Category: MMA Rankings

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, April 2: Manon Fiorot climbs closer to top

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC on ESPN 54 in New Jersey.

Following UFC on ESPN 54, the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings required updating.

Making her case for a title fight even stronger, [autotag]Manon Fiorot[/autotag] shut out Erin Blanchfield in the UFC on ESPN 54 main event in front of a sold-out crowd at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J. It was a dominant performance for Fiorot, who kept her UFC unbeaten record alive, while handing Blanchfield her first loss in the promotion. Entering the week at No. 5 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie women’s flyweight rankings, Fiorot jumps two spots to claim No. 3.

Also making a splash this week is [autotag]Joaquin Buckley[/autotag], who enters the welterweight rankings after stopping Vicente Luque with heavy ground and pound. Buckley has won three straight since dropping down from middleweight, and settles in at the No. 14 spot, while Luque falls to the honorable mentions.

Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 298.

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, March 26: Corey Anderson rises with title win

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following Bellator Champions Series: Belfast and UFC on ESPN 53 in Las Vegas.

Following UFC on ESPN 53 and Bellator Champions Series: Belfast, the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings required updating.

At the Bellator event in Northern Ireland, [autotag]Corey Anderson[/autotag] defeated Karl Moore by unanimous decision to claim the vacant light heavyweight title. Along with Anderson’s new hardware comes a new spot in the rankings, as he climbs from No. 6 to No. 5.

In the main event of UFC on ESPN 53, former UFC strawweight champion [autotag]Rose Namajunas[/autotag] won a flyweight fight over Amanda Ribas by unanimous decision. Entering the bout unranked at 125 pounds, Namajunas now has a number next to her name, settling in at No. 12.

Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 298.

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, March 19: Marcin Tybura makes a move at heavyweight

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC Fight Night 239 in Las Vegas.

After a big win in the main event at UFC Fight Night 239, [autotag]Marcin Tybura[/autotag] is making moves at heavyweight.

Tybura (25-8 MMA, 12-7 UFC) took out Tai Tuivasa (15-7 MMA, 8-7 UFC) with a first-round submission in Las Vegas. He’s won eight of his past 10 fights with setbacks against current interim champion Tom Aspinall and former Bellator champ Alexander Volkov, and he moves to No. 7 on the charts. Tuivasa took a slight tumble and is on a four-fight skid, but the losses have been to some of the elite in the division.

Also at the event, Macy Chiasson (10-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) submitted Pannie Kianzad (17-8 MMA, 5-5 UFC) in the first round and made a big leap at women’s bantamweight.

Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings above.

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, March 5: Muhammad Mokaev, Umar Nurmagomedov climb

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC Fight Night 238 in Las Vegas.

UFC Fight Night 238 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas was the sole source of rankings moves in this week’s update.

First, in the bantamweight division, [autotag]Umar Nurmagomedov[/autotag] turned in a dominant performance against Bekzat Almakhan after getting clipped early, still earning multiple 10-8 scores on the official cards. Entering the week at No. 15, Nurmagomedov jumps up to No. 12.

In the next fight, [autotag]Muhammad Mokaev[/autotag] picked up a key win in the flyweight division, earning a unanimous nod over Alex Perez. Mokaev entered the week at #6, and exits one spot higher, breaking into the top 5.

Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 298.

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Feb. 20: Ilia Topuria new No. 1 at featherweight

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC 298 in Anaheim, Calif.

UFC 298 in Anaheim, Calif. featured a number of ranked fighters picking up key wins, including a title change in the featherweight division.

[autotag]Ilia Topuria[/autotag] became champion by knocking out Alexander Volkanovski in Round 2, keeping his undefeated record intact to begin his featherweight championship reign. Entering the week at No. 4 in the division, Topuria rises to No. 1 status, knocking Volkanovski off the throne to the No. 2 slot.

The moves didn’t stop there for Spain’s newest superstar. Topuria also rises from unranked to take No. 4 in the men’s pound-for-pound rankings.

Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 298.

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Feb. 13: ‘Robocop’ Gregory Rodrigues making noise at middleweight

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC 297 in Toronto.

The UFC’s Apex events typically do not involve a lot of ranked fighters these days, but there were a few movements after last week’s event.

UFC Fight Night 236 was headlined by a middleweight bout between Jack Hermansson and Joe Pyfer. Entering the event, Hermansson held the No. 15 spot, and remains in place after picking up a win over the unranked Pyfer.

On the undercard, [autotag]Gregory Rodrigues[/autotag] turned in an impressive performance, stopping Brad Tavares in the third round. “Robocop” takes an honorable mention slot in this week’s update.

At strawweight, [autotag]Loma Lookboonmee[/autotag] defeated Bruna Brasil, rising up from the honorable mentions to claim the No. 15 spot.

Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 297.

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Feb. 6: Nassourdine Imavov makes gain at 185 pounds

Nassourdine Imavov is closing in on a top 10 ranking at middleweight after his main event win at UFC Fight Night 235.

The combat sports slate was relatively thin on the first weekend of February, which allowed UFC Fight Night 235 to capture the attention of the MMA world.

A handful of fights on the card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas impacted their respective divisions, but none more so than the main event, which saw [autotag]Nassourdine Imavov[/autotag] improve his stock at middleweight with a majority decision victory over Roman Dolidze.

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USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Jan. 23: Dricus Du Plessis, Raquel Pennington take No. 1 spots

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC 297 in Toronto.

The UFC’s first pay-per-view event of 2024 in Toronto produced a few moves in this week’s rankings update.

At UFC 297, two new champions were crowned at Scotiabank Arena, as Dricus Du Plessis and Raquel Pennington claimed gold.

In the main event, Du Plessis became the middleweight champion by defeating Sean Strickland in a close split decision. Entering the event as the No. 4 middleweight in the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie divisional rankings, Du Plessis jumps up to No. 1 after winning the title. He also takes the No. 8 spot in the men’s pound-for-pound rankings.

In the co-feature, Pennington became the women’s bantamweight champion by winning a unanimous decision against Mayra Bueno Silva. Pennington climbs one spot to take No. 1 as the new champ. She also makes a move on the women’s P4P list, settling in at No. 7.

Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 297.

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Jan. 16: Mario Bautista makes notable climb

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC Fight Night 234 in Las Vegas.

The first UFC event of 2024 is in the books and while there weren’t a ton of contender fights featured, the card proved impactful for one bantamweight.

At UFC Fight Night 234, [autotag]Mario Bautista[/autotag] defeated Ricky Simon by unanimous decision for arguably the biggest victory of his professional career. In doing so, he elevates to No. 11 in the USA Today Sports/MMA Junkie bantamweight rankings.

UFC flyweight [autotag]Joshua Van[/autotag] also enters the USA Today Sports/MMA Junkie flyweight rankings rankings as an honorable mention for the first time, thanks to his impressive TKO victory over LFA flyweight champion Felipe Bunes in the event’s curtain-jerker.

Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings above.

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Dec. 19: Champ Leon Edwards maintains No. 1

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC 296 in Las Vegas.

The UFC’s final event of 2023 in Las Vegas produced a few moves in this week’s rankings update.

At UFC 296, two champions put their titles on the line, and walked out of T-Mobile Arena with the belts around their waist.

In the main event, Leon Edwards successfully defended the welterweight title against Colby Covington in a forgetful unanimous decision. The champion pressed the action for the majority of the bout, but the challenger never got going until it was too late. Edwards maintains the No. 1 spot in the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie welterweight rankings, while Covington falls just one spot to No. 5.

Flyweight champ Alexandre Pantoja defended for the first time against Brandon Royval, winning by unanimous decision. Pantoja maintains his position at No. 2 behind Demetrious Johnson, while Royval tumbles to No. 8.

Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings above.