In deciding where to rank fighters, I look at head-to-head matchups first, then results over the last three years, giving more credence to recent bouts. The level of competition is always considered, even outside the UFC, activity is important and MMA math plays a small part in the process.
MEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND
|
dB rankings 1. Kamaru Usman (C) 2. Francis Ngannou (C) 3. Israel Adesanya (C) +1 4. Alexander Volkanovski (C) -1 5. Max Holloway 6. Charles Oliveira (C) 7. Petr Yan (IC) 8. Aljamain Sterling (C) 9. Deiveson Figueiredo (C) 10. Brandon Moreno 11. Glover Teixeira (C) 12. Robert Whittaker 13. Stipe Miocic +1 14. Ciryl Gane -1 15. Colby Covington |
UFC rankings 1. Kamaru Usman (C) 2. Israel Adesanya (C) +1 3. Alexander Volkanovski (C) -1 4. Francis Ngannou (C) 5. Charles Oliveira (C) 6. Max Holloway +1 7. Jon Jones -1 8. Dustin Poirier 9. Petr Yan (IC) 10. Glover Teixeira (C) +1 11. Stipe Miocic -1 12. Deiveson Figueiredo (C) 13. Brandon Moreno 14. Robert Whittaker 15. Jan Blachowicz |
Out of dB/UFC rankings: None
X: Slow start to the first two months of the year as far as ranked fighters in action, which accounts for why there is little movement in many weight classes. Interesting that UFC has Miocic ranked in P4P but not Gane, yet Miocic is ranked behind Gane at HW. UFC has Yan ranked but not Sterling, which is odd, and Jones has been out of action for two years this month. My top three in P4P are all of UFC’s native African champions, while the only belt holder from the United States happens to be Sterling.
|
dB rankings C: Deiveson Figueiredo 1. Brandon Moreno 2. Askar Askarov 3. Alexandre Pantoja 4. Brandon Royval 5. Kai Kara France 6. Alex Perez 7. David Dvorak 8. Rogerio Bontorin 9. Matheus Nicolau 10. Manel Kape 11. Tim Elliott 12. Matt Schnell 13. Amir Albazi 14. Su Mudaerji 15. Tagir Ulanbekov |
UFC rankings C: Deiveson Figueiredo 1. Brandon Moreno 2. Askar Askarov 3. Alexandre Pantoja 4. Alex Perez 4. Brandon Royval +1 6. Kai Kara France 7. Rogerio Bontorin 8. Matheus Nicolau 9. Matt Schnell 10. David Dvorak 11. Amir Albazi 12. Su Mudaerji +1 13. Tim Elliott -1 14. Manel Kape 15. Tagir Ulanbekov |
Out of dB/UFC rankings: None
X: The winner of the upcoming Askarov vs. France tilt will have a legitimate claim to being the No. 1 contender at FW, but Figueiredo-Moreno 4 feels inevitable.
BANTAMWEIGHT
|
dB rankings C: Aljamain Sterling IC: Petr Yan 2. T.J. Dillashaw 3. Cory Sandhagen 4. Jose Aldo 5. Rob Font 6. Merab Dvalishvili 7. Marlon Vera 8. Dominick Cruz 9. Marlon Moraes 10. Frankie Edgar 11. Pedro Munhoz 12. Ricky Simon 13. Sean O’Malley -1 14. Jack Shore -1 15. Yadong Song -2 |
UFC rankings C: Aljamain Sterling IC: Petr Yan 2. T.J. Dillashaw 3. Jose Aldo 4. Cory Sandhagen 5. Rob Font 6. Merab Dvalishvili 7. Dominick Cruz 8. Marlon Vera 9. Pedro Munhoz 10. Marlon Moraes 11. Frankie Edgar 12. Sean O’Malley 13. Ricky Simon 14. Yadong Song 15. Raphael Assuncao |
Out of dB/UFC rankings: None
X: If Sterling and Yan unite the belts as expected in April, former champ and noted drug cheat Dillashaw will be waiting, with perhaps the winner of a potential Aldo vs. Cruz legacy fight up afterward. By 2023, younger fighters like O’Malley will be pushing for contention.
|
dB rankings C: Alexander Volkanovski 1. Max Holloway 2. Brian Ortega 3. Yair Rodriguez 4. Chan Sung Jung 5. Calvin Kattar 6. Arnold Allen 7. Gigi Chikadze 8. Josh Emmett 9. Dan Ige 10. Edson Barboza 11. Sodiq Yusuff 12. Bryce Mitchell 13. Movsar Evloev 14. Shane Burgos 15. Ilia Topuria |
UFC rankings C: Alexander Volkanovski 1. Max Holloway 2. Brian Ortega 3. Yair Rodriguez 4. Chan Sung Jung 5. Calvin Kattar 6. Josh Emmett 7. Arnold Allen 8. Giga Chikadze 9. Dan Ige 10. Edson Barboza 11. Bryce Mitchell 12. Sodiq Yusuff 13. Movsar Evloev 14. Shane Burgos 15. Alex Caceres |
Out of dB/UFC rankings: None
X: Allen vs. Hooker, coming back down from LW, should produce a top five contender in March. Sorry to see Holloway get hurt and delay his trilogy with Volkanovski, but I’m never sorry to see the Korean Zombie fight with everything on the line.
