Category: MMA Rankings

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Aug. 27: Caio Borralho makes major move at middleweight

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC on ESPN 62, where Caio Borralho got a massive middleweight win.

Following UFC on ESPN 62 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas this past Saturday, the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings required updating.

That’s primarily because of the main event result, where middleweight [autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag] (17-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) raised his stock more so than anyone else on the card. The Brazilian further added to his undefeated octagon record with a unanimous decision win over former title challenger and perennial contender Jared Cannonier in the Fight of the Night.

Previously slotted at the No. 11 spoke, Borralho’s performance moves him all the way to the cusp of the top-five in the No. 6 spot at 185 pounds.

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

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Aug. 20: Dricus Du Plessis climbs P4P list

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC 305 in Perth, Australia.

Following UFC 305, the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings required updating.

In the main event at RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, middleweight champ [autotag]Dricus Du Plessis[/autotag] denied Israel Adesanya’s attempt at reclaiming gold. The fight was a competitive one, but Du Plessis found a path to a rear-naked choke submission in Round 4.

Already at No. 1 in the divisional rankings, Du Plessis moved up on the pound-for-pound list from No. 9 to No. 7.

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USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Aug. 13: Serghei Spivac moves up

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC on ESPN 61 in Las Vegas.

Following UFC on ESPN 61, the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings required updating.

In the main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Serghei Spivac got one back on Marcin Tybura, winning their heavyweight remach by submission in the first round.

Entering the week at No. 9 in the heavyweight rankings, Spivac switches spots with Tybura, who came in at No. 8.

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USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, July 30: Belal Muhammad, Tom Aspinall take No. 1 spots

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC 304 in Manchester, England.

Following UFC 304, the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings required updating.

In the main event at the Co-op Live in Manchester, England, [autotag]Belal Muhammad[/autotag] had his crowning moment by dominating [autotag]Leon Edwards[/autotag] to become the new UFC welterweight champion.

Entering the week at No. 3 in the welterweight rankings, Muhammad’s title win places him at No. 1, knocking Edwards down one spot.

The co-feature produced an unprecedented move in the heavyweight rankings.

[autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] successfully defended his interim heavyweight title by knocking out [autotag]Curtis Blaydes[/autotag] in just one minute. Aspinall is an active and dominant force in the heavyweight division, and he has overtaken [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] for the No. 1 spot.

Jones, the current champion, has not fought in over 16 months, and his next fight in the works will not be a title unification bout. Aspinall has appeared three times since Jones’ heavyweight debut and has finished each opponent in the first round.

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

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, July 23: Virna Jandiroba cracks top 5

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC on ESPN 60 in Las Vegas.

Following UFC on ESPN 60, the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings required updating.

In the main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Virna Jandiroba submitted former title challenger Amanda Lemos to extend her winning streak to four. Jandiroba has made quite the argument to be next up for a strawweight title shot.

Entering the week at No. 8, Jandiroba vaults into the top 5, landing at No. 3, shaking up the rankings behind her as well.

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USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, July 16: Rose Namajunas climbs at flyweight

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC on ESPN 59 in Denver.

Following UFC on ESPN 59, the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings required updating.

In the main event at Ball Arena in Denver, former strawweight champion [autotag]Rose Namajunas[/autotag] handed Tracy Cortez her first loss in the UFC. The result marked the second win for Namajunas in the flyweight division after making the switch last September.

Entering the week at No. 13, Namajunas takes Cortez’s place at No. 8, with Cortez falling one spot to No. 9.

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USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, July 2: Alex Pereira overtakes Jon Jones for P4P No. 1

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC 303 in Las Vegas, in which a new P4P king has been crowned.

Following UFC 303 and 2024 PFL 6, the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings required updating.

A massive shakeup has occurred in the MMA Junkie pound-for-pound rankings following the UFC’s pay-per-view event headlining International Fight Week in Las Vegas.

Alex Pereira knocked out Jiri Prochazka in Round 2 of their light heavyweight title rematch, and as a result, shook up the top of the P4P rankings.

Jon Jones returned to claim the No. 1 P4P spot after winning the heavyweight title in his divisional debut at UFC 285, and held it until now. Due to his incredible performances and high activity, Pereira, a former middleweight champion, swoops in to take the throne after winning his fourth straight fight, all of which were against former light heavyweight champions.

Due to inactivity, Jones falls to No. 3 behind lightweight champion Islam Makhachev.

Also in action at the pay-per-view event, [autotag]Ian Machado Garry[/autotag] and [autotag]Macy Chiasson[/autotag] made waves in the rankings with their victorious outings.

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USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, June 25: Volkan Oezdemir, Alexander Volkov move up

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC on ABC 6, Bellator Champions Series: Dublin, and 2024 PFL 5.

Following UFC on ABC 6, Bellator Champions Series: Dublin, and 2024 PFL 5, the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings required updating.

In the 2024 PFL 5 main event, Mads Burnell picked up a big win over Clay Collard by unanimous decision, but it wasn’t enough to get him to the post season to compete for $1 million.

In the BCS: Dublin headliner, a new welterweight champion was crowned, as [autotag]Ramazan Kuramagomedov[/autotag] defeated Jason Jackson unanimously on the scorecards.

At UFC on ABC 6 in Saudi Arabia, [autotag]Robert Whittaker[/autotag] torched short-notice opponent Ikram Aliskerov, but two other fights generated big moves: [autotag]Alexander Volkov[/autotag]’s decision win over Srgei Pavlovich and [autotag]Volkan Oezdemir[/autotag]’s brutal knockout of Johnny Walker.

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USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, June 18: Undefeated Tatsuro Taira takes a leap

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following 2024 PFL 4 and UFC on ESPN 58.

Following UFC on ESPN 58 and 2024 PFL 4, the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings required updating.

The PFL event in Uncasville, Conn., saw the rapidly rising [autotag]Dakota Ditcheva[/autotag] stop her opponent, Chelsea Hackett, in the first round. The undefeated flyweight is making waves and enters the honorable mentions for the first time.

In the feature bout of the UFC event in Las Vegas, undefeated flyweight [autotag]Tatsuro Taira[/autotag] picked up the biggest win of his career thus far in a TKO over Alex Perez. Entering the week at No. 11, the 24-year-old from Japan leaps up to No. 7, placing him in the mix with former champions and title contenders.

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USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, June 11: Nassourdine Imavov makes big leap

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC on ESPN 57 in Louisville.

Following UFC on ESPN 57, the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings required updating.

In the feature bout of the UFC event at the KFC Yum! Center in Lousiville, Ky., [autotag]Nassourdine Imavov[/autotag] outstruck former title challenger Jared Cannonier to pick up a TKO victory. Although the stoppage was controversial, Imavov had Cannonier wobbly and in survival mode. Imavov picks up his sixth UFC victory, and climbs from No. 12 to No. 6 in the middleweight division.

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