Petr Yan

Petr Yan is a two-time UFC bantamweight champion, and the second reign was the redemption arc. The Russian won the vacant title in 2020 by stopping José Aldo, lost it on a disqualification in one of the strangest title fights ever (an illegal knee against Aljamain Sterling while comfortably ahead), and spent the following years fighting the deepest murderers' row the division could assemble.

'No Mercy' is the most technically polished boxer at 135 — educated pressure, feints layered on feints, and short counters thrown from angles opponents don't train against. The style needs no highlight-reel gimmicks; it just wins exchanges, over and over, until the fight is a shutout.

The mid-career dip — narrow losses to Sterling, Dvalishvili, and O'Malley in a brutal stretch — would have finished most fighters. Yan rebuilt instead, stringing together the wins that returned him to the throne while the division's next generation learned what educated pressure feels like.

At 33, back on top with a 20-5 record, Yan holds the belt in MMA's most talent-dense division. Keeping it will be harder than winning it. He'd have it no other way.