title: Best MMA Fighter ESPY Award
text: # Best MMA Fighter ESPY Award
  
  The Best MMA Fighter ESPY Award is an annual award honoring the achievements of an individual from the world of mixed martial arts. The Best MMA Fighter ESPY Award trophy is presented to the mixed martial arts fighter adjudged to be the best in a given calendar year at the annual ESPY Awards ceremony. It was first awarded as part of the ESPY Awards in 2019, succeeding the Best Fighter ESPY Award, which encompassed both boxers and MMA fighters.
  
  The inaugural winner of the Best MMA Fighter ESPY Award was American UFC Heavyweight Champion Daniel Cormier, who won and defended the championship in 2018.
  
  ## Winners and nominees
  
  Best Fighter ESPY Award winners and nominees :
  
  | Year | Image | Winner | Nationality | Sanctioning body or league | Weight class | Nominees | Ref. |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | 2019 | | Daniel Cormier | USA | Ultimate Fighting Championship | Heavyweight | Israel Adesanya Henry Cejudo Amanda Nunes | |
  | 2020 | Not awarded due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Not awarded due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Not awarded due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Not awarded due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Not awarded due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Not awarded due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Not awarded due to the COVID-19 pandemic |
  | 2021 | | Khabib Nurmagomedov | RUS | Ultimate Fighting Championship | Lightweight | Amanda Nunes Rose Namajunas Francis Ngannou | |
  | 2022 | | Charles Oliveira | BRA | Ultimate Fighting Championship | Lightweight | Kayla Harrison Kamaru Usman Alexander Volkanovski | |
  | 2023 | | Jon Jones | USA | Ultimate Fighting Championship | Heavyweight | Leon Edwards Amanda Nunes Islam Makhachev | |
  