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Welterweight Fighters
The MMA welterweight division covers the 156 to 170 pound weight range (70.76-77.11 kilograms, or 11.14-12.14 stone). Its closest analogue in professional boxing was the 154 pound, so-called “super-welterweight” class. MMA’s welterweight class has largely been standardized worldwide, with former 168 pound classes in Sengoku Raiden Championships, Pancrase and DREAM now revised upward to 170 to match the UFC’s welterweight class, and Pride FC’s former 183 pound “welterweight” class now defunct for many years.
For reasons not fully explored, many of MMA’s top welterweights have come to cut more weight as a percentage of body mass than fighters from any other weight class. Long reigning UFC Welterweight Champion Georges “Rush” St. Pierre routinely walks around “offseason” at close to 200 pounds, and can easily weigh over 185 pounds on fight night. For some top contenders the numbers are even more extreme; Thiago “Pitbull” Alves and Anthony “Rumble” Johnson routinely balloon up to well over 200 pounds when not in training for a fight, and will often weigh over 190 on fight night, only 24 hours after weighing in at 170. The jury is out, however, on whether such extreme weight cuts have helped or hindered their in-cage performances.
The UFC’s welterweight division is MMA’s premier welterweight talent pool, and has been for a number of years. In the history of the division, two men have stood above the fray to become longtime champions: Matt Hughes and Georges “Rush” St. Pierre. Each man is, in his own way, an incomparable legend. Matt Hughes first won the UFC Welterweight Championship at UFC 34 in 2001. He defended the title five straight times, lost it, later regained it and defended it twice more before finally ceding the crown to Georges St. Pierre in 2006. During that journey, Hughes fought many of the greatest fighters of his time and won several extraordinary comebacks in fights he was losing. His place in the history books was already secure before he was officially inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in May of 2010.
Georges St. Pierre wrested the mantle of world’s greatest welterweight from Hughes in the second of their trilogy of fights, and despite a shocking upset loss to Matt Serra in his first title defense, quickly recovered the crown from Serra and defended it six straight times to break the 170 pound consecutive title defense record set by Hughes. Though he remains in the prime of his career it is difficult to imagine GSP not joining Hughes in the UFC’s Hall of Fame one day.
Though the UFC continues to offer the world’s top welterweight matchups, many of the world’s great welterweights compete, either by choice or by necessity, outside of Zuffa. The petulant Nick Diaz parted ways with the UFC after an up-and-down fight record with the promotion and went on to reel off 9 wins in his next 10 bouts with Dream, EliteXC and Strikeforce en route to the Strikeforce championship. Jake Shields was brought into the Zuffa fold at welterweight after winning 14 straight fights outside of it at middleweight. In his first UFC fight Shields extended his streak to 15 wins and received a shot at Georges St. Pierre’s 170 pound crown.
