Sherdog’s Top 10: Longest Major MMA Title Reigns

1. Anderson Silva | UFC Middleweight -- 2,457 Days

No other champion in MMA history was as dominant in a given weight class as Silva was in his. “The Spider” broke into the UFC by destroying popular slugger Chris Leben in 49 seconds, leaving an immediate footprint in the middleweight division.

The Brazilian was awarded a title shot against Rich Franklin four months later. Silva wrecked Franklin’s body and face at UFC 64 on Oct. 14, 2006, taking out the former math teacher in less than three minutes. The victory touched off the longest title reign in MMA history, as “The Spider” ruled the 185-pound weight class for almost seven years. Nate Marquardt, Dan Henderson, Patrick Cote, Thales Leites, Demian Maia, Chael Sonnen (twice), Vitor Belfort and Yushin Okami were all victimized, along with Franklin in their October 2007 rematch.

Not until July 6, 2013 was Silva knocked from his perch. In the UFC 162 main event, Silva’s penchant for showboating finally caught up to him, as Chris Weidman knocked him cold with a clean left hook and follow-up punches at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. After nearly 2,500 days, Silva’s historic reign was over.