Longest UFC title reigns

Anybody interesting in partaking in mixed martial arts dreams of one day having a UFC belt strapped around their waist.

Only 126 people have ever experienced that, with a small handful holding titles over a number of years.

Below, we look at the longest title reigns in UFC history.

Longest individual title reigns in UFC history

Anderson Silva - 2,457 days

Nobody in the UFC has ever dominated a division for as long as Anderson Silva, with the Brazilian simply unbeatable for nearly seven years. It could be argued that Silva got complacent when he was eventually dethroned by Chris Weidman, inviting the challenger on to the point of being knocked out, with Silva then breaking his leg in the rematch, and never being the same fighter after.

Demetrious Johnson - 2,142 days

What Anderson Silva was to middleweights, Demetrious Johnson was to flyweights. While the talent depth might not have been the same at flyweight, few fighters were able to live with Mighty Mouse, who was able to out-point, submit and knock out fighters at will.

Georges St-Pierre - 2,064 days

Likely to appear on many people's MMA 'Mount Rushmore', Georges St-Pierre has strong claims as the best mixed martial artist of all time.

Appearing in two more title fights than Anderson Silva, GSP actually competed in 19 more rounds in UFC title fights. St-Pierre might not always have been flashy, but rarely looked in any danger, and competed safe in the knowledge he could simply out-fight all of his opponents.

Amanda Nunes - 1,981 days

In fighting at two different weights - and defending both titles simultaneously - Amanda Nunes only made five defences of her women's bantamweight title, but was so dominant that there were rarely fighters knocking down the door for a shot.

Nunes would take the title against Miesha Tate, defend it against Ronda Rousey, and hold the title until her shock defeat at the hands of Julianna Pena, five-and-a-half years after first winning it.

Jose Aldo - 1,848 days

Perhaps hard done by not to be higher on this list, considering he was WEC champion who was later promoted to UFC champion, Jose Aldo was the dominant featherweight of his era.

Aldo was the WEC featherweight champion before the UFC had a featherweight division, and spent a year as the 145lb king before transitioning to the Octagon where he'd make seven title defences before being dethroned by Conor McGregor.

Longest combined title reigns in UFC history

Amanda Nunes - 3,940 days

Spending nearly 11 years with at least one UFC belt around her waist is a record that's unlikely to ever be beaten. Amanda Nunes didn't just take two UFC titles but defended both on more than one occasion, dominating the women's bantamweight and featherweight divisions.

Jon Jones - 2,739 days

Jon Jones fought for a UFC title in November 2024, incredibly making it more than 13-and-a-half years since he was in the Octagon in a non-title fight.

But for issues outside of the Octagon, Jones's reign as champion would likely have been longer, but over his career, he's either vacated or had titles stripped on four occasions, leading to lengthy absences.

Nevertheless, at the age of 37, Jones is still fighting for and defending UFC titles.

Anderson Silva - 2,457 days

One of only two fighters to appear on this despite only having one title reign, Anderson Silva was the UFC middleweight champion from 14 October 2006 to 6 July 2013.

Georges St-Pierre - 2,237 days

While Georges St-Pierre spent six years as welterweight champion in his longest reign, he'd also spent five months as champion in his first reign before coming out of retirement to take the middleweight title.

Demetrious Johnson - 2,142 days

The second fighter on this list to rack up his time as champion in one reign, Demetrious Johnson was the king of the flyweight division from 2012 to 2017.

*Stats correct as of 5th December 2024.