The UFC welterweight division has seen some great champions since its inception in 1998.
The welterweight division is alive and well in 2025 with young contenders rising to the top of the division like champion Jack Della Maddalena who snapped Belal Muhammad’s 11-fight unbeaten streak at UFC 315.
Former champion and pound-for-pound king Kamaru Usman showed out for the old guard, dominating a streaking contender in Joaquin Buckley at UFC Atlanta over the weekend.
The 38-year-old Usman reminded the world of how great he really is with the vintage performance and reinserted himself into the title mix at 170 lbs.
Usman is one of 13 undisputed welterweight champions in UFC history and he stands next to the legendary Georges St-Pierre in the ‘GOAT’ conversation.
Bloody Elbow ranks the top 5 welterweights of all time.
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Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images5. Robbie Lawler#5 on our list is Robbie Lawler, one of the most violent fighters in the sport’s history.
Lawler had a memorable title reign, one that featured two all-time fights against Rory MacDonald in 2015 and former interim champion Carlos Condit in 2016.
In 2014, Lawler captured the title in a rematch against Johny Hendricks, the champion who arguably defeated Georges St-Pierre in his retirement fight.
Lawler made $300K in performance bonuses alone and retired in 2023 with 15 UFC wins under his belt.
4. Tyron WoodleyTyron Woodley is one of the UFC’s most underappreciated champions.
Woodley was the predecessor to Usman and defended the welterweight title four times against the likes of Stephen Thompson (twice), Demian Maia and Darren Till.
Woodley stopped Jay Hieron, Josh Koscheck, Carlos Condit, Dong Hyun Kim en route to a 2016 title fight with Lawler, months after his five-round war against Carlos Condit.
It would take Woodley a little more than two minutes to knock out Robbie Lawler with a barrage of punches at UFC 201.
3. Matt HughesBefore GSP, Matt Hughes reigned as the undisputed king of the welterweight division.
Hughes touched UFC gold in 2001 with a slam KO of Carlos Newton at UFC 34. He defended the title five times before he lost it to BJ Penn in 2004.
Hughes became the first man to defeat Georges St-Pierre later that year, submitting the Canadian with an armbar right before the bell at UFC 50.
During his second title reign, Hughes beat Frank Trigg (again), Joe Riggs, UFC 1 winner Royce Gracie and former two-division champion BJ Penn.
Hughes went 1-2 in his trilogy with St-Pierre but went on to win against the likes of Chris Lytle, former champion Matt Serra, Renzo Gracie and Cesar Almeida after losing his title in 2006.
2. Kamaru UsmanKamaru Usman is the consensus second-greatest welterweight of all time.
Usman’s resume speaks for itself, as ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ holds the longest win streak in welterweight history at 15. Usman is tied with Hughes for the second-most title defenses in the division at 5.
Usman broke a record for most control time in a title fight (18:05) when he dominated Tyron Woodley in 2019 to win the title.
The former champion defeated many top welterweights in his heyday such as Leon Edwards, Demian Maia, Rafael Dos Anjos, Colby Covington, Jorge Masvidal, Gilbert Burns and most recently Joaquin Buckley.
1. Georges St-PierreArguably the greatest MMA fighter ever, Canada’s Georges St-Pierre left a legacy like no other at 170 lbs.
After losing his first title fight to Hughes in 2004, St-Pierre earned a rematch with five-straight wins over the likes of BJ Penn, Sean Sherk and Frank Trigg.
St-Pierre finally won the title from Hughes in 2006 and after a massive upset loss to Matt Serra the following year, GSP would never lose again.
St-Pierre won 12-straight fights at welterweight and defended the title 9 consecutive times.
The welterweight ‘GOAT’ defeated Matt Hughes (twice), BJ Penn (twice), Carlos Condit, Nick Diaz, Johny Hendricks and many more before retiring with his belt in 2013.
