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The UFC has witnessed many great fighters till now. From power to precision and from strength to the speed, each fighter is unique in his/her ability. Despite all of the hard work and dedication, some fighters never come up with the ultimate prize in the sports. There is always something between them and that winning pedestal which they somehow can't climb. Some had many opportunities to achieve that but failed miserably at the focal point whereas some are stuck in their own division with the same champion which they can't beat.
Here is the list of top 5 UFC fighters who have never won a belt despite being best at their game.
Number 5
Alistair Overeem
“The Reem”
“The Demolition Man”
If you are looking for a fighter with both compelling aesthetics and power, Alistair Overeem is the one. With brutal knees as his strong feature, he makes the last spot on our list. A 265 pounds heavyweight fighter from the Netherlands made his career at the age of 19 and established himself by winning heavyweight titles at Strikeforce, DREAM, and K-1. He is also well known as he is one of the only two fighters to hold a belt in both kickboxing and MMA at the same time.
The fight that made him famous:
His debut fight in UFC was against Brock Lesnar (former Heavyweight Champion) who was on the verge of his retirement. With a massive price, added with all the trash talk along the line, this was the fight that most UFC fans were waiting for. This fight lit up pretty fairly to a great extent where Alistair finished him in the very first round via a technical knockout (TKO) with brutal body kick landing his shin through Lesnar’s liver.
Fights:
He even defeated Frank Mir, Junior Dos Santos, Vitor Belfort, Andrei Arlovski along with Fabricio Werdum. He got a shot at the title against Stipe Miocic in 2016 but Miocic had the better of him and knocked him out in the very first round. With 43 wins and 16 losses in all competitions, he is yet to hold a belt in his UFC career.
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Number 4
Donald Cerrone
“Cowboy”
Hailing from the United States, a 170 pounds fighter who is currently ranked #11 in the Welterweight division is number 4 on our list. He started his career at the age of 20 from taekwondo and kickboxing and turned to a professional fighter after learning Muay Thai. Starting on with his career, he quickly gained fame and established himself with a perfect win record. The thing which surprises almost every UFC fan is his defeats when it comes to a title match.
The fight that made him famous (even after losing):
It was in UFC 141 on December 30, 2011, when he fought against Nate Diaz. As almost the whole world knows everything about Nate Diaz and how dope is his talks, this bout quickly lit up as one of the most awaited fights in the UFC. As far as the match is concerned, Donald was fighting pretty aggressively and even managed to knock Diaz off his feet two times during the match but Diaz came up extremely good and landed almost 80 percent of his punches and went on to win the bout by a unanimous decision.
Fights:
He finished great fighters like Charles Oliviera, Melvin Guillard, and Matt Brown and was well known for his submissions. Despite defeating so many fighters, he somehow lacked that edge when it comes to championship bouts. So, he makes up yet another fighter on our list without a belt.
Number 3
Urijah Faber
“The California Kid”
Urijah Christopher Faber is now a retired mixed martial artist from the United States. He started his career in UFC in the Bantamweight and the Featherweight division (135 pounds) and is well versed in kickboxing, wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and Muay Thai. Before UFC he developed his career through King of the Cage, World Extreme Cage Fighting and Gladiator Challenge. With a record of 34 wins and 10 losses in his MMA career, he stands at number 3 position on our list.
The fight that made him famous in UFC:
His fight against Ivan Menjivar at UFC 157 was a great spectacle. The fight was a rematch where he defeated Menjivar in the very first round via a submission. The great thing about the fight was his submission via a read naked standing choke which caught the eyes of many UFC fans. Dana called this the most fantastic thing a fighter could do in a cage. Urijah was also awarded for his submission as the “Submission of the year” in 2013.
Fights:
He founded the team “Alpha Male” in 2004 at California which produced great fighters like Chad Mendes, Cody Garbrandt, Paige VanZant, etc. He defeated many fighters including Dominick Cruz, Jens Pulver, Raphael Assuncao, Michael McDonald, Brad Pickett and many more. Despite performing so well, he never wore a title belt in UFC.
Number 2
Wanderlei Silva
“Mad Dog”
With the elements of Muay Thai and kickboxing, Wanderlei Silva emerged as one of the best in the history of the mixed martial arts competitions. He joined the Brazilian army as a teen and when everyone recognized his skills, he was quickly transferred to the mixed martial arts training school. The most peculiar thing about Wanderlei was that he always used to have scar tissues around his eyes as he used to fight bare knuckle in the Vale Tudo. UFC offered him a contract as he was the record holder for the most wins, most knockouts and most title defenses in the PRIDE history. Though he was at his best when he was there in the PRIDE, he somewhat lost his charm when he went to the UFC. Sustaining numerous injuries throughout his fights forced him to withdraw from many of his fights.
The fight that made him famous:
It was his knockout in round 2 against Brian Stann at UFC on Fuel TV 8. This match was an absolute madness. From the start of the match, both the fighters went out to kill each other. They were unstoppable. While tumbling back and forth, they were just striking one other. This match was a delight for the spectators as the fighters were also taunting each other in between the fights. The unstoppable bombardment of punches with the determination of standing up made this fight the best thing a UFC fan can ever witness.
Despite so many records to his name, he is yet to wear a UFC belt.
Number 1
Dan Henderson
“Hendo”
He is a former mixed martial artist from the United States and fought in four divisions, namely the welterweight, the middleweight, the light heavyweight and the heavyweight division in his career. He was also the champion at Strikeforce in the middleweight division, Pride fighting championship and various similar tournaments. He also represented his country in the Olympics in the wrestling field. He is now the owner of fitness Gym “Team Quest” located in California.
The Fight that made him famous:
It was his knockout in round 2 against Michael Bisping at UFC 100. The knockout was so good that it became the “knockout of the year 2009”. It was not the knockout that made him famous, it was the second punch which he threw on Bisping when he was out cold and down. In his interview, he stated that he knew that Bisping was out on the first punch but he landed the second punch to shut him up a little bit. This incident gained popularity and they both fought again resulting in his loss via a unanimous decision.
Fights:
In UFC, he defeated many good fighters like Rich Franklin, Michael Bisping, Mauricio Rua, Tim Boetsch, etc. but never claimed any belt despite his excellent career record.
