The Ringer MMA August Pound-for-Pound Rankings

It wasn’t that people didn’t see Sean O’Malley coming. With a colorful bouquet of hair in Easter pastels, delicate facial tattoos, and a nearly 6-foot frame stretched like taffy into a 135-pound body, he cuts a fairly striking figure. Yet what people didn’t seem to predict was just how much power he packs in his wiry punches.

O’Malley came in as a sizable underdog against Aljamain Sterling in UFC 292’s main event, yet there was a feel in the air that something special was about to happen. It could’ve been that, with a name like O’Malley, the Boston crowd saw him as another Irish sensation about to break through, as Conor McGregor did in that same city nearly 10 years ago to the day against Max Holloway.

Whatever it was, O’Malley delivered. He clocked Sterling with a beautiful right hand counter early in the second round, then swung down a series of gangly hammerfists and power shots until the referee called him off. It all happened at warp speed, and it was bedlam in Boston. The bantamweight unicorn whom many didn’t believe had earned a title shot was now suddenly holding the title in the air for everyone to see.

Of course, this is all magnificent news for the UFC. Sterling was resolved to move up to featherweight if he’d won on Saturday night, which would leave the bantamweight division in a state of flux. But now O’Malley, who was already one of the UFC’s biggest rising stars, wears the target on his back, meaning business is about to boom in the division. Whether he makes his first title defense against Marlon “Chito” Vera, or Sterling’s bestie Merab Dvalishvili, or even if he rematches Sterling, O’Malley’s next fight will be a must-see event.

“Suga Sean” debuts this month on the men’s side of our pound-for-pound rankings. The panel of Chuck Mindenhall, Ariel Helwani, Petesy Carrol, and producer Troy Farkas—known as 3PAC on the Ringer MMA Show—have ranked both the men’s and women’s P4P best, one through 10.

Our only criterion for these monthly rankings is that a fighter has competed within at least a calendar year of the publication date, or has at least had a fight booked within that window. If a fighter hasn’t competed in a year and books a fight after that time, he or she is once again eligible to be voted back in. Meaning Cris Cyborg, who last fought in April 2022, is once again eligible for the rankings now that she has an upcoming fight booked against Cat Zingano

Fighters who retire are no longer eligible for the rankings. (It was fun while it lasted, Amanda Nunes!)

Though most of the best fighters are currently in the UFC, these rankings are not UFC exclusive. We take into consideration all the major promotions, from Bellator to ONE Championship to the PFL.

Without further ado, the Ringer MMA P4P Rankings for August.

Men’s Pound-for-Pound Rankings

1. Jon Jones

UFC Heavyweight Champion
Last month: no. 1B

While Francis Ngannou’s upcoming boxing match against Tyson Fury continues to create a ton of racket, Jon Jones is quietly mashing his fist into his palm, ready to take out his frustration on Stipe Miocic. Is Jones the real Baddest Man on the Planet right now, even if he never got the chance to fight Ngannou? Maybe it’s best left to internal debates, as Jones’s only loss in 15 years came via disqualification for dropping 12-to-6 elbows on a thoroughly bludgeoned Matt Hamill. Should Jones beat Miocic to defend his heavyweight title—and most people believe he will—the arguments in his favor will likely drown out any outside noise.

2. Alexander Volkanovski

UFC Featherweight Champion
Last month: no. 1A

It’s a shame the UFC had Volk fight during International Fight Week in Vegas rather than in Sydney at UFC 293 next month. The man is a hero in his home country, and a mensch of the highest order as a champion. Not only does he keep distancing himself in the conversation of history’s greatest featherweights, but he wants to fight as often as the UFC can book him. Had Aljamain Sterling beat Sean O’Malley at UFC 292, there’s a chance Aljo could’ve been Volkanovski’s next challenge. Yet with how things have shaken out, a fight with Ilia Topuria might be the consolation prize, as Volk keeps an eye on Islam Makhachev’s 155-pound title.

