Lightweight has always been an interesting and talent-rich division. From Khabib Nurmagomedov to BJ Penn, to Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira, there have been some greats who have held the belt at 155 pounds.
From prospects to contenders to champions, Europe has been a place where many of these lightweights have stemmed from. Saturday night at UFC 329, Europe is well-represented once again in the main and co-main events. Before the Octagon door closes in T-Mobile Arena, here are some of Europe’s best at 155 pounds.
After claiming gold at featherweight and making a move up to welterweight to face Nate Diaz, Conor McGregor took a crack at gold in the lightweight division. A second-round TKO over Eddie Alvarez led “The Notorious” to become the first UFC fighter to hold belts in two divisions at the same time, a feat only a very few would go on to do after him.
And while the 37-year-old returns to action to action at welterweight this Saturday, his name will forever be etched in the lightweight division’s history books.
Representing Georgia and Spain, Ilia Topuria first stepped onto the UFC scene back in 2020, stepping in on short notice against Youssef Zalal in Abu Dhabi. His first three fights in the Octagon were at 145 pounds, before he moved up to 155 for a fight against Jai Herbert in London, earning the win with a second-round knockout.
“El Matador” returned to featherweight for the next few years, where he would go on to defeat featherweight king Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 298 and claim UFC gold. After one successful defense against Max Holloway, Topuria made the move up to 155 pounds, claiming the vacant lightweight title last summer after knocking out Charles Oliveira in less than three minutes.
Many were mesmerized by Topuria’s run, defeating three former champions, with another on the horizon with his fight against Justin Gaethje at the White House. His championship run and undefeated record ended after a fourth-round corner stoppage against Gaethje last month, and now the world waits to see what will be next for Topuria.
With Ciryl Gane currently holding the interim heavyweight title, France could have another title contender on the horizon, depending upon the outcome of Saturday’s co-main event of Benoît Saint Denis vs Paddy Pimblett.
Five years into his UFC career, Saint Denis is looking the best he has ever looked, and it all started after he dropped back-to-back contests to Dustin Poirier and Renato Moicano in his 2024 campaign; one of those coming in front of his home country of France.
Since then, “God of War” has rattled off four straight victories, all by way of finish, landing him a spot at No. 5 in the lightweight rankings. The next contender for the newly crowned champion, Gaethje, is still unclear, but a big performance in Las Vegas Saturday night could land the Frenchman on the list of potential contenders.
England’s Paddy Pimblett is a global superstar, and it’s evident every time he makes the walk to the Octagon. “The Baddy” returns to competition on July 11th, looking to rebound from his first loss in the UFC, which came against Gaethje for the interim lightweight title.
Prior to that, the Next Gen MMA representative had earned seven consecutive wins inside the Octagon, with all but two of those ending inside the distance. Throughout his UFC career, Pimblett has secured wins over Michael Chandler, King Green, and Tony Ferguson, having never been knocked out in his professional career.
Now sitting at No. 6 in the rankings, one spot behind his opponent, Saint Denis, the 31-year-old hopes to keep his name in the conversation and perhaps set himself up for another top 5 opponent to close out the year, should he leave Las Vegas victorious.
Mateusz Gamrot hopes to be Poland’s next champion, following in the footsteps of Joanna Jędrzejczyk and Jan Błachowicz. Having been in the UFC for nearly six years now, “Gamer” has shown his ability to rebound from a loss, never losing two fights in a row. That was evident once again earlier this year when the American Top Team product submitted Esteban Ribvoics in the second round. The fight marked his return after losing to Oliveira in October of last year.
His next challenge was announced last week, where he’ll be facing Australian prospect Quillan Salkilld in the main event on August 8th in Las Vegas.
Source: www.ufc.com