UFC Rankings 2023

The UFC rankings were introduced in February 2013 and are generated by a voting panel made up of several media members. To rank these fighters, the media members are asked to vote on who they feel are the top fighters per the UFC by weight class and pound-for-pound.

UFC Men's Pound-for-Pound Rankings 2022

Pound for pound is a ranking division used in combat sports for boxing, wrestling, and mixed martial arts to decide who is the better fighter in relation to their weight (i.e., adjusted to compensate for weight class).

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UFC Women's Pound-for-Pound Rankings 2022

See Here: Men's & Women's UFC Weight Classes

UFC Flyweight Rankings 2022

116 to 125 lb (53 to 57 kg)

Current UFC Flyweight Champion: Brandon Moreno

Demetrious Johnson defeated Joseph Benavidez in 2012 at UFC 152 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in the finale of a 4-man tournament for the inaugural UFC Flyweight Title. The 6-year run as the Flyweight Champion ended for Johnson after Henry Cejudo defeated him via split decision at UFC 227.

Cejudo went on to vacate the title in December 2019, which was later won by the current champion Deiveson Figueiredo who defeated Joseph Benavidez in July 2020.

Deiveson Figueiredo defended his title in 2020 against Alex Perez and Brandon Moreno at UFC 255 and UFC 256, respectively.

At UFC 263 Figueiredo lost the title to Moreno. However, at their UFC 270 rematch, Figueiredo reclaimed the Flyweight title after defeating Moreno via unanimous decision.

UFC Women's Flyweight Rankings 2022

116 to 125 lb (53 to 57 kg)

Current UFC Women's Flyweight Champion: Valentina Shevchenko 摆23–3闭

The inaugural UFC Women's Flyweight Title fight was contested in December in Las Vegas, Nevada, at The Ultimate Fighter: A New World Champion Finale. The inaugural title fight was between two fighters who appeared on the 26th season of The Ultimate Fighter, Nicco.

Montano defeated Roxanne Modafferi to win become the inaugural champion. Montano's withdrawal from UFC 228 due to weight-cut issues led to her being stripped of the title in 2018. Thus Valentina Shevchenko won the vacant title after defeating Joanna Jedrzejczyk at UFC 231. Shevchenko has since defended her title four times, with a title reign of 732 days and counting.

UFC Bantamweight Rankings 2022

126 to 135 lb(57 to 61 kg)

Current UFC Bantamweight Champion: Aljamain Sterling [22-3]

Before the UFC-WEC merger, Dominick Cruz was the WEC Bantamweight Champion. At WEC 53, Cruz defeated Scott Jorgensen to retain the WEC Bantamweight Championship and was simultaneously awarded the inaugural UFC Bantamweight Championship.

At UFC 173, T.J. Dillashaw defeated Renan Barao to win the UFC Bantamweight Championship. At UFC Fight Night: Dillashaw vs. Cruz, Dominick Cruz became the first-ever two-time Bantamweight Champion. At UFC 207, Cruz lost the title to Cody Garbrandt, who eventually lost it to Dillashaw, making the latter a two-time division champion.

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Due to a failed drug test, Dillashaw vacated his title in March 2019. After winning the vacant title at UFC 238 and defending it at UFC 249, Cejudo became the fourth UFC fighter to hold titles in two different weight classes (Flyweight and Bantamweight) simultaneously and the second to defend titles in two other weight divisions.

Petr Yan defeated Jose Aldo at UFC 251 and became the current UFC Bantamweight Champion.

In his first title defense, Yan faced #1 ranked Bantamweight Aljamain Sterling at UFC 259 on March 6, 2021, and lost the title by disqualification due to an intentional illegal knee landed by him in the fourth round to Sterling.

Sterling couldn't continue the fight any further due to a concussion, and the doctor recommended stopping the fight, thus making him the new UFC Bantamweight champion. This is the first-ever title change caused by disqualification in UFC history.

UFC Women's Bantamweight Rankings 2022

Current UFC Women's Bantamweight Champion: Amanda Nunes [22-5]

Before its folding and absorption by the UFC, Ronda Rousey was the Strikeforce Women's Bantamweight Champion. Rousey was eventually awarded the inaugural UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship on December 6, 2012, at the UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Diaz pre-event press conference.

After a reign of 1,074 days, Rousey lost the Bantamweight Championship to Holly Holm at UFC 193. Holm lost the title to Miesha Tate, who was defeated by the current champion Amanda Nunes for the title, at UFC 196. Nunes has defended her title against Ronda Rousey, Valentina Shevchenko, Raquel Pennington, Holly Holm, and Germaine De Randamie. Nunes has been the incumbent title holder for 1,614 days and counting, a record in UFC Women's Championship history.

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UFC Featherweight Rankings 2022

136 to 145 lbs (61 to 66 kg)

Current UFC Featherweight Champion: Alexander Volkanovski 摆25–1闭

At UFC 194, Conor McGregor won the Undisputed Featherweight Championship after beating Jose Aldo within 13 seconds. At UFC 212, Max Holloway won the Undisputed Featherweight Championship from Aldo. Holloway, who defended his title against Jose Aldo, Brian Ortega, and Frankie Edgar, lost his title to Alexander Volkanovski. Volkanovski is the current UFC Featherweight Champion and defended his title against Holloway via split decision in a rematch at UFC 251.