LIGHTWEIGHT
|
dB rankings C: Charles Oliveira 1. Dustin Poirier 2. Justin Gaethje 3. Islam Makhachev 4. Beneil Dariush 5. Michael Chandler 6. Tony Ferguson 7. Rafael dos Anjos 8. Dan Hooker 9. Conor McGregor 10. Arman Tsarukyan +1 11. Gregor Gillespie -1 12. Rafael Fiziev 13. Mateusz Gamrot 14. Damir Ismagulov 15. Brad Riddell |
UFC rankings C: Charles Oliveira 1. Justin Gaethje 2. Dustin Poirier 3. Islam Makhachev +1 4. Beneil Dariush -1 5. Michael Chandler 6. Rafael dos Anjos 7. Tony Ferguson 8. Dan Hooker 9. Conor McGregor 9. Gregor Gillespie +1 11. Rafael Fiziev 12. Arman Tsarukyan +1 13. Mateusz Gamrot -1 14. Brad Riddell 15. Diego Ferreira |
Out of dB/UFC rankings: None
X: Oliveira vs. Gaethje appears to be next for the LW championship, with Makhachev up next after his dismantling of late replacement Bobby Green; the injured Dariush lost the most in that deal. After crushing Joel Alvarez, Tsarukyan is ready for prime time. However, there are far too many fighters at LW who only want to take on those ranked above them, contributing to Gillespie and others sitting on the sidelines for far too long instead of racking up wins to build momentum toward a title shot.
WELTERWEIGHT
|
dB rankings C: Kamaru Usman 1. Colby Covington 2. Leon Edwards +1 3. Gilbert Burns -1 4. Vicente Luque 5. Belal Muhammad 6. Stephen Thompson 7. Jorge Masvidal 8. Sean Brady 9. Michael Chiesa 10. Neil Magny 11. Geoff Neal 12. Khamzat Chimaev 13. Li Jingliang 14. Santiago Ponzinibbio 15. Shavkat Rakmonov * |
UFC rankings C: Kamaru Usman 1. Colby Covington 2. Gilbert Burns 3. Leon Edwards 4. Vicente Luque 5. Belal Muhammad 6. Jorge Masvidal 7. Stephen Thompson 8. Neil Magny 9. Sean Brady 10. Michael Chiesa 11. Khamzat Chimaev 12. Geoff Neal 13. Li Jingliang 14. Santiago Ponzinibbio 15. Shavkat Rakmonov * |
* New entrant into rankings
Out of dB/UFC rankings: Muslim Salikhov
X: While I wrote last month that the real treat this year at WW will be watching Chimaev grow, I’m not sure Rakmonov isn’t the better, more well-rounded prospect. And here’s hoping we never have to hear Covington and Masvidal’s political views again after this weekend’s blood feud is finally settled.
|
dB rankings C: Israel Adesanya 1. Robert Whittaker 2. Jared Cannonier +3 3. Marvin Vettori 4. Paulo Costa 5. Sean Strickland +2 6. Derek Brunson -4 7. Jack Hermansson 8. Uriah Hall 9. Brad Tavares 10. Chris Weidman 11. Darren Till 12. Kelvin Gastelum 13. Andre Muniz 14. Nassourdine Imavov 15. Bruno Silva |
UFC rankings C: Israel Adesanya 1. Robert Whittaker 2. Jared Cannonier +1 3. Marvin Vettori -1 4. Derek Brunson 4. Paulo Costa +1 4. Sean Strickland +3 7. Jack Hermansson -1 8. Darren Till 9. Uriah Hall 10. Kelvin Gastelum 11. Brad Taveras 12. Nassourdine Imavov 13. Andre Muniz 14. Kevin Holland 15. Chris Weidman |
Out of dB/UFC rankings: None
X: Adesanya took out Whittaker while primarily staying in cruise control, making the fight closer than it should have been. Cannonier is the new No. 1 contender, and his stand-up style would seem to play nicely into the champ’s fast hands. With one more win, we may even get to see Strickland for the belt by the end of the year, which would make for an epic Countdown show heavy with trailer park lingo.
