Top 18 Non-UFC MMA Champions of the 2020s

Champions crowned outside the Octagon — Bellator grinders, ONE finishers, PFL season winners, and RIZIN stars all lay claim to the era. Who reigns supreme? Cast your vote!

1

Demetrious Johnson

ONE Championship flyweight world champion widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters in MMA history.

1000pts

2

Stamp Fairtex

ONE Championship women's atomweight MMA champion and a multi-discipline star across MMA, Muay Thai and kickboxing.

647pts

3

Patricio Pitbull

Bellator featherweight champion and the promotion's most decorated star, a multi-time titleholder through the early 2020s.

624pts

4

Johnny Eblen

Bellator middleweight champion who dethroned Gegard Mousasi and reigned as the division's dominant force.

624pts

5

Larissa Pacheco

PFL women's featherweight champion who upset Kayla Harrison to win the season title in 2022.

560pts

6

AJ McKee

Bellator featherweight champion who won the grand prix and beat Patricio Pitbull to claim the title.

560pts

7

Roberto Soldic

KSW two-division welterweight and middleweight champion and one of Europe's most feared knockout artists.

560pts

8

Anatoly Malykhin

ONE Championship multi-division champion who unified heavyweight, light heavyweight and middleweight gold.

485pts

9

Reinier de Ridder

ONE Championship two-division champion holding middleweight and light heavyweight world titles.

485pts

10

Kayla Harrison

Two-time PFL women's lightweight champion and undefeated Olympic judo gold medalist before joining the UFC.

397pts

11

Vadim Nemkov

Bellator light heavyweight champion who knocked out Ryan Bader in 2020 and set the division's title-defense record.

397pts

12

Christian Lee

ONE Championship lightweight and welterweight champion and one of the promotion's two-division kings.

397pts

13

Usman Nurmagomedov

Bellator lightweight champion who captured gold in 2022 and defended the belt as an undefeated standout.

291pts

14

Kyoji Horiguchi

RIZIN bantamweight and flyweight champion regarded as one of the best lighter-weight fighters outside the UFC.

291pts

15

Olivier Aubin-Mercier

Back-to-back PFL lightweight champion who claimed the season title in 2022 and 2023.

291pts

16

Brendan Loughnane

PFL featherweight champion who won the 2022 season title with a finish in the final.

162pts

17

Cris Cyborg

Bellator women's featherweight champion and one of the most dominant strikers in the sport's history.

162pts

18

Ryan Bader

Bellator heavyweight champion and former two-division titleholder who reigned over the heavyweight ranks into the 2020s.

162pts