team, which includes the likes of Gilbert Burns, Michael Chandler and reigning welterweight kingpin Kamaru Usman.
It’s an approach that has clearly worked for him thus far. Garry’s sharp striking earned him his first octagon win as he took out Jordan Williams via TKO last November. His most recent bout saw him outwork Darian Weeks largely in all areas.
A huge, rangy welterweight who stands at 6’3”, ‘The Future’ has all the physical tools to make it to the top of the division. While he has claimed that he’ll fight anyone in the division, it seems likely that the UFC will want to build him slowly, meaning he could keep hold of his unbeaten record for some time yet.
#3. Shavkat Rakhmonov – 15-0 (3-0 in UFC)
Currently ranked at No.15 in the UFC’s welterweight division, Shavkat Rakhmonov is quite rightfully recognised as one of the brightest and most dangerous prospects in the world at 170 pounds right now.
The native of Kazakhstan is already 15-0 in his MMA career overall and has wasted no time in picking up three wins inside the octagon, looking incredibly impressive in all three of those victories, none of which have gone the distance.
A well rounded fighter who’s more than capable of grappling with his opponents and also attacking them with a flashy striking arsenal, ‘Nomad’ could be stylistically compared to featherweight prospect Zabit Magomedsharipov, simply due to the fact that thus far at least, he’s shown no weaknesses.
Rakhmonov’s UFC debut saw him submit longtime veteran Alex Oliveira with a guillotine choke. He also won his second bout via tapout, choking out Michel Prazeres in the second round. However, it was his third bout against a fellow prospect in Carlston Harris that really opened the eyes of the fans.
‘Nomad’ wasted no time in taking out Harris, dispatching him with an explosive spinning hook kick in just over four minutes. It was the kind of win that immediately had fans talking about him as a potential title contender in the near future.
So can Rakhmonov climb to those heights? Based on what we’ve seen thus far, there’s no reason why he can’t. If he can beat veteran Neil Magny in June, it’ll be hard not to consider him a genuine threat to the champion.
#2. Sean Brady – 15-0 (5-0 in UFC)
While his grappling-heavy style and stoic personality have thus far meant that he’s avoided the spotlight somewhat, it’s safe to say that Sean Brady is one of the very best prospects in the welterweight division right now and should be considered a title contender.
Brady, who debuted in the UFC in October 2019, has already climbed up the rankings to No.9 and holds an MMA record of 15-0 with five of those wins coming inside the octagon.
More importantly, the native of Philadelphia hasn’t simply been snacking on overmatched opponents. His debut came against a highly-experienced opponent in Court McGee, but Brady comfortably outpointed him. Most recently, he’s pulled off wins over Jake Matthews and a highly-touted contender in Michael Chiesa.
A no-nonsense fighter, Brady’s success stems from his powerful grappling. Despite not holding any amateur wrestling credentials to speak of, nobody’s really been able to stop his takedowns thus far. Once he’s got an opponent grounded, he’s an expert at both controlling them and advancing into a dominant position.
The big question mark around Brady is naturally how he’d do against an opponent who could prevent him from grounding them, but as nobody’s been able to do that thus far, he hasn’t really been tested in the octagon.
However, that may change if he can secure a bout with one of the fighters above him, someone like Stephen Thompson or Vicente Luque, for instance. So if he can remain unbeaten then, it’ll be hard to ever doubt him.
#1. Khamzat Chimaev – 11-0 (5-0 in UFC)
Naturally, the first name that comes to mind when discussing the unbeaten welterweights currently competing in the UFC is Khamzat Chimaev. It’s probably fair to argue that he’s taken the promotion by storm more than any fighter since Conor McGregor just under a decade ago.
Currently 11-0 in MMA with five of those wins coming in the octagon, ‘Borz’ has already ascended to the lofty heights of No.3 in the UFC rankings. It’s not out of the question that he could find himself fighting for the welterweight title in 2023.
The hype around Chimaev has not gone down one bit despite his struggles in his recent bout with Gilbert Burns. Sure, ‘Borz’ ate over a hundred significant strikes during the clash – the first he’d ever absorbed in his octagon career – and found himself hurt on more than one occasion, but overall, he did enough to outpoint the veteran.
When you consider the difference in experience between the two fighters – Burns has been with the UFC since 2014 and fought Kamaru Usman in a title bout in 2021 – it was hard not to be impressed by Chimaev’s performance.
Essentially, the Chechen-born Swede has an incredibly powerful wrestling game, brutal striking power, dangerous submissions, tons of confidence and, as we learned against Burns, a granite chin too.
Whether he can retain his unbeaten record as he inches closer to a title bout remains to be seen. Right now, it feels likely that ‘Borz’ will hold UFC gold at some point in the near future, justifying all of the hype that is currently around him.