|
dB rankings C: Glover Teixeira 1. Jan Blachowicz 2. Jiri Prochazka 3. Magomed Ankalaev 4. Aleksandar Rakic 5. Thiago Santos 6. Anthony Smith 7. Dominick Reyes 8. Volkan Oezdemir 9. Paul Craig +5 10. Jamahal Hill +2 11. Nikita Krylov -2 12. Johnny Walker -2 13. Ryan Spann -2 14. Jimmy Crute -1 15. Dustin Jacoby |
UFC rankings C: Glover Teixeira 1. Jan Blachowicz 2. Jiri Prochazka 3. Aleksandar Rakic 4. Anthony Smith 5. Thiago Santos 6. Magomed Ankalaev 7. Dominick Reyes 8. Volkan Oezdemir 9. Nikita Krylov 10. Jamahal Hill +2 11. Paul Craig 12. Johnny Walker -2 13. Ryan Spann 14. Jimmy Crute 15. Ion Cutelaba |
Out of dB/UFC rankings: None
X: Teixeira vs. Prochazka in June sounds like an MMA culture clash, and I’m all in for it, while Ankalaev is likely only a win away from shouting, “Next!” Hill finally showed a flash of greatness in flatlining Walker, and Craig – who almost ripped Hill’s arm off a year ago – also gets some shine as a result.
|
dB rankings C: Francis Ngannou 1. Stipe Miocic +1 2. Ciryl Gane -1 3. Tai Tuivasa +11 4. Derrick Lewis -1 5. Curtis Blaydes -1 6. Alexander Volkov -1 7. Jairzinho Rozenstruik -1 8. Tom Aspinall -1 9. Alexandr Romanov -1 10. Chris Daukaus -1 11. Shamil Abdurakhimov -1 12. Marcin Tybura -1 13. Walt Harris -1 14. Serghei Spivac -1 15. Augusto Sakai |
UFC rankings C: Francis Ngannou 1. Ciryl Gane 2. Stipe Miocic 3. Tai Tuivasa +8 4. Curtis Blaydes 5. Derrick Lewis -2 6. Alexander Volkov -1 7. Jairzinho Rozenstruik -1 8. Chris Daukaus -1 9. Marcin Tybura 10. Shamil Abdurakhimov -2 11. Tom Aspinall -1 12. Augusto Sakai 13. Blagoy Ivanov 14. Walt Harris 15. Sergei Pavlovich |
Out of dB/UFC rankings: None
X: Tuivasa knocking out Lewis has thrown HW into turmoil, putting the Australian shoey enthusiast just a win or so away from a chance at the belt. Meanwhile, Ngannou’s knee injury has raised the specter of yet another interim title shot, with Miocic vs. Jones the best candidates to meet in the Octagon.
|
dB rankings 1. Valentina Shevchenko 2. Julianna Pena 3. Amanda Nunes 4. Rose Namajunas 5. Zhang Weili 6. Jessica Andrade 7. Carla Esparza 8. Marina Rodriquez 9. Holly Holm 10. Katlyn Chookagian 11. Lauren Murphy 12. Jennifer Maia 13. Raquel Pennington 14. Irene Aldana 15. Norma Dumont |
UFC rankings 1. Valentina Shevchenko 2. Amanda Nunes 3. Rose Namajunas 4. Julianna Pena 5. Zhang Weili 6. Jessica Andrade 7. Holly Holm 8. Carla Esparza 9. Marina Rodriquez 10. Katlyn Chookagian 11. Yan Xiaonan 12. Irene Aldana 13. Lauren Murphy 14. Mackenzie Dern 15. Aspen Ladd |
Out of dB/UFC rankings: None
X: Pena’s rematch with Nunes will be the hottest women’s bout of 2022, especially after they coach The Ultimate Fighter against each other. There are few non-rematches available at the top of each division, so some younger fighters need to climb the contention ladder faster to make things more interesting.
