Let's look at all you need to know about UFC Bantamweight Division.
UFC Bantamweight Division
Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports. In MMA, the Bantamweight Division is within 126-135 lbs (57.2-61.2 kg). The Bantamweight Division sits between the Flyweight Division (116-125 lbs) and the Featherweight Division.
Current Bantamweight Champion- 2025
The current UFC Bantamweight Champion is Merab Dvalishvili (19-4-0).
At UFC 306, Merab Dvalishvili defeated Sean O'Malley to become the new bantamweight champion. Dvalishvili was declared the victor via a unanimous decision after five rounds. He defended the title for the first time against Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC 311.
Latest Results from UFC Bantamweight
| Date | Fight | Method | Round | Result | |
| May 10, 2025 | Brad Katona vs. Bekzat Almakhan | KO (punches) | 1 | 1:04 | Bekzat Almakhan def. Brad Katona |
UFC Bantamweight Rankings 2025
| Rank | Fighter | Record | M | Win Streak | Result | Last fight | Next fight |
| C | Merab Dvalishvili | 19–4 | 12 (1 def) | Win | UFC 311 Umar Nurmagomedov | UFC 316 Sean O'Malley | |
| 1 | Sean O'Malley | 18–2(1 NC) | 0 | Loss | UFC 306 Merab Dvalishvili | UFC 316 Merab Dvalishvili | |
| 2 | Petr Yan | 18–5 | 2 | Win | UFC Fight Night 248 Deiveson Figueiredo | TBD | |
| 3 | Umar Nurmagomedov | 18–1 | 0 | Loss | UFC 311 Merab Dvalishvili | TBD | |
| 4 | Cory Sandhagen | 18–5 | 1 | Win | UFC on ESPN 67 Deiveson Figueiredo | TBD | |
| 5 | Song Yadong | 22–7–1(1 NC) | 1 | 1 | Win | UFC Fight Night 252 Henry Cejudo | TBD |
| 6 | Deiveson Figueiredo | 24–5–1 | −1 | 0 | Loss | UFC on ESPN 67 Cory Sandhagen | TBD |
| 7 | Marlon Vera | 23–10–1 | 0 | Loss | UFC on ABC 7 Deiveson Figueiredo | UFC 316 Mario Bautista | |
| 8 | Rob Font | 22–8 | 2 | Win | UFC Fight Night 252 Jean Matsumoto | TBD | |
| 9 | Henry Cejudo | 16–5 | 0 | Loss | UFC Fight Night 252 Song Yadong | TBD | |
| 10 | Mario Bautista | 15–2 | 7 | Win | UFC 307 José Aldo | UFC 316 Marlon Vera | |
| 11 | José Aldo | 32–10 | 0 | Loss | UFC 315 Aiemann Zahabi | TBD | |
| 12 | Kyler Phillips | 12–3 | 0 | Loss | UFC Fight Night 245 Rob Font | TBD | |
| 13 | Marcus McGhee | 10–1 | 6 | Win | UFC 309 Jonathan Martinez | TBD | |
| 14 | Montel Jackson | 15–2 | 1 | 6 | Win | UFC on ESPN 67 Daniel Marcos | TBD |
| 15 | Aiemann Zahabi | 13–2 | −1 | 6 | Win | UFC 315 José Aldo | TBD |
Check Out: All the Weight Classes from UFC
History of Bantamweight Class
Before the UFC-WEC merger, Dominick Cruz was the WEC Bantamweight Champion. At WEC 53, Cruz defeated Scott Jorgensen to retain the WEC Bantamweight Championship and was simultaneously awarded the inaugural UFC Bantamweight Championship.
At UFC 173, T.J. Dillashaw defeated Renan Barao to win the UFC Bantamweight Championship. At UFC Fight Night: Dillashaw vs Cruz, Dominick Cruz became the first-ever two-time Bantamweight Champion. At UFC 207, Cruz lost the title to Cody Garbrandt, who eventually lost it to Dillashaw, making the latter a two-time division champion.
Due to a failed drug test, Dillashaw vacated his title in March 2019. After winning the vacant title at UFC 238 and defending it at UFC 249, Cejudo became the fourth UFC fighter to hold titles in two different weight classes (Flyweight and Bantamweight) simultaneously and the second to defend titles in two other weight divisions.
Petr Yan defeated Jose Aldo at UFC 251 and became the current UFC Bantamweight Champion.
In his first title defense, Yan faced #1 ranked Bantamweight Aljamain Sterling at UFC 259 on March 6, 2021, and lost the title by disqualification due to an intentional illegal knee landed by him in the fourth round to Sterling.
Sterling couldn't continue the fight any further due to a concussion, and the doctor recommended stopping the fight, thus making him the new UFC Bantamweight champion. This is the first-ever title change caused by disqualification in UFC history.
Sterling then defended his belt against Petr Yan, T.J. Dillashaw, and Henry Cejudo.
Sterling's next title defense was against Sean O'Malley at UFC 292, where he lost the championship via a TKO in the second round, making O'Malley the new bantamweight champion.
O'Malley defended the title once against Marlon Vera, after which he lost the championship to Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 306 on September 14, 2024.
UFC Weight Divisions
Men
Women
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FAQs On UFC Bantamweight Division
A. The division's name is derived from bantam chickens in mixed martial arts.
A. In UFC, bantamweight is classified as between 126 to 135 lb.
A. Merab Dvalishvili is the current bantamweight champion.
A. Aljamain Sterling currently competes in the featherweight (145 lbs) division.
