Oldest Champs in UFC History, by Weight Class

[DS66]

Oldest undisputed UFC champions by weight class (on the day of winning the title fight):

FLW: Deiveson Figueiredo- 34 years old, 1 month
BW: Henry Cejudo/Aljamain Sterling (tie)- 33 years old, 3 months
FW: Alexander Volkanovski- 33 years old, 9 months
LW: Sean Sherk- 33 years old, 11 months
WW: Tyron Woodley- 36 years old, 5 months
MW: Michael Bisping- 37 years old, 7 months
LHW: Glover Teixeira- 42 years old
HW: Randy Couture- 44 years old, 2 months

Random interesting observations:

- I think everyone understands that it becomes less likely to have success once you're older in the lower weight classes as compared to the heavier weight classes, as speed is so crucial at the lighter weights and it is generally the first thing that goes as you get older. But it's pretty interesting how striking the fact is, even when just looking at the oldest ever. There's never been a champ 35 or older from LW down. And then the oldest champ gets progressively older as the weight class gets heavier

- The current champs in the lowest weight classes (Figgy, Aljo, Volk) are all the oldest champs in the history of the weight class. Even though they all seem to be in their prime, they are quite old for their weight class and history says that they'll likely drop off soon and those belts will change hands in the near future

- Figueiredo became the first person 34 years old (or older) to ever win a UFC title fight in the LW or lower weight classes when he won his last fight in Jan 2022 over Moreno. Even crazier that he did it at the lightest weight class. He then took a full year off and his next fight is scheduled for Jan 2023 when he'll be 35 years old... will he be the first 35 year old champ at LW or under? The would really be defying history

- Cejudo wants to come back and fight for the BW title, at 36 years old. That's ancient for the BW division. We've seen a lot of recent examples of former champs at the lighter weight classes just completely fall apart when they cross that 35 point (Cruz, TJ, Frankie, Aldo to a lesser extent).

- Amazing that Sean Sherk is still the oldest LW champ ever, considering how many different LW champs there have been. But nobody has been able to do it after their 34th birthday. Maybe Khabib had the right idea walking away at 32- While he still clearly seemed in his prime it was likely that a drop off was 1 or 2 years away.

- It sort of seems like Islam is just getting going... but he's already 31. It would likely do him good to stay active over these next couple years and rack up the title defenses, before he approaches his mid-30's and the body starts to break down like pretty much every LW before him


Is there a point to this thread? Not really. I'm just really good at procrastinating at work.

Discuss!

 

[LEWIS540]

MW: Anderson Silva- 37 years old, 3 months

How old was Bisping when he lost the belt?

Gotta be close to Anderson.

 

[DS66]

How old was Bisping when he lost the belt?

Gotta be close to Anderson.

Oh shit, good call! He was a few months older than Anderson in his last title fight win vs Hendo. I'll update the OP!

 

[dragonsfly]

Oldest undisputed UFC champions by weight class (on the day of winning the title fight):

FLW: Deiveson Figueiredo- 34 years old, 1 month
BW: Henry Cejudo/Aljamain Sterling (tie)- 33 years old, 3 months
FW: Alexander Volkanovski- 33 years old, 9 months
LW: Sean Sherk- 33 years old, 11 months
WW: Tyron Woodley- 36 years old, 5 months
MW: Michael Bisping- 37 years old, 7 months
LHW: Glover Teixeira- 42 years old
HW: Randy Couture- 44 years old, 2 months

Random interesting observations:

- I think everyone understands that it becomes less likely to have success once you're older in the lower weight classes as compared to the heavier weight classes, as speed is so crucial at the lighter weights and it is generally the first thing that goes as you get older. But it's pretty interesting how striking the fact is, even when just looking at the oldest ever. There's never been a champ 35 or older from LW down. And then the oldest champ gets progressively older as the weight class gets heavier

- The current champs in the lowest weight classes (Figgy, Aljo, Volk) are all the oldest champs in the history of the weight class. Even though they all seem to be in their prime, they are quite old for their weight class and history says that they'll likely drop off soon and those belts will change hands in the near future

- Figueiredo became the first person 34 years old (or older) to ever win a UFC title fight in the LW or lower weight classes when he won his last fight in Jan 2022 over Moreno. Even crazier that he did it at the lightest weight class. He then took a full year off and his next fight is scheduled for Jan 2023 when he'll be 35 years old... will he be the first 35 year old champ at LW or under? The would really be defying history

- Cejudo wants to come back and fight for the BW title, at 36 years old. That's ancient for the BW division. We've seen a lot of recent examples of former champs at the lighter weight classes just completely fall apart when they cross that 35 point (Cruz, TJ, Frankie, Aldo to a lesser extent).

