Frankie
Edgar has carved out a hall of fame-worthy resume.
“The Answer” made his professional debut in 2005, arrived in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship a little more than a year later
and eventually reached the mountaintop as the fourth lightweight
titleholder in UFC history. Edgar’s competitive spirit held
audiences captive despite his 5-foot-6 frame, as he routinely
outflanked larger opponents. He has fought in three different
weight classes, compiling a 24-10-1 record during a remarkable run
of consistency. Age and mileage have caught up to Edgar in recent
years, as he has lost five of his past seven bouts. He last
appeared at UFC 268, where he was victimized by a
Marlon Vera
front kick in the third round of their Nov. 6 pairing.
As Edgar awaits word on his next assignment from UFC matchmakers, a
look at some of the numbers that have accompanied him along the
way:
40: Years of age for Edgar, who was born on Oct. 16, 1981 in Toms
River, New Jersey.
7: Edgar victories by knockout or technical knockout, accounting
for 29% of his career total (24). His list of UFC victims:
Yair
Rodriguez,
Chad Mendes,
B.J.
Penn,
Gray
Maynard and
Mark Bocek.
Edgar owns four other victories by submission and 13 more by
decision.
687: Days spent by Edgar as undisputed UFC lightweight champion. It
ranks as the third-longest reign in the history of the division
behind
Khabib
Nurmagomedov (1,077) and the aforementioned Penn (812). Edgar
captured the 155-pound crown with a unanimous decision over Penn in
the UFC 112 co-feature on April 10, 2010, retained it in three
subsequent outings and then surrendered it to
Benson
Henderson in the UFC 144 headliner on Feb. 26, 2012.
15: UFC appearances in which Edgar has executed multiple takedowns.
He set a personal benchmark with 10 of them when he laid claim to a
unanimous verdict against
Hermes
Franca at UFC Fight Night 14 in July 2008.
1,799: Significant strikes landed by Edgar as a member of the UFC
roster, placing him second on the promotion’s all-time list. Only
Max
Holloway (2,848) has connected with more.
6: Countries in which Edgar has plied his MMA trade. He has gone
22-7-1 in the United States, 1-0 in the United Arab Emirates, 1-0
in the Philippines, 0-1 in Japan, 0-1 in Canada and 0-1 in South
Korea.
93: Rounds completed by Edgar as a professional mixed martial
artist. He has gone the distance on 20 different occasions and
carries a 13-6-1 record in those bouts.
148: Seconds needed for Edgar to punch out Mendes at “The Ultimate
Fighter 22” Finale on Dec. 11, 2015. Having occurred more than six
years ago, it remains the fastest finish of his 35-fight
career.
17: Consecutive calendar years in which Edgar has fought at least
once. He went 3-0 in 2005, 3-0 in 2006, 3-0 in 2007, 1-1 in 2008,
2-0 in 2009, 2-0 in 2010, 1-0-1 in 2011, 0-2 in 2012, 1-1 in 2013,
2-0 in 2014, 2-0 in 2015, 1-1 in 2016, 1-0 in 2017, 1-1 in 2018,
0-2 in 2019, 1-0 in 2020 and 0-2 in 2021.
.755: Cumulative winning percentage between the eight men—Henderson
(twice), Vera, Maynard, Holloway,
Jose Aldo
(twice),
Cory
Sandhagen,
Chan Sung
Jung and
Brian
Ortega—who have defeated Edgar. They boast a combined record of
160-50-2.