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13 Best Hispanic UFC Fighters Of All Time

The UFC has a unique diversity of fighters under its roster from all kinds of backgrounds and heritage.

Hispanic cultures have birthed many great fighters into the combat sport of MMA, and below I’m going to list a selection of the best Hispanic UFC fighters of all time.

I define Hispanic as any country or culture with a predominantly Spanish-speaking language or heritage. Prime examples are Spain, Mexico, Ecuador, and there are many more.

Fighters included here could be from or have a heritage connected to Hispanic culture.

You might already have some favorites in mind that you hope to see here. Let’s find out if they are good enough to be included.

13. Anthony Pettis

Represents: USA

Heritage: Mexico

Anthony Pettis is the former UFC Lightweight Champion. He is known for his outstanding striking game. He started his pro Mixed Martial Arts career back in WEC. After showing greatness, he got signed in the UFC and fought Clay Guida in his debut.

In Anthony’s UFC run, he fought in Featherweight, Lightweight, and Welterweight. Some of his best UFC fights are against Donal Cerrone, Nate Diaz, Stephen Thompson, and fellow former Lightweight champion Benson Henderson.

Despite the good run in the most prominent MMA organization, Pettis chose to leave the roster and sign in the Professional Fighters League. This organization is a young MMA organization founded last 2018.

12. Marlon Vera

Represents: Ecuador

Heritage: Ecuador

Marlon Chito Vera is possibly Ecuador’s future Bantamweight champion. Over the years that he fights in the UFC, he puts down various Bantamweights one by one. Vera is remembered for his slick striking ability, a balanced mixture of kicks and punches. Moreover, he also has some great submission wins.

Vera is also the man who defeated one of the greatest UFC strikers, Sean O’Malley, via TKO. He did this massive upset in UFC 252. Aside from O’Malley, Marlon beat various Bantamweight big names such as Rob Font, Frankie Edgar, and Davey Grant. 

Marlon also fought one of the most dominant Featherweight champions, Jose Aldo. Despite losing the fight via decision, Vera showed that he could compete with these high-level guys. 

11. Yoel Romero

Represents: USA

Heritage: Cuba

Yoel “Son of God” Romero is one of the scariest Middleweight in UFC history. He is a former Middleweight gold challenger and fought Robert Whittaker for the title twice. Despite losing, he showed tremendous heart, chin, and power that gave the champ a hard time.

No one will forget what he did to Chris Weidman. Romero landed a perfectly-timed flying knee right on Weidman’s skull, opening a fight-ending cut. Aside from Wideman, Romero also knocked out former champions Luker Rockhold and Lyoto Machida.

Today, Romero is not in the UFC anymore. Despite his old age, he still fights on the big stage. You can now watch him fight in Bellator MMA as a massive Light Heavyweight. 

10. Brian Ortega

Represents: USA

Heritage: Mexico

Brian “T-City” Ortega is a UFC Featherweight who fought in the top 5 for many years. The fans gave him his nickname “T-City” because of his ability to secure tight triangle submissions. Aside from his submissions, he also possesses knockout power.

Ortega has fought the two most prominent Featherweights that ever hold the belt; Halloway and Volkanovski. His fight against Halloway was a total beat down, but he has shown that he’s relentless no matter what. 

His Volkanovski fight was unforgettable and is considered one of the greatest UFC fights of all time. He nearly submitted the champ with a guillotine and a triangle choke, but unfortunately, Brian is too tired to squeeze in further.

Some of his other good fights are against Renato Moicano, Cub Swanson, Clay Guida, and former Lightweight champion Franky Edgar.

9. Dominick Cruz

Represents: USA

Heritage: Mexico

Dominick Cruz is known for his unpredictable open stance, where he jumps in and out to his opponent’s range. This fighting style makes this Mexican descendant very unpredictable as he can throw any strikes in any direction. It also makes him very elusive. 

Dominick is the former Bantamweight King. During his championship era, he defeated various Bantamweight beasts such as TJ Dillashaw, Uriah Faber, and Demetrious Johnson. Cruz is also known for his chin; this is greatly shown in his war against Cody Garbrandt.

Today, Dominick is working as a commentator at UFC, being the voice behind some fights. Despite being a commentator, he is not yet retired, and we can expect to see him in more fights in the future.

8. Jorge Masvidal

Represents: USA

Heritage: Cuban/Peruvian

Jorge “Gambred” Masvidal holds the record of the fastest KO in UFC history. He got this record after knocking out Ben Askren with a lightning-fast flying knee that destroyed the whole internet. 

Masvidal is famous for his extraordinary Boxing. He has striking pedigree ever since. Before getting into the UFC, Masvidal has a big name in the street fighting industry. Once upon a time, he would fight only with his bare fists.

Aside from fighting, Masvidal has established his MMA organization. It’s called Gamebred Fighting Championship. In this MMA promotion, fighters will fight without gloves with the same rules as regular MMA bouts.

