15 Most Ripped UFC Fighters Of All Time (Crazy Physiques)

Are you wondering who the most ripped UFC fighters are?

In this article, we’ll look at the 15 most ripped UFC fighters of all time, the weight class they were in when they were most ripped, and how they got so ripped for the fight.

15 Most Ripped UFC Fighters

When talking about the most ripped UFC fighters, we’re talking about the fighters with the lowest amount of body fat, not the most ‘jacked’ fighters with huge amounts of muscle mass.

However, in order for a ripped physique, fighters need to have a certain level of muscle mass, which a lot of fighters in the lower-weight class divisions lack. If a fighter has very low body fat but lacks muscle mass, they just look thin and flat.

The most ripped UFC fighters are usually in their most ripped condition on fight night or at the weigh-ins.

On fight night, a fighter has been cutting body fat in the months leading up to their fight and starts to rehydrate and eat good quality carbohydrates before their fight which fills the muscles with glycogen.

Fighters look ripped at the weigh-ins because they’re dehydrated and this drys out their muscles and makes them more pronounced.

This combination of low body fat and full muscles from the food they’ve eaten in the past 36 hours after weigh-ins results in a fighter’s most ripped condition.

Genetics and steroids are also huge factors contributing to the most ripped UFC fighters.

Here are the 15 most ripped UFC fighters to have fought in the promotion, in alphabetical order:

Conor McGregor – Featherweight (145 lbs)

Conor McGregor has always been in great shape with very little body fat and plenty of muscle. He was at his most ripped when weighing in at 145 lbs for his featherweight title fight against Jose Aldo.

His natural weight class is as a 155 lb lightweight and he’s also fought several times at welterweight (170 lbs), most notably against Nate Diaz twice.

Cutting weight to 145 lbs for McGregor was extremely unhealthy, but it definitely led to his most ripped physique.

His cheeks were hollow, his delts were capped and there wasn’t an ounce of fat on the man – but at the same time, he looked like he’d been on a starvation diet.

Dan Hooker – Featherweight (145 lbs)

Most naturally a lightweight, Dan Hooker has also fought at featherweight. It’s when he cuts to 145 lbs that Dan Hooker is most ripped.

At this weight, he has striations and a razor-sharp jawline, but he also looks skeletal and unhealthy.

At 6 feet tall, cutting down to 145 lbs is absolute dedication to his diet and his craft, and no wonder that he’s so ripped at this weight.

Deiveson Figueiredo – Flyweight (125 lbs)

Deiveson Figueiredo comes into a fight much past ripped, he comes in absolutely shredded.

He has to be one of, if not the most ripped UFC fighter in the flyweight division of all time.

With capped shoulders, veins of top of veins, chest striations, and thick abdominals; Deiveson has a lot of muscle for a 125 lb fighter due to his insanely low body fat.

Douglas Silva de Andrade – Bantamweight (135 lbs)

Douglas Silva de Andrade is one of the lesser-known fighters on this list, but he’s easily one of the most ripped.

To make bantamweight, Andrade has described the monstrous dehydration that he has to go through.

Before his 2021 fight against Gaetano Pirrello in the bantamweight division, Andrade spoke of how he cut 47 lbs (21.5 kg) in 2 months to make 135 lbs for the fight. That equates to 5.875 lbs per week.

His muscle separation, lines, and capped shoulders stand out the most on his huge and ripped physique in the bantamweight division.

He’s easily big enough to fight at featherweight, which he’s done twice before moving back down to bantamweight – preferring to fight with a size advantage.

Edson Barboza – Lightweight (155 lbs)

Edson Barboza is so ripped that he looks photoshopped. He’s a fighter who’s possibly more ripped fighting at lightweight than he is at featherweight. 

This is because despite weighing 10 lbs heavier, he can retain more muscle and have less body fat, as well as have his muscle pop out more due to being less dehydrated and having more glycogen in his muscle.

Regardless of his weight class, Edson Barboza has elite-level genetics when it comes to a ripped physique. He also has fairly tanned skin, which helps bring out his cuts and striations.

Jared Cannonier – Middleweight (185 lbs)

When Jared Cannonier first came to the UFC in 2015, he was a heavyweight. His first two fights were in the heavyweight division where he weighed in at 235 and 241 lbs.

He then moved to light heavyweight (205 lbs) and amassed a 2-3 record there, so decided to move down to middleweight.

In order to get there he had to shed quite a few pounds of fat and a lot of water weight.

Now at middleweight, Jared Cannonier is one of the most ripped UFC fighters due to his huge muscle mass acquired from his days as a heavyweight, and his now very low body fat.

Jerrod Sanders – Bantamweight (135 lbs)

In his second UFC fight against Pedro Munhoz at UFC FN 54, Jerrod Sanders was in a ridiculously ripped condition.

He dropped down from lightweight in his previous fight 3 months prior, a difference of 20 lbs.

