The term "Lineal Heavyweight Champion" has traditionally been used in the sport of boxing to denote an unbroken lineage of champions from the time the title was instituted until today. Although it's not really discussed, the same can be done for the sport of MMA, specifically the UFC. There are a number of interesting coincidences, that see the lineal title leave the organization, come back, and eventually be unified with the PRIDE Heavyweight Championship. Today, we will take a look at the lineal history of the UFC heavyweight title.
Although you may think the UFC Heavyweight Championship came into existence with the UFC in November 1993, The UFC Heavyweight Championship belt was introduced in 1997. The inaugural UFC Heavyweight Championship (Over 200lbs.) bout took place on February 7, 1997, at UFC 12, where Mark "The Hammer" Coleman defeated Dan Severn by scarf hold submission to become the first lineal UFC heavyweight champion. The belt was then awarded to Coleman to signify his title victory.
Coleman then held the belt until July 27th, 1997, when Maurice Smith defeated him via decision at UFC 14 to become the second lineal HW champion. Smith managed to hang onto the belt about as long as Coleman did, dropping the title to Randy Couture via decision at UFC Japan on December 21st, 1997. At this point, the title and organization part ways for the first time when Couture forfeits the belt itself, but as you know, you can't forfeit the lineal championship.
Couture then signs with Vale Tudo Japan and subsequently loses his next bout on October 25th, 1998, via armbar to Enson Inoue. Making Inoue the 4th lineal HW champion. Inoue managed to hold the title for longer than most, not dropping it until the PRIDE Grand Prix on January 30th, 2000. Where he was defeated via decision by a then up-and-coming "Smashing Machine" Mark Kerr.
Mark Kerr barely had time to adjust to becoming the 5th lineal champion before dropping the title to Kazayuki Fujita via decision on May 1st, 2000, at the PRIDE GP finals. Fujita, however, suffered the same fate as Kerr dropping the title at the PRIDE GP finals on August 19th, 2001, via a TKO loss to Mirko Cro Cop. Making Cro Cop the 7th lineal champion.
On November 9th, 2003, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira defeated Mirko Cro Cop via submission (armbar) to become the 8th lineal champion. He also won the PRIDE FC Heavyweight Title in this fight and, in the process, inadvertently unified the UFC and PRIDE FC Heavyweight titles.
From then on out, we have the Unified Lineal UFC/PRIDE championship. Which follows the course of Fedor Emilianeneko defeating Nogueira via decision at PRIDE 25 in 2003 to become the 9th and by far the longest reigning UFC/PRIDE lineal heavyweight champion. Holding the title for over seven years until dropping to Fabricio Werdum via submission (triangle) in June 2010 for Strikeforce.
Werdum held onto the title for almost a complete year before running into the buzzsaw that was horsemeat Alistair Overeem. Dropping the title to him via decision on June 18th, 2011, for Strikeforce. In becoming the 11th lineal UFC/PRIDE heavyweight champion, Alistair Overeem also unified the Strikeforce, Elite XC, and DREAM heavyweight titles with this win.
A couple of years later, after the Strikeforce/UFC merger, Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva became the 12th lineal champion by defeating Overeem via KO at UFC 156 on February 2nd, 2013. Silva then turned around and dropped the title to "Cardio" Cain Velasquez via first-round KO at UFC 160 on May 25th, 2013. This win by Velasquez reunifies the Lineal UFC/PRIDE Heavyweight championship with the current UFC championship, and he becomes the 13th lineal champion.
Fabricio Werdum came back to the UFC and defeated "Cardio" Cain at UFC 188 via submission (Guillotine) on June 13th, 2015, to become the 14th lineal champion. Then at UFC 198 on May 14th, 2016, Werdum gets KO'd by Stipe Miocic, dropping both the title and the belt to him.
Miocic held the title and belt until July 7th, 2018, when he got KO'd by Daniel Cormier at UFC 226. Making Cormier the 16th lineal champion. Cormier held the title and belt for just over a year before dropping it back to Stipe Miocic at UFC 241 on August 17th, 2019, via TKO, making Miocic the 17th lineal champ.
Finally, on March 27th, 2021, at UFC 260, Francis N'Gannou defeated Stipe Miocic via KO to become the 18th Undisputed Lineal UFC and PRIDE Heavyweight champion in an unbroken lineage, beginning with the inaugural heavyweight championship of Mark Coleman, unified with the inaugural PRIDE heavyweight title and then reunified with the current UFC championship by Cain Velasquez.
Now in 2023, N'Gannou has since parted ways with the UFC, splitting apart the title from the belt once again and sending the undisputed Lineal UFC champion over to the PFL while the belt sits on Jon Jones' waist.
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