- Amazing that Sean Sherk is still the oldest LW champ ever, considering how many different LW champs there have been. But nobody has been able to do it after their 34th birthday. Maybe Khabib had the right idea walking away at 32- While he still clearly seemed in his prime it was likely that a drop off was 1 or 2 years away.

- It sort of seems like Islam is just getting going... but he's already 31. It would likely do him good to stay active over these next couple years and rack up the title defenses, before he approaches his mid-30's and the body starts to break down like pretty much every LW before him


Is there a point to this thread? Not really. I'm just really good at procrastinating at work.

Discuss!

Wait what Sterling is 33 years old? I thought he was in his early 20s dude looks very young for his age seems like he took good care of his body

 

[SeattleFightFan]

Oldest undisputed UFC champions by weight class (on the day of winning the title fight):

FLW: Deiveson Figueiredo- 34 years old, 1 month
BW: Henry Cejudo/Aljamain Sterling (tie)- 33 years old, 3 months
FW: Alexander Volkanovski- 33 years old, 9 months
LW: Sean Sherk- 33 years old, 11 months
WW: Tyron Woodley- 36 years old, 5 months
MW: Michael Bisping- 37 years old, 7 months
LHW: Glover Teixeira- 42 years old
HW: Randy Couture- 44 years old, 2 months

Random interesting observations:

- I think everyone understands that it becomes less likely to have success once you're older in the lower weight classes as compared to the heavier weight classes, as speed is so crucial at the lighter weights and it is generally the first thing that goes as you get older. But it's pretty interesting how striking the fact is, even when just looking at the oldest ever. There's never been a champ 35 or older from LW down. And then the oldest champ gets progressively older as the weight class gets heavier

- The current champs in the lowest weight classes (Figgy, Aljo, Volk) are all the oldest champs in the history of the weight class. Even though they all seem to be in their prime, they are quite old for their weight class and history says that they'll likely drop off soon and those belts will change hands in the near future

- Figueiredo became the first person 34 years old (or older) to ever win a UFC title fight in the LW or lower weight classes when he won his last fight in Jan 2022 over Moreno. Even crazier that he did it at the lightest weight class. He then took a full year off and his next fight is scheduled for Jan 2023 when he'll be 35 years old... will he be the first 35 year old champ at LW or under? The would really be defying history

- Cejudo wants to come back and fight for the BW title, at 36 years old. That's ancient for the BW division. We've seen a lot of recent examples of former champs at the lighter weight classes just completely fall apart when they cross that 35 point (Cruz, TJ, Frankie, Aldo to a lesser extent).

- Amazing that Sean Sherk is still the oldest LW champ ever, considering how many different LW champs there have been. But nobody has been able to do it after their 34th birthday. Maybe Khabib had the right idea walking away at 32- While he still clearly seemed in his prime it was likely that a drop off was 1 or 2 years away.

- It sort of seems like Islam is just getting going... but he's already 31. It would likely do him good to stay active over these next couple years and rack up the title defenses, before he approaches his mid-30's and the body starts to break down like pretty much every LW before him


Is there a point to this thread? Not really. I'm just really good at procrastinating at work.

Discuss!

Solid Original Post. Thanks TS!

I think Volk has a long career ahead, because even though he went from one contact sport to another, he did start MMA training later in life. Like Couture. So long as he keeps the surgeries away….

 

[DS66]

Wait what Sterling is 33 years old? I thought he was in his early 20s dude looks very young for his age seems like he took good care of his body

He's in great shape, no doubt. But he's been fighting professionally since 2011 and has been in the UFC since all the way back in 2014. He's certainly no youngster, and he's had quite a few injuries too. I highly doubt he can stay on top for much longer in such a talent stacked division. Of course if the UFC keeps giving him old dudes like TJ and Cejudo that could certainly help prolong his reign.

