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Five UFC eras that have come to end

BJ Penn could not get to grips with Frankie Edgar © Getty Images

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The UFC's first trip to Boston Massachusetts provided confirmation that BJ Penn's dominance of the 155lb division has finally come to an abrupt end, as the Prodigy fell victim to a 50-45 unanimous decision washout at the hands of Frankie Edgar.

Having lost the lightweight title to Edgar in April, it was widely believed that Penn had simply dropped a decision to a man he had struggled to motivate himself for. Rumours of illness and weight draining were reported to have contributed to a lacklustre performance - by the Hawaiian's high standards - and on another day a very different story would have been told.

So he was granted his chance of redemption in the shape of an instant re-match with Edgar on Saturday night, and when the fighters weighed in on Friday Penn looked ready to settle the score. The actual enactment, however, was played out very differently to the script that was being touted around fight week, as Edgar executed the perfect gameplan to shut out Penn for a second time.

This official passing of the lightweight torch will signal the beginning of a new era at 155lbs, with the division being blown wide open for the first time in recent memory. UFC 118 saw the Penn era come to an end, but like any fighter, when you reach the very top - the only place to go is down. Penn is not the first superstar to fall from grace, and he most certainly will not be the last. With that in mind it seems relevant to look back at five of the most heralded champions in UFC history and remember the moments that their dominance became a thing of the past.

Tito Ortiz never used to be the one bloodied and battered in post-fight press conferences © Getty Images

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Tito Ortiz: Light-heavyweight champion 2000-2003

At UFC 25 in April 2005, the Huntington Beach Bad Boy Tito Ortiz defeated Wanderlei Silva to claim the vacant UFC light-heavyweight title. Ortiz went on to successfully defend the title five times, but on a number of occasions managed to avoid a showdown with No. 1 contender Chuck Liddell. Ortiz stated he did not want to fight Liddell as the "friends" had made a pact to never face one another. Liddell made his feelings known; he was adamant that he wanted to face Ortiz for the title and claimed no such pact existed. As Ortiz was forced into a year-long lay-off, Liddell welcomed Randy Couture to the 205lb division as the two battled it out for the interim title. Couture seized his opportunity to hijack the division by stopping Liddell, setting up a unification fight with the returning Ortiz that would crown the undisputed king of the light-heavyweight division.

At UFC 44 Ortiz's title reign came to a crushing end as he was dominated from beginning to end of his five-round encounter with Couture. Ortiz was taken down more in the first round than he had ever been in his entire career, and was even embarrassingly taunted by Couture as The Natural appeared to spank Ortiz as he was pressed against the cage late in the fight. The loss to Couture was decisive and it brought an end to what still remains the longest championship reign that the UFC's light-heavyweight division has ever seen.

Matt Hughes dominated the welterweight scene for years © UFC

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Matt Hughes: Welterweight champion (two reigns) 2002-2006

Matt Hughes took the welterweight title from then-champion Carlos Newton at UFC 34. Newton had locked in a triangle choke on Hughes but was lifted from the ground position, up against the cage, and then slammed into the mat. Hughes was on the brink of a submission defeat only for the last-ditch slam to knock Newton unconscious, handing the clearly disorientated Hughes the welterweight strap when he had been staring into the jaws of defeat. Hughes was the new world champion and went on to successfully defend the title five times before taking on lightweight contender BJ Penn. Penn shocked the world as he moved up in weight and submitted Hughes to take the belt, before leaving the UFC and vacating the title.

Hughes then took on rising star Georges St-Pierre for the recently vacated championship and successfully submitted the Canadian to reclaim his belt. Penn later returned to the scene and in only his second fight since making his UFC return, Penn stepped in for the injured St-Pierre to challenge Hughes again. After finding success in the early rounds, Penn was in control again, only for Hughes to come from behind and hand Penn the first stoppage loss of his career, subsequently avenging the only defeat during his time as champion.

Hughes would then eventually re-match St-Pierre for the belt, and with a lot of trash-talking going in, the tension really built prior to fight night. The first encounter had been a tough lesson for St-Pierre, who showed his foe too much respect, but the second showdown with Hughes would tell a completely different story. GSP picked Matt Hughes apart for the entire first round and dropped the champion as the horn sounded for the end of round one. St-Pierre came out for the second round looking hungrier than ever, and after a vicious head-kick dropped Hughes, a follow up assault saw the fight called to a halt. Hughes' incredible dominance would now be confined to the history books, with a new star in Georges St-Pierre now threatening to emulate his predecessor's achievements.

