Ranking the 5 best UFC interim champions of all time

#2. Andrei Arlovski – interim UFC heavyweight champion (2005)

Andrei Arlovski became the interim UFC heavyweight champion in 2005

Ranked in second place on this list is Andrei Arlovski, who stands as one of just two fighters in UFC history to successfully defend an interim title before becoming the undisputed champion. ‘The Pitbull’ became the top contender in the UFC heavyweight division in 2004 following an impressive win streak.

However, a planned fight with UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir fell through when the Americam was involved in a serious motorcycle accident, sidelining him for a lengthy period of time.

With Mir on the shelf, the UFC put together an interim title fight between Arlovski and Tim Sylvia. In one of the best performances of his career, ‘The Pitbull’ dropped his opponent before submitting him with an Achilles lock in under a minute. Just four months later, Arlovski was back in action, defending his interim crown successfully against Justin Eilers, who he stopped with strikes in the first round.

Finally, with a return date for Mir still unknown, the UFC booked Arlovski in another title defense against Paul Buentello just four months after the Eilers fight. However, this time, the promotion decided to upgrade ‘The Pitbull’, declaring him undisputed champion.

Arlovski turned back the challenge of Buentello, only to lose the undisputed title in a rematch with Sylvia in early 2006.

However, the fact that ‘The Pitbull’ held the interim title for essentially a full year and no UFC fans really missed the undisputed heavyweight champion during that time, means he remains one of the promotion’s greatest interim champions.

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#1. Renan Barao – interim UFC bantamweight champion (2012)

Renan Barao made two successful defenses of his interim UFC bantamweight title

While Renan Barao would not rank highly on a list of the greatest UFC champions of all time, the Brazilian should probably be recognized as the greatest interim champion in the promotion’s history.

That’s because he actually made two successful defenses of his interim title. By the time he was upgraded to become the undisputed champion, he’d been at the top of the division for two years and was clearly seen as the top bantamweight in the world.

Barao was initially thrust into an interim title fight when then-UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz suffered a serious knee injury that landed him on the shelf for an undetermined period. ‘The Baron’ replaced Cruz in his fight with Urijah Faber at UFC 149 and outpointed ‘The California Kid’, becoming the interim UFC bantamweight champion in the process.

While it was widely known that Cruz would not be back for a long time, the UFC chose not to strip him and crown Barao the undisputed champion. The Brazilian defended his interim crown against Michael McDonald in early 2013. Later in the year, he returned to defend the title for a second time, this time knocking out Eddie Wineland with a spinning kick at UFC 165.

Finally, the UFC booked a title unification bout between Barao and Cruz at UFC 169 in early 2014. When Cruz was forced out with another injury, ‘The Baron’ was finally declared undisputed champion.

While he only made one successful defense of that title and then saw his career fall apart completely following a loss to T.J. Dillashaw, he remains the only fighter in UFC history to defend an interim title more than once, making him the promotion’s greatest interim champion.