7. Yair Rodriguez

Represents: Mexico

Heritage: Mexico

Yair “El Pantera” Rodriguez is a Featherweight legend in the making. He is known for using a wide variety of kicks from his Taekwondo background. Aside from kicks, Yair can also throw his hands, elbows, and knees pretty well.

Some of his most memorable fights are against Max Halloway, BJ Penn, and Jeremy Stephens. Yair’s upward elbow from out of nowhere that slept The Korean Zombie is also one of his most unforgettable highlight reels.

Yair Rodriguez is currently working his way up to the Featherweight ladder with a goal to grab Mexico another UFC belt. With his skill and power, having the Featherweight belt wrapped around his waist is not impossible.

6. Nick Diaz

Represents: USA

Heritage: Mexican-American

Nick Diaz is the other half of the famous Diaz brothers. He is the older brother of Nate Diaz. Nick is renowned for his showmanship inside the octagon. He sometimes taunts his opponents to hit him if the match gets boring.

Aside from being entertaining, Nick has a high-level Boxing and Jiu-Jitsu game. With his skills, he defeated several UFC hall of famers such as BJ Penn, Geleison Tibau, and Robby Lawler. 

Recently, he came out from his retirement and had a rematch with Robby Lawler. However, he lost the fight via TKO. Everyone saw how good he was despite not fighting for a long time.

5. Nate Diaz

Represents: USA

Heritage: Mexican-American

The younger brother of Nick Diaz, Nate is one of the most entertaining and reckless Hispanic Welterweights that ever step inside the octagon. He is known for his excellent Boxing and submission game. Cardio is also one of his primary weapons.

One of his signature strikes is the Stockton slap, where Nate slaps his opponent right in the face. He did this against various elite-level mixed martial artists such as Conor Mcgregor, Michael Johnson, and more.

Nate is also one of the fighters who managed to defeat Conor McGregor. He is also the first fighter ever to tap him out.

4. Brandon Moreno

Represents: Mexico

Heritage: Mexico

Brandon “The Assasin Baby” Moreno is one of the Flyweight division’s elite fighters. His stardom began when he fought Deiveson Figueiredo in pursuit of the Flyweight gold. They fought a head-to-head 5-round match that ended up as a draw. 

Moreno and Figueiredo fought for the second time, and Brandon won via submission. In their trilogy fight, Deiveson won with a controversial unanimous decision victory. Some say Moreno won that fight, but the judges have seen something that the public didn’t.

Moreno is known for his speed and explosiveness inside the octagon. With this fighting style, he won against Kai Kara-France, Brandon Royval, and Dustin Ortiz.

3. Cain Velasquez

Represents: USA

Heritage: Mexico

Cain Velasquez is a former UFC Heavyweight champion. He was the man who knocked out Brock Lesnar in UFC 121. He is known for his excellent Boxing; Cain is great at closing his distance at much longer opponents to play some dirty Boxing inside.

Aside from his Boxing, he is also a high-level wrestler. His wrestling ability has won him many fights; some of these fights are against Ben Rothwell and others. As a Heavyweight, it amazes people how he also throws a wide variety of kicks during a fight.

Some of his noteworthy opponents are Junior Dos Santos, Brock Lesnar, and Antonio “bigfoot” Silva. Before retiring, he also fought modern fighters such as Francis Ngannou.

2. Tony Ferguson

Represents: USA

Heritage: Mexico

Tony “El Cucuy” Ferguson is a UFC Lightweight and a former Interim Lightweight champion. Back then, he held an enormous 12-fight win streak that made people think he was the most unstoppable Lightweight on the planet. 

“El Cucuy” stands for “Boogeyman.” This nickname fits Tony well as he looks like a true boogeyman inside the cage while he beats his opponents up. He is known for being a relentless fighter who always puts pressure no matter what.

Some of Ferguson’s most notable fights are against Kevin Lee, Anthony Pettis, Rafael Dos Anjos, and Donal Cerrone. He all destroyed these former title contenders and champions via knockout or decision.

1. Henry Cejudo

Represents: USA

Heritage: Mexico

Henry “CCC” Cejudo is the greatest Hispanic UFC fighter of all time. He is the first fighter to win an Olympic Gold medal and the UFC gold. Cejudo is also one of the UFC’s double-champs by simultaneously holding the Flyweight and Bantamweight belt. 

He is known for his incredible wrestling mixed with explosive striking inside the octagon. Aside from that, Cejudo is also famous for his exaggerated trash talk during a win or any fighter callouts earning him the nickname “Cringe King.”

During his champ-champ journey, he fought multiple high-caliber fighters such as former Flyweight King, Demetrious Johnson, and Marlon Moraes. He also defended one of his belts during his double-champ reign against TJ Dillashaw.

Now you’ve finished reading about the best Hispanic UFC fighters, now you’ll want to know about the best black fighters who had huge impacts on the UFC’s rise.

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