Rich Franklin has some big-name scalps on his CV © Getty Images

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Rich Franklin: Middleweight champion 2005-2006

At UFC 53 Rich Franklin took out the late Evan Tanner to claim the UFC middleweight crown. Franklin would then go on to successfully defend it against original cast member of The Ultimate Fighter Nate Quarry. After dominating Quarry early, Franklin delivered one of the most devastating, highlight-reel knockouts in UFC history as the toes of Quarry curled as he lay out cold on the canvas. The vicious knockout was then followed by a five-round beating of David Loiseau at UFC 58 before Franklin would face the toughest test of his career.

Anderson Silva entered the Octagon for the first time to face Chris Leben at UFC Fight Night 5, and after approximately one minute Silva had stunned the observing crowd as he categorically destroyed Leben with one of the best displays of striking you will ever see. To this day the defeat to Silva remains the only stoppage loss on Leben's record, and it was so impressive that it saw Silva awarded a shot at Franklin in only his second UFC bout.

At UFC 64 Franklin took on Silva, and was left shell-shocked as the Brazilian clinically dismantled him inside a round, kneeing him into submission. As Franklin crumbled to a heap, the referee had no choice but to step in and save him, awarding Silva the middleweight championship crown. Franklin then scored two victories over top contenders Jason MacDonald and Yushin Okami which saw "Ace" awarded a re-match with Silva. At UFC 77 the two men clashed for a second time but, despite making it out of the first round, Franklin was quite clearly out of his depth as Silva put on another world class display to hand Franklin a second crushing loss. The first fight ended Franklin's title reign in the middleweight division, but the second ended any chance of him ever holding the title again, as long as Anderson Silva is around at least.

Randy Couture continues to pull off victories even at the age of 47 © Getty Images

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Randy Couture: Heavyweight (two reigns) 2000-2002 & 2007-2008

Randy Couture held the heavyweight title between 2000 and 2002, but it was his second reign as champion that left many wondering if there were any limits to what The Natural could achieve. Couture had been going about his business at light-heavyweight, but retired after losing his third fight with Chuck Liddell. However, during a relatively tired period in heavyweight MMA, Couture decided to come out of retirement, moving up to the heavyweight division in order to challenge 6'8" champion Tim Sylvia. The fight has gone down as one of the greatest moments in the career of Couture, after he dominated the much larger Sylvia for the entire five rounds of their championship encounter to re-claim the heavyweight strap - five years after he lost it.

A first defence against the much hyped Gabriel Gonzaga was yet another display of Couture dominating a much larger opponent. Couture broke the Brazilian's nose, and with it - his will, as he stopped the challenger in the second round. After an 18-month absence from the UFC due to a contract dispute, Couture then made his comeback at UFC 91. With interim champion Minotauro Nogueira signed up to face Frank Mir after their stints on The Ultimate Fighter, the door was left open for another heavyweight to gate-crash the top of the division. Step forward former WWE superstar Brock Lesnar, who was the man chosen to welcome Couture back to the UFC.

At 265lbs of solid muscle, Couture would face the toughest task of his career as he aimed to overcome a fellow wrestler who, come fight night, would be nearly 80lbs heavier. There was no doubt Couture caused Lesnar some problems early, but during the second round Lesnar dropped Couture and followed up with a barrage of hammer fists that gave The Natural no chance of coming back. As one era ended a new one began as Lesnar took the torch from Couture, still holding the heavyweight championship today.

Chuck Liddell used to be the most feared striker in the business © UFC

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Chuck Liddell: Light-heavyweight champion 2005-2007

Chuck Liddell defeated Couture at UFC 52 to avenge an earlier loss and claim the UFC light-heavyweight title. The Iceman then went on to successfully defend his belt on four occasions taking out the likes of Tito Ortiz, Jeremy Horn and winning the rubber match with Couture.

At UFC 71, Liddell would then face the last man to defeat him in Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. Having already avenged his losses to Horn and Couture, a win over Jackson would mean Liddell had managed to defeat every man he had ever faced. If that wasn't motivation enough for The Iceman then nothing would be, but what was meant to be such a significant moment in the writing of Liddell's legacy turned out to be the end of one of the greatest title reigns in UFC history.

Jackson knocked Liddell to the floor with a right hook and a follow up assault saw The Iceman momentarily go limp, leaving the referee with no option but to intervene and hand Jackson the championship. This was only the third loss on Liddell's UFC record, but it sent his career into decline as he never recovered. While Liddell is yet to officially announce his retirement, it is unlikely he will ever fight in the UFC again following his recent loss to Rich Franklin at UFC 115 in June. Franklin inflicted a third straight knockout defeat on Liddell, who has lost five of his last six fights, but it was UFC 71 and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson that signalled the end of The Ice Age.

Chris Park is mmatorch.com's UK specialist. To visit mmatorch.com, click here.

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