Written by Lucas Themelis
Being a champion in the UFC is one of the most prestigious awards a combat athlete can achieve. That being said, being a champion across two divisions is an even more impressive feat. There have been seven competitors in the UFC's history to hold a title in two weight classes, and only four have done so simultaneously. The question is, who is most likely to join this exclusive club next?
Conor McGregor started the trend.
McGregor was the first to achieve this status, defeating Eddie Alvarez in the second round to be crowned the world's lightweight champion while retaining featherweight gold. The other three to follow suit were Daniel Cormier, Henry Cejudo, and the only one to defend their multiple titles simultaneously, Amanda Nunes.
As we evaluate the current landscape of the UFC, it is not hard to be curious about who is capable of accomplishing the same feat?
Arguably the most obvious answer on this list, the current middleweight champion: Israel Adesanya.
Adesanya just had an opportunity to join this club and be the only one to do so while undefeated when he faced Jan Blachowicz at UFC 259. Although Adesanya lost out on his first attempt to achieve double champ status, as well as received his first loss in MMA, he has already stated that his career at light heavyweight is not over.
His head coach at City Kickboxing Eugene Bareman has even hinted that the original plan was to continue moving up in the divisions to fight for the heavyweight belt.
For now, Adesanya plans to move back to the middleweight division and defend the title he has. There are no definitive plans currently, but Adesanya is seemingly eyeing a fight with Darren Till. Till is currently scheduled to fight Marvin Vettori in what could be a potential #1 contenders fight.
In my opinion, although Till is an exhilarating fighter and the build-up to a potential fight would surely be legendary with lively press conferences, he does not yet deserve a title opportunity. A much more likely #1 contenders match would have been Paulo Costa vs. Robert Whittaker. However, Costa has been replaced by Kelvin Gastelum due to severe flu.
Regardless of which fight serves as the #1 contender fight, it is expected that Adesanya will be defending his middleweight title as soon as he is ready. Following that fight, a move back up to light heavyweight directly after is not out of the realm of possibility, especially for a rematch with Jan, giving Adesanya the chance to become a double champ while avenging his only loss in the UFC.
My next pick is dependent upon Israel Adesanya and his decision to move up again. As stated earlier, Adesanya's coach said the plan was to win the light heavyweight belt and continue to heavyweight.
Suppose this were to unfold in the future. In that case, it is unsure who the king of the middleweight division would be if Adesanya relinquishes his middleweight championship. An opportunity would present itself to fellow Nigerian countrymen Kamaru Usman to fill the void.
When asked recently if achieving the double champ status was something Kamaru wanted, he said that if the opportunity arose, he would take it; however, he enjoys having multiple Nigerian champions and does not want to fight Adesanya for the belt due to that fact. If Adesanya were to move up to the light heavyweight division permanently with sights at heavyweight in the future, the prospect of Kamaru attempting to secure double champ status would skyrocket.
The next potential double champion is Alexander Volkanovski. In the minds of many MMA fans, Volkanovski doesn't deserve to be the champion, and his two decision victories were controversial, especially the rematch with Holloway. Even though Volkonavski out-struck Holloway with higher efficiency in their first bout, many feel Holloway is the uncrowned king at 145 pounds.
Regardless, Volkanovski's record reflects those victories, and he is the current champion. Volkonavski was supposed to defend his title at UFC 260 against Brian Ortega until COVID protocols forced the fight to have to be rescheduled. Once that bout is done, however, assuming Volkanovski can retain against a tough stylistic matchup with Ortega, the opportunities are open.
Many would likely push for Holloway to receive a title opportunity; however, the champion has expressed a lack of interest in a third fight with Holloway due to his two victories. Even though Volkanovski is not exactly in a position to call shots right now, a move in divisions is possible in the future, especially considering the well-rounded style the champion employs.
With the retirement of Khabib Nurmagomedov prompting the vacant lightweight title to be up for grabs between Charles Oliveira and Michael Chandler at UFC 262 on May 15th, a bout between whoever ends up champion when the division sorts itself out, as Conor and Dustin Poirier are being booked for a trilogy, and Volkanovski if he still holds the belt would be intriguing.
Moving up into the most popular division in the UFC, especially with the prospect of becoming a double champ, would significantly increase the popularity of a fighter, who in my eyes is very underrated amongst UFC fans and could use a boost in popularity. Max Holloway could certainly find himself in this position too, but as it stands, Volkanovski is the champion.
Next on the list is the only non-champion. One of if not the greatest combat athletes of all time, Jon Jones. Jones has an unmatched resume already, and although it is shrouded with controversy inside and outside of the octagon, many people believe Jon to be the greatest of all time.
Jones has relinquished his light heavyweight title while he prepares for his impending heavyweight debut and title opportunity. It is expected that Jon will face the winner of the Stipe Miocic vs. Francis Ngannou 2 which will go down this weekend at UFC 260.
If Jon is victorious in winning the heavyweight title down the road, he will be successful in furthering his legacy and adding to the few competitors to hold a title in two divisions. However, it is likely Jon does not stop here. An eventual return to the division Jon ruled over and called home for ten years is almost inevitable, especially if his new rival Adesanya captures the belt he once held claim to.
Jon has expressed that he wants the big fights, and a fight with Adesanya for the light heavyweight belt is precisely that. Of course, giving Jan Blachowicz credit where it is due is in order, as his career resurgence has been nothing short of miraculous and he could continue to play spoiler.
The last name on this list is the current strawweight champion Zhang Weili. Weili is set to defend her title at UFC 261 against former champion Rose Namajunas. Weili has had five fights in the UFC so far, earning herself two unanimous decisions, one split decision in arguably the greatest women’s MMA bout of all time with Joanna Jedrzejczyk, a phenomenal armbar submission, and a 42-second knockout of Jessica Andrade, which won her the title.
Coincidentally, another title fight set for UFC 261 is for the woman's flyweight championship between Valentina Shevchenko and the aforementioned Jessica Andrade. If Weili can overcome Namajunas at UFC 261, then regardless of the victor between Shevchenko and Andrade, she should challenge for the flyweight belt. If Shevchenko were to retain her belt at UFC 261 as many expect, then a fight between her and Weili would be an absolute battle within the octagon.
Both women are incredibly balanced fighters who can get it done in any way on fight night. Their professional records are also quite similar, giving an extra potential storyline for the fight. Weili has fought in 22 contests in her career, winning all but her professional MMA debut almost eight years ago. Shevchenko has had 23 fights, accumulating 20 victories, losing by doctor stoppage before entering the UFC, and losing twice to the GOAT of women’s MMA, Amanda Nunes, another fight in which people want to see again, as viable competition for Nunes is scarce.
Both women have had seven submission victories. Regarding knockouts, Weili has amassed ten and Shevchenko has had four, proving that both fighters know how to get it done by any means necessary.
However, assuming a new flyweight champion is named at UFC 261, a rematch at flyweight between Weili and Andrade would not be nearly as interesting. Going back to how Andrade lost the strawweight belt in 42 seconds to Weili the first time around, you would be hardpressed to find someone that would not easily favor Weili a second time around. If Andrade were able to emerge victorious against "The Bullet", the chance to avenge that loss to Weili could open her up to challenge for the strawweight belt once more.
With all that being said, Weili still has an incredibly difficult task in front of her in Rose Namajunas, but with a victory at 261 and momentum on her side, I would not be surprised if Zhang Weili is the next woman double champ in the UFC.
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