The 5 best title reigns in UFC history

#1: Georges St-Pierre – UFC Welterweight title – 04/19/2008 to 12/13/2013

Georges St-Pierre's title reign is the greatest in UFC history bar none

Georges St-Pierre’s first reign as UFC Welterweight champion couldn’t have gone much worse – after defeating the legendary Matt Hughes for the title, he was upset by underdog Matt Serra and knocked out in his first title defence.

Thankfully, his second reign as Welterweight king remains the greatest title reign in UFC history, bar none. Over a period of 5-and-a-half years, GSP made a total of 9 successful defences – practically averaging 2 per year despite spending time on the shelf with a serious knee injury – and turned back the challenge of some incredible challengers.

After defeating Serra in a rematch in April 2008, the Canadian simply faced a murderer’s row of opponents. There were Jon Fitch – undefeated in the UFC with 8 wins; former champ and pound-for-pound great BJ Penn; former WEC champ Carlos Condit; and former StrikeForce champions Jake Shields and Nick Diaz.

All were turned back in largely one-sided fashion. St-Pierre did come under some criticism for his lack of finishes – his 4th round victory over Penn was the only stoppage he achieved during his reign – but the one-sided nature in which he systematically broke all of his opponents more than made up for that.

As did the way his reign came to an end. After a tight victory over challenger Johny Hendricks, St-Pierre stepped away from the sport for a 4-year period, relinquishing his title in the process.

Essentially, he’s the only champion in modern UFC history to voluntarily hand his title back – others have been stripped, but usually due to refusals to fight or moves to different weight classes. Only GSP fully cleaned out his division and had no more to prove.

Simply put, GSP’s level of competition as champion was better than any other champion’s in the history of the UFC. And he never lost his title. That’s why his title reign is the greatest in UFC history.