5 UFC champions who lost their titles while they were on the cusp of superstardom

In the world of the UFC, winning a title sometimes doesn't guarantee superstardom. At times, it's only the first step towards it.

Over the years, we've seen a number of UFC champions who seemed to be on the cusp of becoming superstars, only to lose their titles right before that could happen.

Unfortunately, most of them never ended up getting back to the level they were prior to their title loss. As for the most recent entry on this list, only time will tell what happens to him.

With that in mind, here are five UFC champions who lost their titles while they were on the cusp of superstardom.

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#5 Sean O'Malley - former UFC bantamweight champion

Prior to his fight with Merab Dvalishvili at this past weekend's Noche event, Sean O'Malley appeared to be on a direct path to becoming the UFC's new poster-boy.

With Conor McGregor now looking less likely to return and the likes of Alex Pereira and Ilia Topuria lacking a certain x-factor, 'Sugar' seemed destined to take the mantle once held by 'The Notorious'.

After all, his title win over Aljamain Sterling had gone viral across the world, while his first defense against Marlon Vera was the kind of dominant win that only a real champion could produce.

A victory over 'The Machine' this past weekend probably would've pushed O'Malley up to another level, particularly with the huge spotlight offered by the UFC's debut in Las Vegas' Sphere.

However, 'Sugar' seemed to freeze up in the moment, and suffered a devastating defeat to the Georgian. He couldn't get into any kind of rhythm, and lost his title in a clear-cut decision.

Where O'Malley goes from here is anyone's guess. He's still got the talent to get back to the top, but it's clear that he'll need to change things up and perform much better than he did this weekend to do so.

More worryingly, it's easy to imagine him struggling just as much against Umar Nurmagomedov as he did against Dvalishvili, meaning that it's possible he'll never get back to the cusp of superstardom again.

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#4 Miesha Tate - former UFC bantamweight champion

Miesha Tate's famed rivalry with Ronda Rousey, which started in StrikeForce and carried over into the UFC, turned 'Cupcake' into one of the most recognisable female fighters in MMA.

Unfortunately for her, it felt like she was destined to always play second fiddle to 'Rowdy' after losing to her in both of their title bouts.

When Rousey lost her crown to Holly Holm and took a leave of absence, though, a window of opportunity opened.

Most fans expected 'The Preacher's Daughter' to wait around for the mega-money rematch with the former champ, but instead, she chose to defend her crown against Tate just four months later.

It turned out to be a huge mistake. In a five-round thriller, 'Cupcake' secured a rear naked choke in the fifth round and choked Holm unconscious to claim the title it felt like she'd never get.

Suddenly, Tate was not only on the top of the UFC, but in Rousey's absence, she looked set to become the promotion's new top female star.

Essentially, all she had to do was wait out, perform media duties, and look for a third bout with 'Rowdy'. Even if she'd lost, the money she'd have made would've been insane.

Incredibly, though, 'Cupcake' made the same error as Holm. She agreed to a title defense against Amanda Nunes, and even though the bout headlined UFC 200, it was never going to be as big as a third Rousey fight would've been.

Worse still, she was destroyed by 'The Lioness', losing her title and any hope of ascending to superstar status in the process. Given that she headed into temporary retirement after her next bout, it's safe to say that she missed out hugely.

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#3 Anthony Pettis - former UFC lightweight champion

Few champions in UFC history saw such a disappointing end to their reign on top as Anthony Pettis. It's arguable that 'Showtime' never truly recovered from losing his title, in fact, and because of that, both he and the promotion suffered greatly.

When Pettis came over as WEC lightweight champion, he had a ton of momentum behind him after going viral in his win over Benson Henderson thanks to his legendary 'Showtime kick'.

However, that momentum was instantly squandered by Dana White and company. Instead of pushing him directly into a title fight, they instead matched him with Clay Guida, who stunned fans by grinding out a win over his flashier foe.

Pettis was back to the drawing board, but two years later, a late-notice title shot fell into his lap when TJ Grant was forced out.

