Category: MMA Rankings

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.

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

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.

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Dec. 12: Song Yadong, Khalil Rountree move upward

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC Fight Night 233 in Las Vegas.

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

UFC Fight Night 233 took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, and was headlined by a bantamweight bout between [autotag]Song Yadong[/autotag] and Chris Gutierrez.

Song, who entered the week at No. 9 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie bantamweight rankings, soundly defeated Gutierrez by unanimous decision. As a result, Song’s performance was strong enough to climb one spot in this week’s update, settling in at No. 8 behind former champion Petr Yan.

Also making waves at the event was light heavyweight [autotag]Khalil Rountree[/autotag] in a bout against short-notice opponent Anthony Smith. Rountree badly rocked and dropped the former title challenger in Round 3, leading to a walk-off TKO stoppage. Rountree entered the week at No. 12, but climbed up one spot for the easy swap with Smith, who held No. 11.

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

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Dec. 5: Arman Tsarukyan enters top 5

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC on ESPN 52 in Austin, Texas.

The UFC’s latest road trip to Austin, Texas produced a few changes in this week’s rankings update.

In the main event of UFC on ESPN 52, [autotag]Arman Tsarukyan[/autotag] torched Beneil Dariush in just 64 seconds with a furious combination. He now has his sights set on a title shot, and firmly inserted his name into the mix. Entering the week at No. 12 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie lightweight rankings, Tsarukyan claims Dariush’s old spot at No. 5 in this week’s update.

Former flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo was also in action at the event, making his bantamweight debut against Rob Font. After a clear decision victory, Figueiredo emerges in the bantamweight rankings at No. 12, with Font dropping from No. 9 to No. 13.

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

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Nov. 28: The impact of 2023 PFL Championship on multiple divisions

The 2023 PFL Championship was the lone notable MMA event this past week, but it offered some relevant results across multiple divisions.

The combat sports slate was relatively thin over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, which allowed the 2023 PFL Championship event to become the centerpiece of the MMA world.

After a season’s worth of build to the card in Washington, D.C., six new $1 million champions were crowned at heavyweight, light heavyweight, welterweight, lightweight, featherweight and women’s featherweight. How did those ultimately impact the global standings in those particular weight classes?

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

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Nov. 21: Mixing up the top 5 at bantamweight

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC Fight Night 232 and Bellator 301.

Last weekend’s Bellator and UFC events were the source of a number of changes in this week’s rankings update.

The biggest move of the week came from now-undisputed Bellator bantamweight champion [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag], who defeated Sergio Pettis in the Bealltor 301 co-main event. Mix submitted Pettis in the second round to unify his interim title. This week, Mix jumps from No. 10 to No. 4, entering the top 5 of the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie bantamweight rankings for the first time.

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