The 25 Most Important Fighters in UFC History

Since its inception, the Ultimate Fighting Championship has been the premier organization for martial artists to test their skills.

At UFC 1, a small, unassuming Brazilian took the world by storm. After hearing for years that striking martial arts were the way to go, it seemed martial artists were now needing to mix different training methods in for their preparation.

By learning multiple techniques across multiple divisions, a mixed martial artist was born. Some of these fighters would have great careers but the men on this list were a step above the rest.

The memory left in the wake of these fighters careers will be remembered forever. Champions will be remembered, but legends never die.

Mark Coleman

Mark Coleman is known as "The Godfather of Ground-and-Pound" and certainly left his mark on the UFC. Not only was Coleman one of the most intimidating-looking fighters of his time, the man's skills were terrifying as well.

Coleman used his wrestling to secure takedowns and would unleash a series of violent ground-and-pound strikes. He would become the UFC's first heavyweight champion and won back-to-back UFC tournaments.

"The Hammer" may have fought for Pride for a longer duration during his career, but everyone will remember Coleman for what he accomplished inside the Octagon.

Tank Abbott

Tank Abbott doesn't land on this list by having a great career that was full of accolades. No, Abbott was one of the most important fighters in UFC history due to the entertainment value he added to the sport.

While having talented fighters compete is intriguing for most MMA fans, it simply doesn't matter if neither man has much of a personality.

Abbott was brought in for one reason—put people in the seats. He never was meant to have a great career or defeat any true MMA fighter, but Abbott contributed enough by showing fighters needed to be entertaining as well as talented.

Dan Severn

Dan Severn's ability to showcase wrestling as a legitimate martial art is enough to warrant a spot on this list alone.

When you consider Severn was part of some great fights against some of the legends of the sport, you have yourself a great resume for claiming to be one of the most important fighters in UFC history.

Even though he would end up losing the bout, Severn's match against Royce Gracie showed that Gracie jiu-jitsu was not the invincible magical secret in the MMA game.

By winning multiple UFC tournaments, Severn validated wrestling as a true staple in the MMA world.

Vitor Belfort

Aptly named "The Phenom," Vitor Belfort took the UFC by storm. His knockouts of Wanderlei Silva and Marvin Eastman became instant highlight-reel material for years to come.

Although Belfort left after perhaps his greatest moment in the UFC's Octagon, he returned from fighting overseas, and once again, captured the attention of MMA fans.

The horrific story of his sister being kidnapped also showed that fighters needed to be focused in order to fight to the best of their ability.

Belfort's quick hands and explosive striking captivated audiences for years despite not achieving the level of success we all know he should have.

Maurice Smith

During the early golden years of wrestlers dominating the UFC rankings, Maurice Smith came along and showed that striking still had its place among MMA.

Considered to be a heavy underdog against the vaunted ground-and-pound master Mark Coleman, Smith shocked the MMA world by defeating Coleman to capture the UFC title. He would only make one title defense, but his impact lasted much longer than Smith's title reign.

Also, Smith's close relationship with Frank Shamrock and forming of The Alliance gym became one of the earliest forms of a "super-gym" that housed multiple elite-level fighters.

Frank Mir

When the UFC heavyweight division was being strained by a lack of talent and entertainment, Frank Mir burst onto the scene. Mir had the ability to move like a man half his size and use his jiu-jistu skills to submit a number of high-profile opponents.

Prior to his battles with Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Mir's biggest win was against Tim Sylvia at UFC 48 where the young Mir snapped Sylvia's arm en route to winning the UFC Heavyweight championship.

Along with great MMA skills, Mir possessed a cocky attitude that made fans either love or love to hate the young fighter.

Had his motorcycle accident not occurred, Mir may have been one of the greatest heavyweight champions in UFC history.

Ken Shamrock

Ken Shamrock became one of the first true icons of MMA through a series of entertaining rivalries.

In the original UFC tournaments, Shamrock would go on to have some classic matches against the likes of Royce Gracie and Dan Severn.

Shamrock's rivalry with Tito Ortiz was one of the first "mega-rivalries" in the sport. Considering his rivalry was fresh off the heels of the success of The Ultimate Fighter, Shamrock-Ortiz became the MMA equivalent to Yankees-Red Sox.

By having an impressive physique and lethal MMA skills, Shamrock became the guy in the world of MMA under the UFC banner.

