SUMMARY
- Conor McGregor knocked out Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 to become the lightweight champ.
- After that fight, McGregor created a trend that Khabib Nurmagomedov and Charles Oliveira continued.
For the longest time, the lightweight division in the UFC was stacked with elite talents. Fighters like Eddie Alvarez, Rafael dos Anjos, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Dustin Poirier, and Tony Ferguson dominated the 155lbs division over the years. However, not every fighter became a champion during that period. And interestingly, since 2016, no lightweight champion has failed to defend his title.
This might create some confusion among the fanbase as there have been several champions over the last 8 years. However, the last champion to lose his strap in a title bout, was Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205. It was the first time UFC had traveled to New York and Conor McGregor was on the verge of creating history. He was the reigning featherweight champ at the time and moved up to lightweight to become the first-ever UFC double champion.
Conor, in his prime, was an unstoppable beast and he out-classed then-champion Eddie Alvarez in the second round to become the lightweight king. And, that was the final time a 155lbs champion was beaten in a title fight. Afterward, Conor McGregor, Khabib Nurmagomedov, and Charles Oliveria have held the title. So let’s find out how they lost the title without losing to a contender.
UFC stripped Conor McGregor for inactivity in 2018
Conor McGregor lost his lightweight title in 2018. After winning the title in November 2016, “The Notorious One” never defended his title and went on to pursue money fights. In August 2017, he took on Floyd Mayweather in a boxing match that created a lot of buzz. McGregor was at the height of his popularity and his going up against the boxing GOAT was something that fans never thought they would see.
The event became the second-biggest PPV of all time with 4.3 million buys. It was also quite profitable for the UFC star who bagged a reported $100 million for the fight. Despite talking a big game, the Dublin native lost the bout via TKO. Many thought he would go back to the UFC to defend his lightweight title, which never happened. Hence, the company stripped him of the title in April 2018 for inactivity.
However, Conor returned in October 2018 to fight Khabib Nurmagomedov in a heated contest. Although he had the chance to regain the title at UFC 229, the Dagestani fighter beat McGregor via a neck crank submission. Since then, the 35-year-old has yet to fight for an undisputed championship.
Khabib Nurmagomedov retired after UFC 254
Khabib Nurmagomedov is undoubtedly the greatest fighter to ever fight at lightweight. He retired with a win over Justin Gaethje at UFC 254. “The Eagle” won the undisputed title against Al Iaquinta at UFC 223. However, many had doubts over his status as Conor McGregor never lost his title. Hence, their clash at UFC 229 was a big one for Khabib’s legacy and the Dagestani fighter won the bout in a dominant fashion.
Afterward, he took on Dustin Poirier at UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi. While Dustin had Khabib in a guillotine choke, Nurmagomedov somehow got out of it and won the contest in the third round via submission in 2019. After that, it seemed like the 35-year-old was set for a long run with the title. But, tragedy struck as Khabib’s father Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov passed away in July 2020 due to complications with Covid-19.
After that, there were talks that Khabib would never fight again without his father by his side. However, Nurmagomedov came back to fight Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 in October 2020. After the win against Gaethje, Khabib was visibly emotional, and later on, the fighter announced his retirement as he made the promise to his mother. Although Dana White tried to convince Khabib, the UFC President later accepted the decision and announced that the lightweight belt was vacant in March 2021.
Charles Oliveira was stripped of the lightweight title ahead of UFC 274
Charles Oliveira joined the UFC in August 2010 and had to wait almost 11 years to get his title shot. However, after Khabib Nurmagomedov’s retirement, Charles took on Michael Chandler for the vacant lightweight title at UFC 262. Oliveira got the job done via TKO and became the new 155lbs champion in 2021. After that, he went on to defeat Dustin Poirier via submission at UFC 269.
His next title defense was supposed to be against Justin Gaethje at UFC 274. However, ‘Do Bronx’ missed weight during the weigh-ins and was stripped of his title immediately in May 2022. While Oliveira beat Gaethje in the first round at UFC 274, it did not matter in the end as he was not eligible to defend the title after coming 0.5lbs over the championship weight (155lbs.)
Afterward, Oliveira had the chance to regain the title at UFC 280 in October 2022 against Islam Makhachev. Unfortunately, the Brazilian fell short against Islam who had the most dominant performance of his fighting career that night in Abu Dhabi. So, since Eddie Alvarez fell prey to Conor McGregor at UFC 205 in 2016, no UFC champion has lost the title inside the Octagon.
Islam Makhachev is the current lightweight king who has defended the belt twice against Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 284 and UFC 294 respectively. His next title defense will be against Dustin Poirier at UFC 302 on June 1, 2024. Will the trend that Conor McGregor created, continued by Khabib Nurmagomedov and Charles Oliveira, prevail? Only time will tell.