UFC 266 had a huge impact on the UFC pound-for-pound rankings as we saw Alexander Volkanovski pick up an incredible victory against Brian Ortega to move up to #3 in UFC whereas after being #1 in the rankings for more than 6 months, Jon Jones dropped to second after getting arrested in Las Vegas last week and Welterweight Champion Kamaru Usman moved up to replace him as the #1 Pound-for-pound fighter in UFC. Here’s a list of the top 10 pound-for-pound fighters in UFC:
10. Charles Oliveira – UFC Lightweight Champion
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Charles ‘Do Bronx’ Oliveira (31-8-0) has had one of the toughest careers in the promotion and has fought his way to glory like a true warrior. Currently, the Brazilian martial artist is on a nine-fight win streak with the latest one coming at UFC 262 when he knocked out Michael Chandler to capture the vacant lightweight crown. He is expected to take on Dustin Poirier in his first-ever title defense sometime before the year ends.
9. Max Holloway – Featherweight Division
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At #9, we have Max ‘Blessed’ Holloway (22-6-0) who is one of the best featherweights we have seen and we can not mention him without mentioning his bout against Calvin Kattar in January where he outclassed Kattar with his boxing skills and won the fight via unanimous decision. For him, the ultimate goal is to get back his belt from Volkanovski but for now, he returns to the octagon in November to face Yair Rodriguez where a win would earn him a title shot which he has been dreading for.
8. Stipe Miocic – Heavyweight Division
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Over the years, Stipe Miocic (20-4-0) has shown us his class and composure inside the octagon, not to forget his three fights with Daniel Cormier where he completely bullied the UFC Hall of Famer. Miocic last fought in March against Francis Ngannou in which Miocic got knocked out early in round two and lost his Heavyweight Championship which also saw him drop down in the pound-for-pound rankings.
7. Jan Blachowicz – UFC Light Heavyweight Champion
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Current Light Heavyweight Champion, Jan Blachowicz (28-8-0) has been on a renaissance over the past year by taking on Dominick Reyes for the vacant 205-pound title before getting an impressive win over middleweight champion Israel Adesanya back in March and currently is on a five-fight win streak. Glover Teixeira is next for the Polish international which is scheduled to headline UFC 267 for the Light Heavyweight title.
6. Dustin Poirier – Lightweight Division
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Next up, we have Dustin ‘The Diamond’ Poirier (28-6-0) who has been exceptional and consistent over the years. After choosing a pair of high-profile matches against Conor McGregor to settle their tussle, Poirier will finally get the opportunity he has been waiting for, for a long time as defending champion Charles Oliviera awaits him.
5. Francis Ngannou – UFC Heavyweight Champion
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Francis ‘The Predator’ Ngannou sits #5 in the pound-for-pound rankings and there is no easy way to explain how dangerous this man is inside the octagon. Currently, the Predator is on a five-fight knockout win streak with KO wins over some of the greats in the Heavyweight division like Stipe Miocic, Junior Dos Santos, and Alistair Overeem. The Heavyweight Champion will be taking on the Interim Heavyweight Champion, Ciryl Gane to become Undisputed Heavyweight Champion.
4. Israel Adesanya – UFC Middleweight Champion
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In a surprising turn of events, Israel ‘The Last Stylebender’ Adesanya dropped down to #4th position. An attempt at the light heavyweight title in March to become a two-division champion did nothing to his reputation as a Middleweight champion. His last fight was against Marvin Vettori in which he completely dominated the Italian over five rounds and took the W via unanimous decision, setting the stage for a rematch with former UFC Middleweight Champion Robert Whittaker.
3. Alexander Volkanovski – UFC Featherweight Champion
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No other fighter comes close to Alexander ‘The Great’ Volkanovski (23-1-0) in the featherweight division. After his recent win at UFC 266, the 145-pound fighter moved up to #3 in pound-for-pound rankings. Unbeaten in his last 10 trips to the Octagon, Volkanovski is on his way towards creating history by taking out almost every fighter in the division.
2. Jon Jones – Light Heavyweight/ Heavyweight Division
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Jon ‘Bones’ Jones is undoubtedly one of the best fighters to step foot inside the octagon. Jones’ longtime hold as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world came to an end as he slipped to second due to inactivity and recurring troubles outside the octagon. At 34, the former light heavyweight champion has his eyes set on a return to the Heavyweight division but it’s going to be a tough job for him as the division is completely stacked with bright talent. According to reports, his next fight could be for the championship after Francis Ngannou and Cyril Gane fight for the undisputed title.
1. Kamaru Usman – UFC Welterweight Champion
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Kamaru ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ Usman (19-1-0) is one of the most dominant fighters the promotion has ever seen. Just like his nickname suggests, he is a nightmare for everyone in the 170-pound category. His most recent win came at UFC 261 where he shocked the world by knocking out Jorge Masvidal and took his win-streak to 14 fights and became one of the most dominant champions in UFC history. Colby Covington is next for the champ which is set to take place in November.
[Image Credit: ENGAGE]
Shashank Iyer