UFC 136 Results: Frankie Edgar and the 9 Best To Fight out of Their Weight Class

The ability to compete outside of one’s natural weight class is a true measure of a great warrior. With so many athletes focused on big weight cuts in hopes of finding a size advantage, it’s become a true test of a man’s mettle to fight as he walks around in an effort to prove technique over physical advantages.

Let’s take a look at some of the best ever at competing outside of the weight class most consider to be “natural” to them…

Frankie Edgar

Edgar proved at UFC 136, once again, that he’s among the best of all time as a fighter fighting out of his weight class. In fact, he was so convincing in his performance that UFC president Dana White said he’s the second-best fighter in the world behind Anderson Silva.

Naturally a featherweight, and arguably able to make bantamweight, Edgar has passed every test put in front of him at 155 lbs. He’s beaten BJ Penn twice, and suffered through the worst beatings Gray Maynard could dish out in order to keep his title on two occasions.

He’s one of the best ever to fight outside his natural weight class, and undeniably the best in the world currently doing it.

Kenny Florian

Also at UFC 136, Kenny Florian made his third bid for a UFC title. Unfortunately, for the third time, he was unsuccessful. However the veteran of 16 fights in the UFC deserves an incredible amount of credit for his ability to fight across four weight classes, and succeed in each.

He debuted in the promotion on Season 1 of The Ultimate Fighter as a middleweight, losing in the finals to Diego Sanchez. He then dropped to 170 lbs, where he went 2-0 before moving down to lightweight. As a lightweight he had an incredible run, going 9-3 and only losing in title fights or eliminators. He’s now a featherweight, fresh off another loss in a title fight, but also with a win over the highly impressive Diego Nunes on his resume.

If fighting in four weight classes with overwhelming success doesn’t qualify a man as one of the best outside of his natural class, nothing does.

Randy Couture

A living legend, Randy Couture might well be the greatest tactician to ever set foot in the cage, as well as being the most decorated champion the sport has ever seen. And he did most of it while beating guys twice his size in the heavyweight division.

Couture spent years bullying bigger men and holding the gold over men that often outweighed him by 50 lbs on fight night. Rarely weighing in at more that 220 lbs, he saw unparalleled success in the land of the giants as a multiple-time champion.

He also spent time at light heavyweight, where he partook in a legendary trilogy with Chuck Liddell and pounded Tito Ortiz when Tito was at the top of his game. With a resume like Randy’s, spread across two weight classes, he has to be on this list.

Urijah Faber

For years Urijah Faber was the face of the WEC. His easygoing demeanour and permanent smile, coupled with remarkable in-cage talent, made him the perfect sell for Zuffa’s other property.

He was the unbeatable featherweight champion, dominating competition for years until he came across Mike Brown and had to accept that there was a guy out there with his number. He eventually got a chance at Jose Aldo, but was unsuccessful and had to drop to bantamweight.

The reason he’s on this list? He was outsized as a featherweight and was better suited to 135 lbs, and most people didn’t even realize it. He was so good, so strong and so fast at 145, that most people didn’t know he was doing it without a significant weight cut. As soon as he left featherweight, he said that bantamweight was his best competitive weight and that he would be at his best.

Not bad for arguably the best featherweight of all time.

Jake Shields

One of the more underappreciated guys in MMA, Jake Shields is an elite grappler who just puts up wins. He has incredible jiu-jitsu, great wrestling and an impressive capacity to absorb punishment. He also gave Georges St-Pierre the closest thing to a test that the champ has had in years, and should be commended for it.

Part of the lack of appreciation Shields gets has to do with the fact that for years, as both a welterweight and middleweight, he’d beaten everyone put in front of him. He holds wins over guys like Carlos Condit, Robbie Lawler, Paul Daley, Yushin Okami and Dan Henderson, and yet most people will say he’s dull, boring or not that good.

Make no mistake, a man who has had the success of Shields in two separate classes is as good as they come.

Fedor Emelianenko

Say what you will about Fedor Emelianenko in 2011; for 10 years the man was the undisputed best heavyweight in the sport. Even now, with a tough year of bad losses coming to a close, the argument can easily be made that he’s the best heavyweight the sport has ever seen.

The reason he’s on this list is because, in serving as such a high-level combatant for so many years, Fedor could easily have been fighting at 205. Some people would even argue 185.

Fedor always entered a fight looking loose and doughy, more like a guy you’d find sitting at a bar in Russia than one who was an unstoppable force in combat sports. Hiding behind that look was an incredibly talented fighter, one who often pounded elite athletes who were bigger, faster and stronger than him.

Rashad Evans

For as much hate as Rashad Evans gets, he’s undeniably one of the best light heavyweights in the world. Actually, he’s one of the best pound-for-pounders in the world.

And he started his UFC career by winning The Ultimate Fighter 2 as a heavyweight. What’s even more? Many suggest he could still stand to move down another weight class and compete as a middleweight. Even so, there’s no reason for him to go anywhere at the moment. He’s healing from injury and awaiting the winner of UFC 140’s Jon Jones/Lyoto Machida matchup for his second chance at gold.

You don’t have to like him, but he’s only been beaten once in his career and has held a title in a weight class he’s still undersized for, all after earning his way into the promotion by winning a tournament he was really undersized for. He should be on this list.

BJ Penn

In reality, the sport has caught up to BJ Penn. Whereas there was once a time when Penn was unstoppable, tearing across two weight classes and being seen as the best jiu-jitsu guy in the world, recent years have seen his motivation wane and his performances suffer.

Even still, BJ Penn might be the originator of success in situations where he was outclassed, literally and figuratively, in terms of weight.

He’s fought as high as heavyweight, surviving a battle with Lyoto Machida, and also held titles in both the welterweight and lightweight divisions. His better days may be in the past, but BJ Penn was fighting outside of his weight class before it was cool.

Dan Henderson

At 41 years old, it’s incredible to think that Dan Henderson might be coming into his prime. After moving over the Strikeforce and losing to Jake Shields, Henderson moved back to light heavyweight and stormed through the division before returning to the UFC. He’ll now meet Shogun Rua in November with a chance to climb the ladder in the biggest promotion in the world.

However, looking back over time, Henderson has been as good as they come at fighting out of his weight class. A two-division champion in Pride, he also took a fight at heavyweight with Fedor Emelianenko and knocked out the legendary heavyweight. He’s competed in open-weight tournaments, one-night tournaments and Olympic wrestling, and has never looked badly outclassed.

He defines a warrior who can perform outside of his natural weight class.