We take a look at how often the current UFC champions fight, who fights the most and who fights less frequently.<\/p>\n
UFC champions are, without a doubt the most dominant in their field. They are the best of the best and can be relied upon to headline numbered cards in order to provide a marquee name at the top of the bill.\u00a0The issue is, however, that they have more to lose than non-champions, meaning that the frequency in which they fight is often reduced in comparison to other fighters. They have nothing to prove and must face all comers, but those challengers must be ready to fight.<\/p>\n
UFC 332 is just around the corner and yet, no main event has been announced thus far. There are only currently three of a possible 12 champions (including interim champions) booked\u2026 so why haven\u2019t we got a main event yet?\u00a0<\/p>\n
We take a look at the current champions and the frequency in which they fight using data supplied by Andy Hickey.<\/p>\n
With no champion ready for UFC<\/a> 332, I analyzed the fight frequency of all 12 champions since their UFC debut.<\/p>\n It’s time to strip both Tom Aspinall & Kayla Harrison. pic.twitter.com\/K0nsPv0ZGH<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Andy Hickey MMA (@AndyHickeyMMA) September 2, 2026<\/a> There\u2019s one fighter since his UFC debut who stands out as fighting extremely frequently: Joshua Van. Having debuted in June 2023, he\u2019s already had 11 UFC outings with a record of 10-1. He\u2019s already made one defence of his title, having only won it in December of last year and is scheduled at UFC 331 to defend it again. He averages 3.4 fights per year, is exciting and marketable- everything you need in a UFC champion.<\/p>\n Sean Strickland is a difficult one to analyse. He joined the UFC in March 2014 and has had 25 UFC bouts, averaging two a year. Since being in the title picture, he\u2019s had six fights in three years, keeping that average at two a year.\u00a0<\/p>\n Petr Yan, Mackenzie Dern and interim champion, Ciryl Gane<\/a> all also average two fights a year, with Yan being the only one of these three with a fight currently booked. Another champion who averages two fights a year is light heavyweight champion, Carlos Ulberg. Debuting in March 2021, the 205lbs king has had 11 fights in five years. With that being said, that average is going to drop significantly as he hasn\u2019t competed since April and is out with a long-term injury, keeping him on the sidelines.<\/p>\n Semi-Regular Outings<\/p>\n In an ideal world, a UFC champion would defend their belt two or three times a year depending on injuries, competition and company need. \u00a0<\/p>\n Featherweight champion, Alexander Volkanovski<\/a> was relied upon multiple times to save cards, fill in at short notice and face all comers. Joining the UFC in 2016, Volk has had 18 fights in 10 years, averaging 1.8 fights a year. His output has been somewhat inconsistent, however. In his first full year, he had three fights. However, since losing to Islam Makhachev<\/a>, he\u2019s averaged just one fight a year. He only fought once in 2024, once in 2025 and once in 2026. He is, however, booked to face Movsar Evloev at UFC 333.<\/p>\n Flyweight queen Valentina Shevchenko has been part of the UFC since December 2015 and has had an impressive 19 fights at an average of 1.8 fights per year. Reports suggest that she\u2019s currently out with an injury and hasn\u2019t competed since November 2025. We\u2019re running the risk of the 125lbs champion not fighting in 2026.\u00a0<\/p>\n Lightweight champion Justin Gaethje<\/a> has been a member of the UFC roster since July 2017. In that time, he\u2019s recorded 16 fights, and in every one of those fights he\u2019s either fought for a belt, won the fight of the night or performance of the night. Box office. He averages 1.7 fights per year, although every one of those fights is must-watch. He\u2019s fought twice in 2026, including his crowning moment, dominating on the White House lawn.<\/p>\n Islam Makhachev debuted in 2015 and has had 19 bouts at an average of 1.7 per year. On numerous occasions, he\u2019s only fought once a year (2024\/2026) and didn\u2019t fight at all in 2020. With that being said, he rules himself out of fighting during Ramadan, which hinders his opportunities throughout the year. Now he\u2019s fighting at welterweight, and he doesn\u2019t have to cut as much weight; the chances are there for him to fight more often.<\/p>\n The infrequent two<\/p>\n The two least frequent champions are two fighters with serious injuries. Kayla Harrison has only been a part of the UFC for two years and in that time has managed just three fights. As things stand, she hasn\u2019t fought since June 2025 and will likely be out for the entirety of 2026. She\u2019s suffered an injury in the build-up to UFC 324, which has kept her out of action. The cut to 135lbs is brutal for Harrison and at 36, she hasn\u2019t got long left in the game. Averaging a fight every nine and a half months isn\u2019t enough for such a big star.\u00a0<\/p>\n The other infrequent champion is Tom Aspinall. Granted, the heavyweight champion has been out for a prolonged period of time with an eye injury, suffered at the fingers of Ciryl Gane<\/a>. Debuting in July 2020, the Brit has had just 10 bouts, averaging 1.6 fights per year. He had an entire year out of the octagon following a knee injury and has then struggled to get a fight. He\u2019s yet to fight in 2026, had one fight in 2025 and one in 2024. Since November 2023, Aspinall has seen just 6:44 of action. Not enough for such a big star, although it isn\u2019t his fault with the injuries he\u2019s suffered.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n
\nFrequent Fighters<\/p>\n