March 2025

February 2025

Paul Browne breaks down the fighters who made history by conquering two divisions, each forging their own unique path to greatness.

When Ilia Topuria recently vacated his UFC featherweight title, it signaled the next step in the ambitious plan he’s been cooking up for a long time. 

“What I want to do is to move up to 155 lbs”, he told reporters recently while attending UFC 312 in Australia, “because I know for a fact that I can become a 2-weight world champion. Islam Makhachev is a great fighter. He’s the pound-for-pound number one, but I know that I’m so much better than him.”

Should Topuria realize his dream of beating Makhachev and winning another championship belt, he will join a select club full of legends who achieved ‘champ champ’ status. Here are the fighters who defied the odds and the unique ways that they achieved the remarkable feat of double-dipping the golden belts.

THE PIONEER: RANDY COUTURE

If he was still in the military, his fight career would run out of cloth space on his service dress, forever remembered as the first UFC champ to claim a title in a second weight class. He used his Olympic wrestling skills to grind out a win over Maurice Smith for the UFC heavyweight champion. He departed the UFC to fight in Japanese promotions and never said “I’ll be back,” but did it anyway, returning to reclaim the heavyweight belt in 2000. After losing his belt to Josh Barnett two years later, he moved to the light heavyweight division, and he became the first fighter ever to win championship belts in two weight classes when he beat Chuck Liddell. Not only was he the first man to win titles in separate weight classes, but Couture was also the oldest fighter to win a UFC belt at 45 years old - a true trailblazer of the sport.

THE FIRST TRUE ATHLETE: GEORGES ST-PIERRE

GSP retired in 2013 as the UFC welterweight champion after a record-breaking run at the top of the division. He defended his title 9 consecutive times and won 33 straight rounds between 2007 and 2011. He returned 4 years later to submit middleweight champ Michael and a 2-weight champion. With nothing left to prove, St-Pierre vacated the title almost immediately and announced his retirement, pointing the finger at health issues. Having beaten a litany of top-tier competitors throughout his title reign at 170 lbs, St-Pierre is considered a shoo-in for most people’s ‘Mount Rushmore of MMA’ compilations.

THE UNEXPECTED OVER ACHIEVER: BJ PENN

A true pioneer, Penn was the first American to win a World Brazilian jiu jitsu gold medal. After two failed efforts to become UFC lightweight champion, he finally got the belt against welterweight champ Matt Hughes. Moving up a weight class, Penn was the underdog, but he shocked the world with a round-one submission. A UFC contract dispute followed, so Penn spent 2 years fighting in other organizations before returning and moving to lightweight to win the vacant belt.

THE OG CHAMP CHAMP: CONOR MCGREGOR

After an 8-year gap since Penn’s lightweight title win, McGregor reignited the trend of UFC fighters chasing gold in separate weight classes. The 18-month period between his interim featherweight title win against Chad Mendes and his lightweight title victory against Eddie Alvarez is remembered as one of MMA’s greatest runs. By unifying the featherweight belts via a 13-second KO of Jose Aldo and having 2 welterweight fights against Nate Diaz sandwiched between those wins, the Irishman redefined what was possible in the sport by holding two belts simultaneously. 

Credit: Mike Roach / Zuffa LLC

THE ASTERIX: DANIEL CORMIER

Sometimes, it seemed that Daniel Cormier was always destined to be the bridesmaid, never the bride. The former Strikeforce heavyweight champ lost in his title shot against Jon Jones, but the MMA gods smiled on him as Jones was stripped of his title after being arrested on hit-and-run charges. Cormier submitted Anthony Johnson to win the vacant title and would go on to defend the belt against several opponents before Jones returned to knock him out. The California State Athletic Commission overturned the result thanks to Jones being tripped up by performance-enhancing drugs, and Cormier retained the title. A year later, he moved to heavyweight, knocked out Stipe Miocic, and became a 2-weight champion. After submitting Derrick Lewis a few months later, he became the first fighter to win and successfully defend both the heavyweight and light heavyweight titles.

UFC/YouTube

THE WOMANLY WAY: THE AMANDA NUNES

At one point, the hottest topic in women’s MMA was the debate around whether Ronda Rousey or Cris ‘Cyborg’ Santos was the GOAT. Nunes rendered the discussion pointless. She destroyed Miesha Tate and Rousey to win and defend the UFC bantamweight title before moving up to the newly formed featherweight division to put Cyborg away in 51 seconds - the first double-champ in the history of women’s MMA. Nunes then beat every title-holding opponent possible. Holm. Tate. Rousey. Cyborg. Pennington. Shevchenko. Pena. All tried but failed to her greatness.

Credit: Jeff Bottari / Zuffa LLC

THE WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN: HENRY CEJUDO

Former Olympic gold medallist Henry Cejudo won his first UFC title when he dethroned Demetrious Johnson to win the 125 lb belt. The following year, he faced Marlon Moraes for the vacant UFC bantamweight title. He won, becoming the fourth fighter to hold championships simultaneously in two divisions, and the nickname ‘Triple C’ was born. He vacated the flyweight title shortly afterward, citing an inability to make the 125 lb limit and defend the bantamweight title by beating Dominick Cruz. After the fight, he retired which felt like he was playing contract hardball. Dana called the bluff, and 2 weeks later, the bantamweight title was officially vacated. He returned after a 3-year hiatus but failed and may regret walking away during his prime years.

THE CALCULATED GOAT: JON JONES

After becoming the youngest champion in UFC history, he dominated the 205 lb division for 9 years. He vacated his title in 2020 to move to heavyweight. In 2023, after a three-year hiatus, Jones returned to challenge Ciryl Gane for the vacant UFC Heavyweight Championship. His performance was nothing short of spectacular as he submitted the Frenchman in the opening round. This win earned him the heavyweight title and cemented his legacy as a 2-weight UFC champion and the greatest fighter eve

THE FAST ACTION: ALEX PEREIRA

Nobody in MMA has accomplished as much as Alex Pereira has in such a short time. He signed with the UFC in 2021 after four pro bouts. A year later, he wore the UFC middleweight strap. Little over 12 months later, he finished Jiri Prochazka to become UFC light heavyweight champion. Rumors continue circulating that he may face Jon Jones in a remarkable bid to become the first ever 3-weight champion. 

WHO WILL BE NEXT?

A UFC title is the mountain. Two titles are the entire Rockies. Pereira’s rise has likely inspired Topuria, who feels he can match Makhechev in many areas, even wrestling, as he won the first seven fights of his pro career by submission. His one-punch power might be the X-factor that gets him onto the honor roll above, and you can bet the world will be watching every inch of him as he looks to cement his legacy of excellence.