What is the BMF? The unofficial UFC belt held by Holloway and now on the line against Poirier

In April 2024, during the main card of the blockbuster UFC 300, Justin Gaethje put his BMF belt on the line against Max Holloway. Since that fight, Holloway – who is set to face Dustin Poirier at UFC 318 – has held the unofficial title. He chose not to defend it against Ilia Topuria, despite the Spanish-Georgian fighter calling for it. But now, Holloway has agreed, and the belt will once again be up for grabs – potentially passing to yet another fighter if Poirier retires with it.

This belt began as a symbolic gesture, born out of comments made by Nate Diaz. After his two back-to-back fights with Conor McGregor, the Stockton fighter earned a cult status among fans. Despite that surge in popularity, Diaz spent three years away from the octagon before returning in 2019 to face Anthony Pettis. After winning, Diaz declared he had proven himself to be the “Baddest Motherfucker” – a title he claimed was between him and Pettis.

Straight after the win, Diaz called out a surging Jorge Masvidal, and this time the UFC didn’t let the moment slip. Once the fight was set between the two stars, the organization created a special belt – outside the usual championship titles – and officially named it the BMF. In November 2019, Masvidal defeated Diaz at UFC 244 to become the first-ever BMF champion in UFC history.

A belt not suitable for everyone

The BMF belt was made for fighters who are fearless in the cage and reckless with their emotions. Tough guys with a gangster edge in real life. That’s why, when Masvidal retired from the promotion, Dana White chose to revive the BMF storyline with two all-out warriors: Gaethje and Poirier.

These two lightweight legends clashed for the second time in the UFC 291 main event. A fight expected to be a bloody war ended by knockout in under six minutes – in the second round, Gaethje finished “The Diamond” with a brutal head kick.

What came next is history. Gaethje lost the belt to Holloway – the fighter with the most strikes landed and absorbed in UFC history. But Max, when facing Topuria, opted not to put his “baddest motherfucker” status on the line. Now, at UFC 318, that changes.

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