Weidman, Cormier, Cruz Reveal Their UFC Middleweight GOAT

UFC legends Dominick Cruz, Chris Weidman, and Daniel Cormier presented the UFC 297 weigh-in show ahead of the promotion’s return to Toronto, Canada. During a segment on the show, the trio discussed who they think were the top five middleweights in UFC history. See below to find out who each man picked as their middleweight GOAT.

Chris Weidman’s Top 5 UFC Middleweights

Basing his choices on credentials rather than who he thinks was the best fighter in their prime. Winning and retaining the UFC title came into factor when Weidman made his top five.

Silva had ten title defenses, Adesanya had five, Weidman 

1. Anderson Silva (10 title defenses)
2. Israel Adesanya (5 defenses)
3. Chris Weidman (3 defenses)
4. Rich Franklin (2 defenses)
5. Michael Bisping (1 defence)

Weidman went on to say that if he were to pick one of those top five based as the greatest in their prime, he would fancy himself against any of them, including Anderson Silva.

Dominick Cruz’s Top 5 UFC Middleweights

Taking a different approach to Weidman, Dominick Cruz compiled his top 5 list based on his favorite styles. Adesanya took the top spot for his title defenses, and Romero was a close second due to being Cruz’s favorite wrestler of all time. Mousasi took the fifth spot, with the former two-time bantamweight champion stating that he believes him to be underrated. He left Anderson Silva out of his list due to adverse findings in USADA testing. Cruz’s top 5 is:

1. Israel Adesanya
2. Yoel Romero
3. Rich Franklin
4. Chris Weidman
5. Gegard Mousasi

Daniel Cormier’s Top 5 UFC Middleweights

The former UFC two-division champion considered both accomplishments and fighting style when giving his top 5. Cormier picked Weidman over Adesanya because he believed that if it were not for injury and bad luck, Weidman would have been at the top of the division for a prolonged period.  

1. Anderson Silva
2. Chris Weidman 
3. Israel Adesanya
4. Robert Whittaker
5. Luke Rockhold / Yoel Romero

Out of Cruz, Weidman, and Cormier, whose list of the top 5 UFC middleweights is the most accurate?