Physical attributes play a large role in a fight. Weight classes are an attempt to keep things even. Nevertheless, even when categorized, fighters come in all shapes and sizes. Typically, there are some pros and cons for these attributes. Fighters big and small have become champions, and it's due to them playing off of their advantages.
Reach has often been a great feature to have. The longer wingspan and lengthier legs provide numerous benefits. Keeping powerful strikers at bay and using these long limbs to sneak in submissions are two of many benefits. Fighters with the longer reach will often lean on this advantage, making it a very pertinent statistic to display before fights.
9 Israel Adesanya
Israel Adesanya is the quintessential striker. Making the proper reads and wasting no movement are part of the Adesanya attack. He has an 80" wingspan atop the 44.5" leg reach, all powered by an educated and analytical mind. That's scary stuff for Middleweight contenders.
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Israel uses his reach perfectly. Not only does he prod his jab or teep out to set up attacks, he'll use these measurements for his defense. Adesanya will frequently lean back to avoid kicks, and they get close. Israel makes opponents miss by an inch, as opposed to off-balancing himself in avoidance.
8 Alistair Overeem: 80"
Alistair Overeem will go down as one of the greatest heavyweight fighters to ever do it. Alistair's phenomenal striking background and adaptability mixed beautifully for his career. Overeem combined crisp technique with an 80" reach. Along with that, a leg reach of 46" was a prominent part of his striking.
Overeem made the most of his reach. This really showed with his kicks and knees. Overeem has accumulated many finishes with these long limbs. A great example is when Overeem fought Mark Hunt. Hunt being a shorter fighter, the knee upstairs proved to be a useful technique, guiding Alistair to a victory.
7 Curtis Blaydes: 80"
Also possessing an 80" wingspan and a leg reach of 46", Curtis Blaydes uses his advantage a little differently. No slouch in the feet, as he's continuing to improve his striking, Curtis largely uses his long and large build to control opponents on the ground.
Blaydes especially shines when he's cutting opponents up with elbows. Blaydes has made the most of being able to reach and sneak his arms through an opponent's guard in grappling scenarios. The physical gifts are there along with the work. Blaydes has all the potential to be the Heavyweight champion in the near future.
6 Cheick Kongo: 81"
Cheick Kongo is another striker that made the most of his physicality. Kongo is one of those fighters that fans can never count out -- see his bout against Pat Barry for proof. He's a well-rounded righter that really uses his wingspan for the better.
The striking of Cheick is what gave really put some finality in his matches. Great strikers with abnormally large reaches will give any fighter trouble. Add a Cheick Kongo caliber of kickboxing, and that's a tall mountain to climb.
5 Francis Ngannou: 83"
It's hard to argue that Francis Ngannou isn't the most frightening person alive. A 6'4" man with 83" reach are a couple of things on the laundry list of Francis being terrifying.
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Ngannou is a feared striker. In the past, he's maybe relied on his very promising power a little too much. Francis has since evolved into a fighter that is patient and calculated. Fighting behind his jab and even scoring takedowns, the long arms of Francis are put to great use. En route to becoming the greatest heavyweight of all time, Francis seems to get better and more strategic each fight.
4 Sergei Pavlovich: 84"
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Enter Sergei Pavlovich and his 84" reach. He's off to a 2-1 start since joining the UFC in late 2018, which makes the heavy-handed Sergei a fighter to keep an eye on. Yet to see a second round in the UFC, Sergei uses his ridiculously long arms to keep fighters at punching range, which has been a mostly successful strategy.
With 11 of 14 wins coming by way of strikes, Sergei takes full advantage of his reach. The heavyweight division offers the most diversity in terms of fighter size -- being on the long end of the spectrum is great to take advantage of.
3 Stefan Struve: 84.5
Standing, or hovering, at 7 feet tall, Stefan Struve is the tallest fighter in the UFC. Struve has some marquee wins in the UFC and a highlight reel that's definitely worth the watch.
Utilizing his reach in many ways, Stefan is dangerous in all aspects of a fight. Struve has some of the best submissions that the UFC Heavyweight division has seen. He's even in the conversation for most active guards at heavyweight. The long limbs of Struve were very utility in his fights. The heavyweight division is well known for its knockouts, but Struve really did it all.
2 Jon Jones: 84.5
Jon Jones uses his reach better than anyone else in the UFC. Former foe, Chael Sonnen, referred to Jones' reach as that of "a radioactive condor." Jon has built an incredible game off of his body type. Reach is what a fighter makes of it, and Jones has curated a move set around his physical gifts.
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Jones has a higher percentage of landing elbow strikes and knees, which are a driving force in his standup. The long arms and tall body make getting under hooks a little difficult, so Jon adapted. Prominent in earlier fights, Jon will use over hooks to land lateral drops and various trips.
1 Dan Christison: 85"
Dan Christison may not be as well known as previously mentioned fighters, but he had a very good career in MMA. He had two fights in the UFC, the second being against former champ, Frank Mir, which is a great accomplishment. Dan worked his way into the UFC by putting together a 6 fight win streak, all by way of finish.
Dan used his incredible 85" reach to dominate grappling exchanges. A very active guard and great top control were subsequent of the extensive arms. Christison compiled 12 wins in his career. This shows that the reach advantage isn't solely a plus on the feet, rather it'll help anywhere if the game plan works with it.
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