This cut saw him retain all the muscle mass he held when fighting at lightweight but with much less body fat.

Unfortunately, his impressive physique helped him none, as he was submitted by Munhoz in 35 seconds of the first round; likely because he was lacking energy after such a drastic weight cut.

Jose Aldo – Bantamweight (135 lbs)

Jose Aldo is known for being one of the greatest featherweights of all time, but it was at bantamweight that he was most ripped.

There were a lot of people who thought Aldo wouldn’t make a weight of 135 lbs because he was known for being huge and ripped for a featherweight, and struggling to make weight at times.

However, he proved the doubters wrong and came in for his last 6 UFC fights as a bantamweight without any issues.

He had less muscle mass but he was also a lot more shredded.

Kamaru Usman – Welterweight (170 lbs)

Kamaru Usman is a welterweight veteran and one of the greatest of all time in this division.

Every time he fought during his 15-fight win streak before losing to Leon Edwards, he was ridiculously ripped.

He’s so huge for a welterweight that his walking weight is usually around 195 lbs; meaning he has to cut around 25 lbs before every fight.

Losing so much body fat and preserving all his muscle mass is a testament to his diet and hard work in the gym, and it’s his high muscle mass and genetics that give him such a ripped physique.

Luke Rockhold – Middleweight (185 lbs)

Coming over to the UFC in 2013 as a dominant Strikeforce middleweight champion, Luke Rockhold packed a lot of muscle onto his frame while stripping as much body fat as possible, giving him one of the most ripped UFC physiques.

His walk-around weight between fights was often between 205 to 215 lbs, meaning he performed huge weight cuts, losing a lot of body fat and water weight while preserving as much muscle mass as possible.

Marlon Moraes – Bantamweight (135 lbs)

Marlon Moraes is another fighter who looks photoshopped into an action figure, due to his huge muscle mass and ripped physique at just 5’6” tall.

Marlon Moraes is genetically gifted when it comes to looking ripped.

Marlon has had a walking weight of 165 lbs in the past, meaning he has to cut around 30 lbs to make the bantamweight limit.

He does this by performing extreme water flushes so that he can maintain as much muscle as possible.

Michel Pereira – Welterweight (170 lbs)

In the weigh-ins before his fight against Niko Price at UFC 264, Michel Pereira was insanely diced.

He gets this ripped because he’s another welterweight who has a huge amount of muscle mass, which he holds on to while cutting as much body fat as possible.

His walking weight has been as high as 205 lbs while being in amazing shape, meaning he could comfortably fight at middleweight and not be undersized.

Nordine Taleb – Welterweight (170 lbs)

Not only is Nordine Taleb consistently one of the most ripped UFC fighters when he enters the octagon, but he’s also the former bodyguard of Brazilian footballer, Neymar.

Not much is known about his diet or walking weight, but he’s likely to be around 195 lbs before cutting to 170.

Standing 6’1” and having a decent amount of muscle, Nordine likes to strip as much body fat as possible so that he has less water weight to lose before entering UFC fights.

Sage Northcutt – Lightweight (155 lbs)

Sage is another UFC fighter who has fought in multiple weight-class divisions.

His more natural weight class is welterweight, but he’s most ripped when fighting at lightweight because it’s an extra 15 lbs of body fat and water weight he’s not holding on to.

Sage has elite-level genetics when it comes to having a ripped physique. When he fights, his muscles are rounded, he has chest striations, clear bicep separation, and a lot of pop.

He’s been known to be 180 lbs before cutting weight to 155 lbs for an upcoming UFC fight, so he has a lot of muscle mass.

He also maintains a ripped physique year-round because he has many nutrition and supplement sponsorships.

T.J. Dillashaw – Flyweight (125 lbs)

T.J. Dillashaw normally fights with very low body fat in his usual weight class of 135 lbs (bantamweight). 

So when Dillashaw went down to flyweight to compete against Henry Cejudo for the flyweight title and status as the third man to become a UFC double champ; he was absolutely ripped.

His weight cut has been described as the most intricately executed weight cut in MMA history after he cut 29 lbs in 3 months before his fight – 18.83% of his total body weight.

While he had less body fat when fighting at flyweight, he also had less muscle. So while he’s more ripped at flyweight, he looks just as ripped at bantamweight because he has more muscle mass on his frame. 

Regardless of his weight class, Dillashaw is one of the most ripped UFC fighters ever.

It should also be mentioned that Dillashaw has been popped for the illegal substance EPO, so his ripped physique can be attributed to steroids as well as hard work.

Overall

This has been the 15 most ripped UFC fighters of all time. While the vast majority of UFC fighters are in lean condition because of weight division limits, the fighters above are genetically gifted – steroids or not.

They all have insane genetics and most of them have a huge amount of muscle mass which they carry into a much lower weight class than their usual walking weight.

Most often they cut between 20 to 30 lbs in the months before their fight, and this sees them in extremely ripped conditions because of their dedication to a strict diet and water flush.