Five UFC Fighters With Great Social Media Presence
In the ever-changing world of the Internet, one certainty will always exist: To be able to get ahead in whatever it is you’re doing, you’ve got to have a consistent social media footprint.
Whether it’s a locally-owned pizzeria, a chain restaurant or even a professional athlete, engagement is most critical toward your survival.
In the wild world of combat sports, social media engagement is of the utmost importance. UFC fighters both past and present know this firsthand.
Engaging UFC Follows on Social Media
Before you log on to your social media application of choice, we’ll take some time out today to give you some suggestions as to who you should be following or subscribed to on social networking. There’s no time like the present, so let’s not waste another moment and get started.
Five UFC Fighters With Great Social Media Presence: Chael “The American Gangster” Sonnen
Although Chael Sonnen has been retired from the sport of MMA for almost six years now, the one nicknamed “The American Gangster” is still very much in the game when it comes to following the sport. Sonnen, who posted a record of 30-18-1 in his professional career, regularly posts vlogs to YouTube from his Bad Guy Inc. studios.
In them, he discusses upcoming bouts as they’re announced, analyzes fights after they happen, and occasionally shares interesting stories from behind the scenes of his day-to-day life.
One such video uploaded to his YouTube channel in the spring of 2022 features Sonnen’s recollection of an encounter with a door-to-door salesman and his efforts to sell a magazine subscription to the Sonnen family.
Here’s a story about a Door-to-Door magazine salesman…
Numerically speaking, Chael Sonnen’s YouTube channel currently has north of 1.3 million subscribers. His Instagram feed is followed by 963,000 users, while Sonnen himself doesn’t follow anybody.
Five UFC Fighters With Great Social Media Presence: Jon “Bones” Jones
Moving along to the UFC’s active roster now, we go to the heavyweight division where we’ll find the class’ current champion, Jon Jones (28-1, 1 NC MMA, 22-1, 1 NC UFC.) Back in November, the one nicknamed “Bones” sent Stipe Miocic (20-5 MMA, 14-5 UFC) into retirement by way of knockout with a spinning back kick followed by punches during the third round of a scheduled five. Jones has always drawn crowds as much for the devastation he leaves in the ring as for the mma betting circles who circle the wagon at each fight. In fact, the perennial favorite in every match fights, bettors seemingly always flock to the big man.
With the win at Madison Square Garden in New York City late last fall, he claimed the title of “Baddest Man on the Planet” for the second time in a unification battle at 265 lbs. In the aftermath of the title fight victory, he’s spent time on Instagram raising awareness for those affected by devastating wildfires on the West Coast this past January and posting a video from a University of Minnesota wrestling match, where he watched Gable Steveson in action.
Statistically, Jones’ Instagram page is followed by about 9.5 million users. He’s currently following north of 2,300 accounts.
Five UFC Fighters With Great Social Media Presence: Colby “Chaos” Covington
Love Colby Covington or hate him, there’s one truth: His nickname of “Chaos” most certainly fits him to a T. Not a day goes by where he isn’t on social media causing a ruckus or making outrageous claims.
An outspoken fighter who leans to the right politically, Covington currently sports a 17-5 record in MMA, but he’s hit a rough patch of late. While no word has been made as of yet about when he might be making a return to the cage, he’s on a two-fight losing streak, having had his last fight versus Joaquin Buckley stopped by the cageside physician due to a cut above his eye.
Covington’s Instagram feed is followed by about 1 million users, while he follows 609 accounts himself.
Five UFC Fighters With Great Social Media Presence: “The Notorious” Conor McGregor
While the status of his MMA career is very much in question as of this writing, Conor McGregor, nicknamed “The Notorious”, will forever be known as one of the best to ever do it. Over the past several years, McGregor’s tenure as a fighter has been in limbo.
He still hasn’t fought since July of 2021, when he saw his fight vs. Dustin Poirier end after the opening round due to suffering a broken ankle in the contest. McGregor’s return fight vs. Michael Chandler last June never happened because of a broken toe.
Despite his inactivity in the Octagon, McGregor posts to Instagram on a daily basis, something that shows in the numbers.
McGregor’s Instagram page is followed by almost 47 million users, while he follows just shy of 3,000 accounts.
Five UFC Fighters With Great Social Media Presence: Alex “Poatan” Pereira
Finally, we shift to the light heavyweight division. Nobody denies the fact that Alex Pereira is a tremendous fighter. Nicknamed “Poatan,” he heads into his March 8 fight against Magomed Ankalaev for the championship having posted a 12-2 record in his 14 career fights.
Around all the excitement he generates in the famed Octagon, he’s active on social media.
His Instagram is followed by roughly 6.5 million people, while his YouTube page boasts 584,000 subscribers.
Final Thoughts
Who are your favorite social media follows from the UFC? Is there anyone we missed? Let us know in the comments.