Pat Miletich

Pat Miletich had a successful career before stepping inside the Octagon, but his career took off after becoming the UFC's first welterweight champion. Miletich would go on to defend his title four times before finally losing it to Carlos Newton at UFC 31.

Although having a great fighting career was great, it was his contributions as a coach that made him one of the most important fighters in UFC history.

Miletich helped train champion-caliber fighters like Tim Sylvia, Robbie Lawler, Matt Hughes and Jens Pulver.

Chael Sonnen

Chael Sonnen's UFC career is still ongoing and doesn't have the years of hard work like some of the fighters on this list, but his contributions will be remembered for years to come.

Besides being one of the most accomplished wrestlers to compete in the UFC, Sonnen has also shown the value of entertainment. He virtually sold the UFC 117 show by himself and is a running quote machine that shows no signs of slowing down.

To truly validate a great UFC career, Sonnen will need to add UFC gold to his pro-wrestling style promo abilities.

Mark Kerr

Mark Kerr didn't earn the moniker "The Smashing Machine" by laying and praying his way to victory.

Kerr's UFC career was short, but it sure was sweet. He spent a little over five minutes of actual fight time in his UFC career and won back-to-back UFC tournaments. For lack of a better term, Kerr smashed through the competition.

His importance to the UFC is due to the fact of winning UFC 14 and UFC 15 while showcasing the importance of amateur wrestling to MMA.

Frank Shamrock

Frank Shamrock became the UFC's first light heavyweight champion at UFC Japan. He would go on to defend his title four times, becoming one of the first dominant champions in the UFC.

His bout with Tito Ortiz is one of the most legendary fights in all of MMA history. Had he stayed in the UFC, Shamrock may have went on to dominate the division for years to come.

Besides his contributions inside the cage, Shamrock also added quite a bit outside of it as well. He was one of the first to embrace the aspect of learning multiple disciplines and also is noted for making conditioning one of the staples of any great fighter.

Jon Jones

The best accomplishments of Jon Jones' career may be yet to come, but he's accomplished a lot in the short amount of time he's been in the UFC.

After years of instability, Jones has given the UFC's light heavyweight division a constant champion. 2011 will forever go down as one of the best years of any MMA fighter as Jones defeated three former world champions and one Ultimate Fighter winner.

The impact of Jones isn't necessarily just a result of his dominance but also as a symbol of the next wave of MMA fighters.

Jones could've found success in other sports like his brothers have, but instead, chose the sport of MMA—a choice future generations of athletes will need to make.

Matt Hughes

Matt Hughes created one of the most storied legacies inside the UFC's Octagon. Using powerful wrestling combined with a great balance of submissions to go with ground-and-pound, Hughes dominated the UFC welterweight division for years.

His rivalry with Frank Trigg didn't receive as much attention as some of the others under the UFC banner, but it was the premier rivalry in the welterweight division. In between dominating Trigg and other UFC welterweights, Hughes created numerous highlight reel moments.

Hughes' run at the top included a win over Royce Gracie that officially signaled the end of "the old guard" of the day and was finally stopped by Georges St-Pierre.

Quinton Jackson

Although making his mark in Pride, Quinton Jackson made quite the impact inside the Octagon as well.

He dethroned Chuck Liddell as the top light heavyweight in the world and has been a constant near the top of the 205-pound rankings.

Always a popular fighter, Jackson has one of the most colorful personalities in the UFC and is always a guaranteed pay-per-view draw.

Jackson's fall from grace has been sad to watch for his fans but let's hope he can come back better from his recent showing at UFC 144.

Forrest Griffin

Forrest Griffin's contributions to the UFC cannot be measured. Without his bout with Stephan Bonnar, the UFC would not be in the position it is in today.

Griffin won the inaugural Ultimate Fighter and would go on to have a good UFC career that saw him win the light heavyweight title. By having the career that he did, Griffin validated the fighters who would compete on future seasons of The Ultimate Fighter.

Despite being a huge guy at 205 pounds and having underrated skills, Griffin was a constant underdog through much of his career, but that never stopped him from reaching the top of the mountain.

Michael Bisping

One of the first international competitors on The Ultimate Fighter, Michael Bisping became a hit with fans through reality television.

More than just a big mouth, Bisping possesses a number of skills in multiple disciplines. He may be without a title thus far in his career but Bisping's contributions reach much farther than wins and losses.

Defeating some of the top competitors in the UFC's middleweight division, Bisping has become the face of British MMA. Other fighters like Dan Hardy and Paul Daley may be louder than Bisping, but no fighter from across the pond has had the success of "The Count."