 

[Rank Squatter]

Fun Fact

Dan Henderson was actually 37 years old when he became UFC first ever Simultaneous Double Champ in two weight classes

Absolutely amazing piece of history!!

 

[dipstickjimmy]

BW: Henry Cejudo/Aljamain Sterling (tie)- 33 years old, 3 months
Random interesting observations:
Discuss!

My interesting observation:
Why would you claim Henry is tied with Aljo when Aljo still holds the title and gets older every day. He obviously will be the oldest and he already is.

 

[kingghidrah]

- The current champs in the lowest weight classes (Figgy, Aljo, Volk) are all the oldest champs in the history of the weight class.

Maybe those newer divisions are just maturing, and have more then just young guys in them now?

Even though they all seem to be in their prime, they are quite old for their weight class and history says that they'll likely drop off soon and those belts will change hands in the near future

"history" of a WC that's 10 years old? Doesn't prove much. Maybe it's a trend toward older fighters holding those belts like they do in the higher WC's

 

[JarlSkuld]

It takes time to get good at anything, even fighting. Some people can shoot to the top with physical gifts, but generally, skills and experience are more important than youth. As the sport ages and the overall level of skill increases, this fact will become even more pronounced.

Jarl

 

[Nathan LaMontagne]

Fun Fact

Dan Henderson was actually 37 years old when he became UFC first ever Simultaneous Double Champ in two weight classes

Absolutely amazing piece of history!!

Pride champ,

He lost his two title shots against Rampage and Anderson. (Ironically both fighters that fought in Pride)

 

[daemusvladornu]

There's been several discussions kind of explaining the body types in the division peak at different ages. Smaller guys have to rely on raw athleticism to separate themselves from the pack. The heavier in weight class, the more set in your frame you can be I.E older and that transitions to power. Due to you really hitting your prime (strength wise) in your early 30's. So the frames that are allowed to just develop can continue just improving with age to a point.

 

[DS66]

My interesting observation:
Why would you claim Henry is tied with Aljo when Aljo still holds the title and gets older every day. He obviously will be the oldest and he already is.

If you read the first line, you'll see that I said "on the day of winning the title fight". That's really the best way to look at this, IMO. A fighter can win a belt and then hold it for a year without fighting (like Figgy is now), and sure he'll technically be a champ at 35, but it doesn't mean much if he gets his ass kicked in his first fight actually fighting at 35. Cejudo relinquished the belt right after his title fight, he too could have held it for a year and not fought if he wanted to. So the most objective and interesting way to look at it (in my opinion) was the fighter's age on the day of winning the title fight.

 

[Rank Squatter]

Pride champ,

He lost his two title shots against Rampage and Anderson. (Ironically both fighters that fought in Pride)

First Person to be simultaneous Double Champ in UFC

 

[PurpleStorm]

Grandma Moses at age 104 ruled the Strawweight division in 1932.

 

[dildos]

cool thread @DS66

thanks for that info.

 

[G10]

Really interesting observations. I completely forgot that T-Wood was 36 when he won the title; for some reason, I thought he was younger at the time. He deserves more credit for holding the belt as long as he did.

Something else that’s also important to keep in mind is the time it takes to fight for a title these days. When I became a fan, a three fight win streak was enough to get people talking about contendership. Nowadays, guys have to get an almost double-digit win streak to fight for a title. That’s going to lead to older contenders, and thus older champs.

 

[djacobox372]

Fun Fact

Dan Henderson was actually 37 years old when he became UFC first ever Simultaneous Double Champ in two weight classes

Absolutely amazing piece of history!!

Especially impressive considering that he later beat the HW champ of that era as well. Could have been triple champ if given the chance.

 

[Rationality]

TS for extra credit would you graph the ages of all of the champs in each weight class? I'd like to see if there's a bell curve and what age(s) are at the peak of the curve.

 

[Dude Incredible]

TS for extra credit would you graph the ages of all of the champs in each weight class? I'd like to see if there's a bell curve and what age(s) are at the peak of the curve.

he'll be able to procrastinate work so hard!