|
dB rankings C: Rose Namajunas 1. Zhang Weili 2. Carla Esparza 3. Marina Rodriguez 4. Amanda Ribas 5. Mackenzie Dern 6. Yan Xiaonan 7. Nina Nunes 8. Tecia Torres 9. Michelle Waterson 10. Amanda Lemos 11. Virna Jandiroba 12. Angela Hill 13. Ariane Carnelossi 14. Luana Pinheiro 15. Brianna Van Buren |
UFC rankings C: Rose Namajunas 1. Zhang Weili 2. Carla Esparza 3. Marina Rodriguez 4. Yan Xiaonan 5. Mackenzie Dern 6. Nina Nunes 7. Tecia Torres 8. Michelle Waterson 9. Amanda Ribas 10. Amanda Lemos 11. Virna Jandiroba 12. Angela Hill 13. Jessica Penne 14. Brianna Van Buren 15. Luana Pinheiro |
X: Namajunas-Esparza 2 is deservedly the next title fight, but someone needs to make a case to become the No. 1 contender after that, with Rodriguez the best candidate if she can take out Xiaonan. God only knows when we’ll see Jedrzejczyk fight again, but a rematch with Weili makes perfect sense
|
dB rankings C: Valentina Shevchenko 1. Jessica Andrade 2. Katlyn Chookagian 3. Lauren Murphy 4. Jennifer Maia 5. Talia Santos 6. Joanne Wood 7. Jessica Eye 8. Viviane Araujo 9. Alexa Grasso 10. Casey O’Neill +3 11. Andrea Lee 12. Cynthia Calvillo 13. Tracy Cortez * 14. Erin Blanchfield 15. Manon Fiorot * |
UFC rankings C: Valentina Shevchenko 1. Jessica Andrade 2. Katlyn Chookagian 3. Lauren Murphy 4. Jennifer Maia 5. Talia Santos 6. Viviane Araujo 7. Joanne Wood 8. Andrea Lee 9. Jessica Eye 10. Cynthia Calvillo 11. Alexa Grasso 12. Casey O’Neill +3 13. Manon Fiorot +1 14. Maycee Barber -1 15. Erin Blanchfield * |
* New entrant into rankings
Out of dB rankings: Roxanne Modafferi (retired), Melissa Gatto
Out of UFC rankings: Roxanne Modafferi (retired)
X: Cortez is eligible again, with her prior win over Blanchfield enough to get her back in my rankings. O’Neill’s solid win over Modafferi provides hope that Shevchenko will get new opponents soon. Whether they’re up to the challenge is an entirely different story, as Shevchenko is the Tom Brady of MMA. Perhaps Tate’s upcoming move to WFW will be just the inspiration she needs to become a challenger.
|
dB rankings C: Julianna Pena 1. Amanda Nunes 2. Holly Holm 3. Raquel Pennington 4. Irene Aldana 5. Aspen Ladd 6. Yana Kunitskaya 7. Ketlen Vieira 8. Miesha Tate 9. Sara McMann 10. Lina Lansberg 11. Macy Chiasson 12. Julia Avila 13. Pannie Kianzad 14. Karol Rosa 15. Josiane Nunes * |
UFC rankings C: Julianna Pena 1. Amanda Nunes 2. Holly Holm 3. Irene Aldana 4. Aspen Ladd 5. Ketlen Vieira 6. Yana Kunitskaya 7. Raquel Pennington 8. Miesha Tate 9. Sara McMann 10. Macy Chiasson 11. Lina Lansberg 12. Karol Rosa +1 13. Pannie Kianzad -1 14. Julia Avila 15. Norma Dumont |
* New entrant into rankings
Out of dB rankings: Jessica Rose-Clark
Out of UFC rankings: None
X: Dumont can’t make 135 pounds, while the 5-foot, 1-inch Josiane Nunes has looked like a tank against her first two opponents in the Octagon. Tate’s drop in weight leaves even fewer contenders at WBW, which desperately needs someone to reel off a winning streak to earn a title fight this fall.
|
Champion: Amanda Nunes No divisional rankings. |
IMPORTANT UPCOMING FIGHTS FOR RANKINGS
March 5 – UFC 272
Colby Covington vs. Jorge Masvidal
Rafael dos Anjos vs. Renato Moicano
Edson Barboza vs. Bryce Mitchell
March 12 – UFC Fight Night 203
Thiago Santos vs. Magomed Ankalaev
Marlon Moraes vs. Song Yadong
Sodiq Yusuff vs. Alex Caceres
March 19 – UFC Fight Night 204
Alexander Volkov vs. Tom Aspinall
Arnold Allen vs. Dan Hooker
Paul Craig vs. Nikita Krylov
March 26 – UFC on ESPN 33
Curtis Blaydes vs. Chris Daukaus
Amanda Ribas vs. Michelle Waterson
Askar Askarov vs. Kai Kara-France
Updated rankings for March will be posted after UFC on ESPN 33. Until then, enjoy the fights.
For comments, questions and suggestions, email dbrown@cherokeescout.com or hit me up on Twitter @daviddbstroh.
For comments, questions and suggestions, email dbrown@cherokeescout.com or hit me up on Twitter @daviddbstroh.