Once upon a time, the light heavyweight division was regarded as the premier weight class of the UFC. With names like Chuck Liddell, Rampage Jackson, Shogun Rua, Tito Ortiz, Jon Jones and more, it's easy to see why MMA fans were excited whenever there was a major fight at 205-pounds. Fast forward to 2023 and the buzz and excitement is pretty much non-existent.

The current champion is Jamahal Hill who, while talented with a 12-1 (1 NC) record, doesn't really move the needle nor is he a big name compared to other champions in the UFC. Other names like former champion Jiri Prochazka and Aleksandar Rakic are on the sidelines with injury. Finally, there's just been an overall massive dearth of big names that the division is yet to replace in the last couple of years. All these factors among others have contributed to the UFC light heavyweight division becoming the weakest in the promotion, at least with the men's fighters

The division first started declining at UFC 232 back in Dec. 2018 when Jones defeated Alexander Gustafsson in a rematch for the vacant strap. Even when it had the likes of Jones, Daniel Cormier, Anthony “Rumble” Johnson and Gustafsson to name a few, the weight class was still very top-heavy. This would later prove to be its downfall as following UFC 232, Johnson had already retired, Cormier had vacated the belt and moved up to heavyweight and Gustafsson lost his eventual last attempt at becoming a UFC champion.

Jones — who had returned from a suspension for a failed drug test — was now the king of the jungle again and was looking for fresh meat. That's exactly what he got as his next three title defenses were against Anthony Smith, Thiago Santos and Dominick Reyes. Smith and Santos were notably middleweights who moved up while Reyes was a legitimate prospect. Jones had finished Gustafsson via TKO in their rematch. His next three results were decision victories, which were far from his best performances. Additionally, some felt Santos — who only lost a split verdict on an injured leg — did enough to win while many felt Reyes should have earned the win on the judges' scorecards.

In the end, Jones still reigned supreme and went on to vacate his title in preparation for his move up to heavyweight, but the problem started here. In the last couple of years prior to UFC 232, fans got to witness the likes of Jones, Cormier, Johnson and Gustafsson fight for the title. Now, they're watching — with all due respect — Smith and Santos challenge for the title after just a couple of wins. It's a big drop in quality and Jones admitted himself that his lackluster performances were due to him lacking motivation as his opponents weren't known to the general public nor did he fear them. This problem still plagues the division today as the top 10 is arguably the weakest compared to other divisions. Regardless, the division moves on.

While Reyes felt hard done by the decision against Jones, he would get another chance to win the now-vacant title when he faced Jan Blachowicz at UFC 253 in Sept. 2020. Reyes was a comfortable betting favorite and was expected to be crowned the new champion. However, he would end up getting brutally finished by Blachowicz, who was notably 37 years of age at the time. Reyes — who is seven years younger — would go on to lose his next two fights and is now on a four-fight losing streak with the division essentially losing one of its brightest prospects.

Blachowicz would defend his title against UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya before losing the strap to Glover Teixeira, who became the oldest champion in promotional history. While Teixeira winning was admirable and inspirational, it's not exactly a glowing endorsement of the state of the division that someone could win the belt at the age of 42. That said, Teixeira is tough and would later lose the belt to the explosive Prochazka in a Fight of the Year candidate. Prochazka is a former RIZIN champion and an entertaining yet reckless knockout artist with finishes in all of his UFC fights. At least now, the division could make a comeback, surely?

That's what everyone thought…until Prochazka had to vacate the belt soon after as he required shoulder surgery. His planned rematch with Teixeira was scrapped and Blachowicz would fight for the vacant strap again against Magomed Ankalaev, an efficient and well-rounded Dagestani fighter. Comically, that fight resulted in a draw with UFC president Dana White later booking Hill against Teixeira soon after with the former coming out on top, and so, here we are with the division as weak as it's ever been.

That's not to say all hope is lost — after all, these sort of things usually move in cycles and the light heavyweight division is due a comeback. Prochazka will be back in action soon, presumably against Hill in what should be an entertaining matchup, Rakic should also be back in the mix as well to offer a fresh new face in the title picture and most intriguingly of all, former middleweight champion Alex Pereira is set to make his 205-pound debut against Blachowicz at UFC 291 later this month on July 29. If he gets the win, he is all but guaranteed to get a title shot and could signal the start of a major shift in the division. Plus Prochazka vs. Pereira would be absolute money.

It won't be an instant fix, but gradually, the light heavyweight division could become great again very soon.