UFC Lightweight Rankings 2022

Current UFC Lightweight Champion: Islam Makhachev

146 to 155 lbs (66 to 70 kg)

Before UFC 31 in 2001, the Lightweight Title was known as the Bantamweight Title. The Strikeforce Lightweight Title was seemingly unified with the UFC Lightweight Title on April 20, 2013, when Benson Henderson defeated Gilbert Melendez.

The UFC Lightweight Title has been held by the likes of B.J.Penn, Frankie Edgar, Anthony Pettis, Rafael Dos Anjos, and Eddie Alvarez throughout the years. At UFC 205, Conor McGregor won the UFC Lightweight Championship after defeating Eddie Alvarez and became the first fighter in UFC history to hold titles in two divisions (Featherweight and Lightweight) simultaneously.

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After McGregor was stripped of the title due to inactivity, Khabib Nurmagomedov became the UFC Lightweight Champion after beating Al Iaquinta at UFC 223. At UFC 236, Dustin Poirier became the Interim UFC Lightweight Championship by beating Max Holloway. At UFC 242, Khabib Nurmagomedov defeated Dustin Poirier via submission to unify the UFC Lightweight Championship.

Justin Gaethje won the Interim UFC Lightweight Championship at UFC 249 by defeating Tony Ferguson but lost the championship unification bout against Khabib at UFC 254. Khabib Nurmagomedov has vacated the UFC Lightweight Championship after officially announcing his retirement.

Islam Makhachev became the new lightweight champion after defeating Charles Oliveira at UFC 280.

UFC Welterweight Rankings 2022

156 to 170 lb (70 to 77 kg)

Current UFC Welterweight Champion: Leon Edwards [20–3]

The UFC Welterweight Title is considered one of the most prestigious titles in the UFC. The inaugural Welterweight Champion was crowned at UFC Brazil in 1998 when Pat Miletich won the belt. Throughout the years, the likes of Carlos Newton, Matt Hughes, B.J. Penn, Georges-St Pierre, Matt Serra, Johny Hendricks, and Robbie Lawler have all held the Welterweight Championship.

GSP and Matt Hughes are the only two-time Welterweight Champions in UFC history. At UFC 201, Tyron Woodley defeated Robbie Lawler to win the Welterweight Championship. Woodley, who defended the title against Stephen Thompson(twice), Demian Maia, and Darren Till, was defeated by Kamaru Usman at UFC 235 via unanimous decision.

Leon Edwards is the current UFC Welterweight Champion after defeating Kamaru Usman at UFC 278.

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UFC Middleweight Rankings 2022

171 to 185 lb (77 to 84 kg)

Current UFC Middleweight Champion: Alex Pereira

On March 1, 2008, the Pride World Welterweight Championship was unified with the UFC Middleweight Title on March 1, 2008, when Anderson Silva defeated Dan Henderson at UFC 82.

Dave Menne and Rich Franklin have held the Middleweight Title, and at UFC 64, Anderson Silva won the title. Silva defended his title against the likes of Nate Marquardt, Rich Franklin, Dan Henderson, Patrick Cote, Thales Leites, Demian Maia, Chael Sonnen, Vitor Belfort, and Yushin Okami while holding onto the belt for a total of 2,457 days, a record for the longest title reign in UFC history.

At UFC 162, Chris Weidman defeated Silva to win the Middleweight Title. Weidman's reign ended when Luke Rockhold beat him at UFC 194. At UFC 199, Michael Bisping won the Middleweight Title and eventually lost it to the returning GSP at UFC 217.

As GSP vacated the title due to complications with ulcerative colitis, on December 7, 2017, Robert Whittaker was promoted as the Middleweight Champion, having won the Interim Title at UFC 213.

At UFC 243, the interim Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya defeated Robert Whittaker to win the undisputed UFC Middleweight Championship. The current champion, Adesanya, defended his title against Yoel Romero and Paulo Costa at UFC 248 and UFC 253, respectively.

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UFC Light Heavyweight Rankings 2022

186 to 205 lb (84 to 93 kg)

Current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion: Jamahal Hill

The Light Heavyweight Title was known as the Middleweight Title before UFC 31 (May 4, 2001). In 2007, the Pride World Middleweight Championship was unified with the UFC Light Heavyweight Title when Quinton Jackson defeated Dan Henderson at UFC 75.

The UFC Light Heavyweight Title has been held by the likes of Frank Shamrock, Tito Ortiz, Randy Couture, Vitor Belfort, Chuck Liddell, Quinton Jackson, Forest Griffin, Rashad Evans, Lyoto Machida, and Mauricio Rua.

At UFC 128, Jon Jones won the Light Heavyweight Title for the first time in his career after defeating Mauricio Rua. Jones held the title for 1501 days and defended it eight times before being stripped of it due to a hit-and-run issue. Daniel Cormier won the vacant belt by beating Anthony Johnson at UFC 187.

