MMA is one of the fastest growing sports in the world and the UFC – the sport’s premier promotion – is also on a massive upward trajectory. New fighters are regularly being signed to the UFC each year, with many of the best British fighters from Cage Warriors making the step up.
Here, you’ll find a definitive list of all English UFC fighters (including Darren Till), Scottish UFC fighters (including Paul Craig) and Welsh UFC fighters (including Jack Marshman) currently active in the MMA world today.
As well as our British UFC fighters list, we also profile the only fighter (so far) from these shores to have been a champion in their respective weight class. Let’s dive in:
Last Updated: 1st August 2021
British UFC Fighters – Current List:
British UFC Heavyweight Fighters (265 lbs, 120 kg):
Tom Aspinall – 6ft 5in – Wigan, England – Team Kaoban Liverpool – MMA Record: 12-3
Michael Parkin – ft in – – MMA Record: 6-0
British UFC Light Heavyweight Fighters (205 lbs, 93 kg):
Paul Craig – 6ft 4in – Coatbridge, Scotland – Scottish Hit Squad – MMA Record: 16-6-1
British UFC Middleweight Fighters (185 lbs, 84 kg):
Jack Marshman – 6ft 0in – Birmingham, England – MMA Record: 23-10
Christian Leroy Duncan – MMA Record: 7-0
Darren Till – 6ft 0in – Liverpool, England – Team Kaoban Liverpool – MMA Record: 18-5-1
British UFC Welterweight Fighters (170 lbs, 77 kg):
Leon Edwards – 6ft 0in – Birmingham, England – Ultimate Training Centre – MMA Record: 20-3 (1 No Contest)
Danny Roberts – 6ft 0in – Bristol, England – Blackzilians – MMA Record: 17-5
British UFC Lightweight Fighters (155 lbs, 70 kg):
Marc Diakiese – 5ft 10in – Doncaster, England – American Top Team – MMA Record: 16-6
Jai Herbert – 6ft 1in – Wolverhampton, England – Team Renegade BJJ – MMA Record: 12-4
Paddy Pimblett – 5ft 10in – Liverpool, England – Next Generation – MMA Record: 23-3
Chris Duncan – 5ft 10in – Glasgow, Scotland – MXP Fitness – MMA Record: 9-1-0
Sam Patterson – MMA Record: 10-1
British UFC Featherweight Fighters (145 lbs, 65 kg):
Arnold Allen – 5ft 8in – Felixstowe, England – BKK Fighters – MMA Record: 19-1
Nathaniel Wood – 5ft 6in – London, England – Great Britain Top Team – MMA Record: 19-5
Chris Fishgold – 5ft 8in – Liverpool, England – Next Generation MMA Liverpool – MMA Record: 18-4-1
Lerone Murphy – 5ft 10in – Stockport, England – Manchester Top Team – MMA Record: 10-0-1
British UFC Bantamweight Fighters (135 lbs, 61 kg):
Davey Grant – 5ft 8in – Bishop Auckland, England – SBG Manchester – MMA Record: 11-6
Jack Shore – 5ft 9in – Abertillery, Wales – Tillery Combat MMA Academy – MMA Record: 16-1
British UFC Flyweight Fighters (125 lbs, 56 kg):
Muhammed Mokaev – 5ft 9in – Manchester, England – KHK MMA – MMA Record: 9-0
Jack Hadley – 5ft 7in – Oldbury, England – MMA Record: 9-1
British UFC Women’s Flyweight Fighters (125 lbs, 56 kg):
Joanne Wood (nee Calderwood) – 5ft 6in – Glasgow, Scotland – Syndicate MMA – MMA Record: 23-8
Molly McCann – 5ft 4in – Liverpool, England – Next Generation MMA Liverpool – MMA Record: 10-4
British UFC Women’s Strawweight Fighters (115 lbs, 52 kg):
Cory McKenna – 5ft 3in – Cwmbran, Wales – Team Alpha Male – MMA Record: 8=2
Former British UFC Champions
Michael Bisping – Middleweight – 6ft 1in – MMA Record: 30-9
Though born in Nicosia, Cyprus on a British Military Base, Bisping (or ‘The Count’ as he’s otherwise known) grew up in Clitheroe, Lancashire, was the first British UFC champion. Bisping, at only 17 days’ notice, replaced the injured Chris Weidman in a middleweight title fight against Luke Rockhold, six years his junior, and secured a spectacular first-round knockout to dethrone the American.
The fight, at The Forum in Inglewood, was stopped after just three minutes and 36 seconds after two devastating left hooks to Rockhold, who could not recover and lost both his five-match winning streak and his middleweight title.
Bisping held the title for almost 18 months, successfully defending it (and vindicating a previous loss) against Dan Henderson, before he suffered a third-round submission defeat to Canadian MMA legend Georges St-Pierre in November 2017 at Madison Square Garden.
He retired from MMA in May 2018 at the age of 39, which he later revealed on The Joe Rogan Experience was due to noticing issues with his ‘good eye’ in a defeat to Kevin Gastelum shortly after the loss to GSP. Bisping had already suffered a detached retina in a knockout loss to Vitor Belfort in January 2013.
Current British UFC Champions
Leon Edwards is the only reigning British UFC champion after he caused a major upset by knocking out Kamaru Usman with a devastating headkick at UFC 278 to claim the Welterweight crown.
English UFC Fighters
| Fighter | Division |
|---|---|
| Tom Aspinall | Men’s Heavyweight |
| Michael Parkin | Men’s Heavyweight |
| Darren Till | Men’s Middleweight |
| Christian Leroy Duncan | Men’s Middleweight |
| Leon Edwards | Men’s Welterweight |
| Danny Roberts | Men’s Lightweight |
| Jai Herbert | Men’s Lightweight |
| Paddy Pimblett | Men’s Lightweight |
| Sam Patterson | Men’s Lightweight |
| Arnold Allen | Men’s Featherweight |
| Nathaniel Wood | Men’s Featherweight |
| Chris Fishgold | Men’s Featherweight |
| Lerone Murphy | Men’s Featherweight |
| Davey Grant | Men’s Bantamweight |
| Muhammed Mokaev | Men’s Flyweight |
| Jack Hadley | Men’s Flyweight |
| Molly McCann | Women’s Flyweight |
Scottish UFC Fighters
| Fighter | Division |
|---|---|
| Paul Craig | Men’s Light Heavyweight |
| Chris Duncan | Men’s Lightweight |
| Joanne Wood | Women’s Strawweight |
Welsh UFC Fighters
| Fighter | Division |
|---|---|
| Jack Marshman | Men’s Middleweight |
| Jack Shore | Men’s Bantamweight |
| Cory McKenna | Women’s Strawweight |
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