1. Michael Bisping
Great Britain’s very first UFC champion tops the list. Commentary and personality aside, I have the highest level of respect for what Bisping achieved in his MMA career. No one worked harder or was more determined to win and succeed, with a ferocious strength of will and toughness that allowed him to keep fighting and grinding for that elusive championship when no sane person believed he had a realistic chance. He is one of the great overachievers in MMA history, defeating countless men who were more naturally gifted, but not as dedicated or hard-working. His striking continually improved over his career, even well into his 30s, and so did his grappling. Bisping holds many nice victories over his career, including knockouts of Cung Le, Jason Miller and Jorge Rivera, plus decisions, some very close, against Thales Leites, C.B. Dolloway, Chris Leben and a 40-year-old but still dangerous Anderson Silva. He has also had some bitter losses, like his famous knockout loss to Dan Henderson in their first meeting at UFC 100, being choked out by Luke Rockhold in their first fight, getting obliterated by Vitor Belfort, finished by a welterweight Georges St. Pierre coming out of retirement, being knocked into retirement by Kelvin Gastelum, and losing decisions to Rashad Evans, a washed-up Wanderlei Silva, Chael Sonnen, and Tim Kennedy, of all people.
Also, I should point out that Bisping's split decision win over Matt Hamill was one of the great robberies in the sport, with over 81% of the public on record scoring it for Hamill. However, Bisping kept plugging away despite the losses and his shining moment was his incredible knockout victory over Rockhold, who had easily dismissed the Brit the first time, and whom no one gave Bisping a chance to defeat. Bisping never wavered in his self-belief, and he crashed through in glorious fashion, a Cinderella Man for the modern MMA age. Without a doubt, Bisping's MMA career should be an inspiration to every fighter who wants to win a championship.