Faced with his old foe Henderson, who had claimed the UFC crown a year earlier, 'Showtime' put on one of the best performances of his career. He hurt 'Smooth' with a body kick and then submitted him with an armbar moments later to claim the gold.

An impressive first defense over Gilbert Melendez followed, and suddenly, it looked like Pettis was on his way to becoming one of the promotion's poster-boys.

This was evident when the UFC even marketed their events that were set for early 2015 as 'Welcome to the Show', a clear reference to Pettis and his nickname.

Unfortunately, what looked like a routine title defense against Rafael dos Anjos that March turned into a nightmare. 'RDA' destroyed Pettis over five rounds, breaking him mentally and physically and taking away his title.

Suddenly, 'Showtime' went from being a near-superstar to a fighter who was basically written off, and his career never truly bounced back until his 2020 retirement.

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#2 Luke Rockhold - former UFC middleweight champion

With respect to Rich Franklin, it's arguable that Anderson Silva was the UFC's first middleweight superstar. His legendary title reign lasted for nearly seven years until he was dethroned by Chris Weidman.

Weidman, though, never felt like a true superstar, instead coming across as "the guy who beat the guy". He made three successful defenses, but it was when Luke Rockhold defeated him that the division seemed ready to start a new era.

Rockhold had everything required to become a true poster-boy for the promotion. He sported model-level good looks, had plenty of charisma and swagger, and appeared to have no weaknesses inside the octagon.

With wins over the likes of Michael Bisping and Lyoto Machida prior to his title reign, it felt like he was destined for a long run with the title.

However, when Weidman was forced out of their planned title rematch and replaced by Bisping, everything went wrong for the new champ.

Rockhold came into his clash with 'The Count' looking far too cocky and confident, like he'd already won.

It was a risky game against anyone, let alone someone as dangerous as Bisping, and sure enough, the Brit stunned the world by knocking him out in the first round.

Not only was Rockhold's unstoppable aura shattered, but his overconfidence turned him from a burgeoning superstar into almost a joke figure.

Following his title loss, Rockhold only fought sporadically, taking huge swathes of time off. He stepped into the octagon just four more times before his 2022 retirement.

Essentially, his loss to Bisping completely wrecked his career, right as he was on the edge of something truly special.

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#1 Lyoto Machida - former UFC light-heavyweight champion

Perhaps the best example of a UFC champion falling to defeat while they were on the cusp of superstardom is Lyoto Machida.

'The Dragon' came to the promotion in early 2007, and at first, he was a bit of a slow-burner. Some fans even labeled his style, which was based around his karate background, as dull.

It quickly became apparent that it was very effective, though. As he began to beat better opponents like Tito Ortiz and Thiago Silva with his pinpoint accurate counterstriking while rarely even eating a punch, the fans began to catch on.

By 2009, Machida was 14-0 and found himself in line for a shot at Rashad Evans' light-heavyweight title.

When he produced a virtuoso performance to knock Evans out and win the gold, Joe Rogan immediately proclaimed that the 'Machida Era' had begun. It was hard to argue with the sentiment.

'The Dragon' was at the top of the mountain at 205 pounds, and suddenly, the old adage that traditional martial arts didn't work in MMA seemed to be out of the window.

Machida wasn't blessed with natural charisma, but his unique style and background drew fans to him, and superstardom seemed to beckon.

However, his first defense, against 'Shogun' Rua, seemed to go a little awry. Machida was awarded a controversial decision, but most viewers believed Rua had earned a win. He'd finally found the chink in the armor of 'The Dragon', using low kicks to break him down.

When their rematch went down a few months later, many fans expected Machida to have adjusted, but instead, he was knocked out violently in the first round, ending his 'era' with a bang.

Machida's career continued with plenty of success, and he remained a viable headliner for the UFC for another decade after his loss.

However, he never got back to the levels of superstardom that he was close to during his title reign, making him a cautionary tale that in MMA, nothing is for certain.