The featherweight division, as defined by the unified rules of MMA via the Association of Boxing Commissions , constitutes of fighters who are between 135 and 145 pounds. In Japan, organizations like Shooto were among the first to form a weight class for 145 pounders in the 1990s, which they classified as lightweight. The division not only gave a platform to smaller Japanese fighters but also featured international crossovers that helped build the names of Brazilians like Alexandre Franca Nogueira. In North America, organizations like the WEC and King of the Cage were doing their part to help pioneer these lighter divisions in the early 2000s – though KOTC technically classified their featherweights as bantamweights due to their division structures. The WEC, in particular, found some real success with its featherweight division thanks in large part to poster boy Urijah Faber, who would go on to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.
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Top 5 featherweight wars in MMA history, ranked – MMA Junkie