Cormier, who became the second fighter in UFC history to hold titles in two weight classes simultaneously and is the first to defend them in two divisions, vacated his Light Heavyweight Championship 174 days after winning the heavyweight title. Jon Jones won the vacant belt for the second time in his career after defeating Alexander Gustafsson. He defended it with Anthony Smith, Thiago Santos, and Dominick Reyes before vacating it to move up to the Heavyweight division.

Jan Blachowicz became the current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion after defeating Dominick Reyes at UFC 253.

UFC Heavyweight Rankings 2022

206 to 265 lb (93 to 120 kg)

Current UFC Heavyweight Champion: Vacant

In 1997, the UFC Super fight Championship was unified with the UFC Tournament Championship to determine the UFC Heavyweight Champion, as Mark Coleman defeated Dan Severn at UFC 12. Notable names such as Randy Couture, Josh Barnett, Frank Mir, Andre Arlovski, Brock Lesnar, Cain Velasquez, Junior Dos Santos, and Fabricio Werdum have all won the UFC Heavyweight Championship. Randy Couture won the UFC Heavyweight Championship thrice in his career, while Tim Sylvia, Cain Velasquez, and Stipe Miocic have won the title twice.

Stipe Miocic won the title at UFC 198 by defeating Fabricio Werdum via a KO and went on to defend his title thrice, a record in UFC Heavyweight history, before being defeated by Daniel Cormier at UFC 226. In their rematch at UFC 241, Stipe won the title for the second time after defeating Cormier by a TKO. In their trilogy fight, Miocic defended his title against Cormier at UFC 252.

Francis Ngannou is the current UFC Heavyweight Champion after he knocked out Stipe Miocic at UFC 260. Ngannou is the third African-born champion in the UFC after Kamaru Usman (Welterweight) and Israel Adesanya (Middleweight).

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UFC Women's Strawweight Rankings 2022

106 to 115 lb (48 to 52 kg)

Current UFC Women's Strawweight Champion: Zhang Weili

Jessica Andrade defeated Rose Namajunas at UFC 237 to win the title but lost to Zhang Weili at UFC Fight Night: Shenzhen, China. Weili went on to face Joanna Jedrzejczyk in her first title defense and won via split decision at UFC 248. At UFC 261, Rose Namajunas reclaimed the strawweight title for the second time.

Namajunas defended her title against Weili during their rematch at UFC 268. In her second title defense, Namajunas lost the strawweight title to Carla Esparza at UFC 274. After seven years, Carla Esparza has begun her second reign as the UFC Women's Strawweight Champion.

UFC Women's Featherweight Rankings 2022

136 to 145 lb (62 to 66 kg)

Current UFC Women's Featherweight Champion: Amanda Nunes 摆21–5闭

The inaugural title was won by Germaine De Randamie, who defeated Holly Holm via unanimous decision, on February 11, 2017, in Brooklyn, New York, USA, at UFC 208.

After De Randamie refused to defend the title against Cris Cyborg, she was stripped of it, and Cyborg went on to win the vacant title by defeating Tonya Evinger at UFC 214. Amanda Nunes defeated Cyborg via KO for the title at UFC 232. She became the first woman to become a two-division UFC champion and the third fighter in UFC history to simultaneously hold titles in two weight classes. She defended her title against Felicia Spencer at UFC 250 and became the first and only fighter in UFC history to defend two titles while actively holding them. Amanda Nunes remains the current UFC Women's Featherweight Champion.

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FAQs on UFC Rankings

Q. Who is the number 1 UFC fighter?

Alexander Volkanovski is the current #1 ranked pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC.

Q. How do rankings work in UFC?

Rankings were generated by a voting panel made up of media members. The media members were asked to vote for who they feel are the top fighters in the UFC by weight class and pound-for-pound. A soldier is only eligible to be voted on if they are inactive status in the UFC.

A fighter can appear in more than one weight division at a time. The champion and interim champion are considered to be in the top positions of their respective divisions and therefore are not eligible for voting by weight class. However, the winners can be voted on for the pound-for-pound rankings.

Q. Who are the top UFC fighters of all time?

UFC started almost 28 years ago and produced some of MMA's biggest stars.

Georges St. Pierre, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Jon Jones, Anderson Silva, Demetrious Johnson, Daniel Cormier, Amanda Nunes, Henry Cejudo, BJ Penn, and Frank Shamrock, in no particular order, are considered to be some of the top UFC fighters of all time.

Q. Who are the current UFC Champions in 2022?

The UFC champions of 2022 are Jamahal Hill (Light Heavyweight), Alex Pereira (Middleweight), Leon Edwards (Welterweight), Islam Makhachev(Lightweight), Alexander Volkanovski (Featherweight), Aljamain Sterling (Bantamweight), Brandon Moreno (Flyweight), Amanda Nunes (Women's Bantamweight) Amanda Nunes (Featherweight), Valentina Shevchenko (Women's Flyweight) and Zhang Weili (Women's Strawweight).

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* Last Updated: on February 16, 2023.