BJ Penn

Considered the greatest lightweight of all time, BJ Penn had some of the greatest moments of his career inside the UFC's Octagon.

By combining his jiu-jitsu prowess with some of the best boxing in MMA, Penn would dominate the 155-pound division so much that he was forced to move up in weight to seek new challenges. Before his bout with Frankie Edgar, Penn had an aura of invincibility at 155 pounds that few fighters could enjoy.

Penn is also one of two men to hold titles in two separate weight classes—a feat he obtained by defeating UFC Hall of Famer Matt Hughes.

Brock Lesnar

Brock Lesnar's run in the UFC was relatively short but had a profound impact on the heavyweight division.

At a time when the division lacked talent and interest, Lesnar crossed over from WWE and embraced the sport of MMA. Despite being a running joke among MMA fans, Lesnar brought legitimate wrestling credentials and an unheard of athletic ability for someone of his size.

His rivalry with Frank Mir and becoming UFC Heavyweight Champion rejuvenated a lethargic heavyweight division. He also became one of the few fighters who could routinely draw near one million PPV buys for the UFC.

Urijah Faber/Dominick Cruz

Urijah Faber is without question the bigger star of the two, but under the UFC banner, these two men deserve to be mentioned in the same slide.

Faber single-handedly put the featherweight division on the map in the WEC, and after dropping to bantamweight, has had one of the best rivalries in the sport with Dominick Cruz.

Not to diminish Cruz's title reign, but without Faber, it wouldn't mean nearly as much. These two men have created the main rivalry in the lower weight classes.

The intriguing and entertaining battles between these two men have put the eyes of MMA fans on the little guys and will draw more interest in the lower weight divisions for years to come.

Anderson Silva

The reigning UFC middleweight kingpin, Anderson Silva has been on a path of destruction since debuting against Chris Leben.

"The Spider" has demolished nearly every opponent put in front of him and has become one of the most dominant champions in UFC history. Silva will likely go down as the greatest fighter in UFC history if he continues to win in the manner of his past few bouts.

Besides being a great champion, Silva has entertained fans for years by displaying an unbelievable gift of physical talents combined with great muay-thai skills.

Randy Couture

Randy Couture's record isn't very indicative of the impact of "The Natural."

After getting a late start to the sport of MMA, Couture would go on to become one of the true icons of the sport.

Couture gained superstardom by coaching on Season 1 of The Ultimate Fighter opposite of the man he would have one of the greatest rivalries with—Chuck Liddell.

Always a fan favourite, Couture would go on to hold two titles in two separate divisions and stunned the MMA community by finding success at his "mature" age.

Georges St-Pierre

The most dominant welterweight champion in UFC history, Georges St-Pierre's legacy goes without question.

He's not only beaten the best, he's made it look easy. In a shocking twist of talents, GSP has become one of the best wrestlers in MMA despite not having an amateur wrestling background.

Other than helping generate a ton of money and interest for the UFC, GSP has also been one of the few fighters to transcend across multiple forms of popular culture by securing mainstream sponsorships with the likes of Gatorade and Under Armour.

Tito Ortiz

Tito Ortiz is one of the most hated men in UFC history. He may also be one of the top five most important fighters as well.

Ortiz became one of the most dominant UFC champions in history and also generated quite a bit of interest due to his personality.

He also became a part of some of the UFC's most important rivalries. Ortiz's bouts against Chuck Liddell and Ken Shamrock were some of the most pivotal moments in UFC history.

Chuck Liddell

Chuck Liddell was not only one of the most dominant champions in UFC history; he was the very face of MMA during his time at the top.

Liddell was not the first to use the "sprawl-and-brawl" game plan, but he perfected it and received much of the credit for developing the tactic. With a devastating overhand right, Liddell defeated numerous MMA Hall of Famers.

One piece of Liddell's legacy that fans often forget about was his educational background. In a time when detractors of the sport wanted to demonize the fighters competing, Liddell was the shining example that MMA fighters could have brains and brawn.

Royce Gracie

Not only is Royce Gracie one of the most important fighters in UFC history, he's also one of the most important fighters in all of MMA.

Without Gracie, the UFC may have ended up looking like a bad kickboxing film. By using his family's Brazilian jiu-jitsu to defeat much larger opponents, Gracie shocked the fight game and became an overnight sensation.

Gracie truly made fighters realize they needed to mix it up with their training regimens.