First, a run-down of the particulars:
- Due to potential metric conversion issues and weight class changes, a limit of 206 pounds is observed for this list.
- Inception of the championship occurred on 12/21/1997. The late start was due to the lack of guidance by an organization, with no semblance of matchmaking. Before the UFC, the Light Heavyweight division was used a “stop gap” between Middleweight and Heavyweight.
- Only one period of inactivity was seen in this lineage.
- The lineage is retroactively restarted with Daniel Cormier vs Anthony Johnson II due to Jon Jones’ USADA violation at UFC 214.
Your current lineal Light Heavyweight champion is vacant
The full history is below. Note, the colored backgrounds indicate a title change.
MMA Light Heavyweight Lineal Championship History
| Date | Champion | Outcome | Challenger | Notes |
| 1997-12-21 | Frank Shamrock | WIN | Kevin Jackson | |
| 1998-03-13 | Frank Shamrock | WIN | Igor Zinoviev | |
| 1998-05-15 | Frank Shamrock | WIN | Jeremy Horn | |
| 1998-10-16 | Frank Shamrock | WIN | John Lober | |
| 1999-04-23 | Frank Shamrock | DRAW | Kiyoshi Tamura | |
| 1999-09-24 | Frank Shamrock | WIN | Tito Ortiz | |
| 2000-12-10 | Frank Shamrock | WIN | Elvis Sinosic | Shamrock went inactive. |
| 2003-09-26 | Randy Couture | WIN | Tito Ortiz | Top contender match |
| 2004-01-31 | Vitor Belfort | WIN | Randy Couture | |
| 2004-08-21 | Randy Couture | WIN | Vitor Belfort | |
| 2005-04-16 | Chuck Liddell | WIN | Randy Couture | |
| 2005-08-20 | Chuck Liddell | WIN | Jeremy Horn | |
| 2006-02-04 | Chuck Liddell | WIN | Randy Couture | |
| 2006-08-26 | Chuck Liddell | WIN | Renato Sobral | |
| 2006-12-30 | Chuck Liddell | WIN | Tito Ortiz | |
| 2007-05-26 | Quinton Jackson | WIN | Chuck Liddell | |
| 2007-09-08 | Quinton Jackson | WIN | Dan Henderson | |
| 2008-07-05 | Forrest Griffin | WIN | Quinton Jackson | |
| 2008-12-27 | Rashad Evans | WIN | Forrest Griffin | |
| 2009-05-23 | Lyoto Machida | WIN | Rashad Evans | |
| 2009-10-24 | Lyoto Machida | WIN | Mauricio Rua | |
| 2010-05-08 | Mauricio Rua | WIN | Lyoto Machida | |
| 2011-03-19 | Jon Jones | WIN | Mauricio Rua | |
| 2011-09-24 | Jon Jones | WIN | Quinton Jackson | |
| 2011-12-11 | Jon Jones | WIN | Lyoto Machida | |
| 2012-04-21 | Jon Jones | WIN | Rashad Evans | |
| 2012-09-22 | Jon Jones | WIN | Vitor Belfort | |
| 2013-04-27 | Jon Jones | WIN | Chael Sonnen | |
| 2013-09-21 | Jon Jones | WIN | Alexander Gustafsson | |
| 2014-04-26 | Jon Jones | WIN | Glover Teixeira | |
| 2015-01-03 | Jon Jones | WIN | Daniel Cormier |
Jones stripped of the UFC title and faced a potentially long hiatus. Lineage temporarily restarted with the top contender bout of Cormier vs Johnson. |
| 2016-04-24 | Jon Jones | WIN | Ovince St. Preux |
Jones lineage is resumed as he makes a successful return to MMA. Cormier’s wins over Johnson and Gustafsson are erased from the lineage. |
| 2017-04-08 | Daniel Cormier | WIN | Anthony Johnson |
After Jones’ tests positive for performance enhancing drugs after UFC 214, Jones vs Cormier II is declared a No Contest. Lineage retroactively restarted with Cormier vs Johnson II as a top contender bout. |
| 2018-01-20 | Daniel Cormier | WIN | Volkan Oezdemir | Cormier moves up to heavyweight then retires. |