3. Islam Makhachev

UFC Lightweight Champion
Last month: no. 3

When you’re as good as Islam, you’re often asked to repeat yourself. In this case, Makhachev will have to duplicate what he did last October when he toppled Charles Oliveira to win the vacant lightweight title in Abu Dhabi. A year later, it’s a similar setup, only this time Oliveira is coming for Islam’s title. Oliveira is a slick customer who owns a good many UFC records for finishes and submissions, yet Makhachev is as cold and mysterious as that monolith in 2001: A Space Odyssey. A testament to his dominance is that we praised Volkanovski for coming close to pulling off the upset against him at UFC 284.

4. Israel Adesanya

UFC Middleweight Champion
Last month: no. 4

It got a little tense there, but the UFC finally announced that Izzy would headline UFC 293 just 30 days before the card is set to take place in Sydney. Sean Strickland isn’t necessarily a layup and should be an interesting test, plus the build-up might produce some heat as Strickland is a guy Izzy very much dislikes. Strickland has an ability to make fights ugly and dictate the tempo of the action, whereas Adesanya has a way of turning chaos into a thing of beauty. The home crowd will be behind the Last Stylebender, and so will the UFC. One thing that terrifies the matchmakers is the idea of marketing Strickland as a champion; he has said his dream is to one day kill a man in a fight. That’s an eternal “yikes!”

5. Leon Edwards

UFC Welterweight Champion
Last month: no. 5

Edwards will most likely defend the welterweight title against Colby Covington in December at UFC 296, but the UFC has yet to make anything official. The debates over the last few months have mostly centered around whether Colby deserves the shot, given that it’s been a year and a half since his last fight (against a since-retired Jorge Masvidal), but Dana White cares what the peanut gallery thinks. Colby doesn’t just embrace the favoritism, he positively thrives in rubbing it in everyone’s face. Hence the reason why so many are hoping Edwards does to Colby what he did to Kamaru Usman last year. #HeadshotDead

6. Charles Oliveira

Former UFC Lightweight Champion
Last month: no. 8

If you thought Islam Makhachev had done away with Oliveira, think again. The UFC gave Oliveira an unenviable assignment to get back into title contention when it stuck him against the suffocating Beneil Dariush, who was riding an eight-fight win streak. Oliveira accepted the challenge and not only smoked Dariush in the first round back in June, but emerged as a kind of folk hero up in British Columbia. Now Oliveiramis as popular as ever and is getting his chance for a do-over against Islam. Pick against Charlie Olives at your own peril.

7. Sean O’Malley

UFC Bantamweight Champion
Last month: Not ranked

Well, well, well, what have we here? O’Malley broke into the UFC on the Contender Series and broke into mainstream consciousness by smoking a J with Snoop Dogg, but not too many gave him a chance of becoming a champion in one of the UFC’s most stacked divisions. Now he’s a star. Every 135-pounder is already vying for the chance to fight him, and O’Malley himself is casting flirtatious eyes at boxers Gervonta Davis and Ryan Garcia. Everybody wants a part of the Suga Show, and what’s fun about it is that it’s only the beginning.

8. Demetrious Johnson

ONE Championship Flyweight Champion
Last month: no. 9

With belts changing hands in the UFC at historical rates and fighter parity at an all-time high, you can’t help but look back and marvel at a champion like Demetrious Johnson. He didn’t just rule the UFC’s flyweight division for all those years; he was the reason for all the existential debates to kill it off. Nobody wanted to see him flick the likes of Chris Cariaso into another dimension. Now that flyweight is a hotly contested and competitive space in the UFC, Mighty Mouse’s reign looks all the more impressive.

9. Max Holloway

Former UFC Featherweight Champion
Last month: no. 10

Is the UFC presenting Holloway with a gift by assigning him to fight “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung this coming weekend in Singapore? Most experts say yes. Holloway’s only losses in the last 10 years have come against Alexander Volkanovski and Dustin Poirier, and the latter occurred at lightweight. Otherwise, he’s been sublime. His latest win against Arnold Allen was a declaration that he has plenty of fight left in him, and more than likely another title run. Last we checked, Holloway was listed as a -250000 favorite to beat Jung on Saturday, which feels like good value. (OK, OK, he’s -825. That’s still good value.).

10. Kamaru Usman

Former UFC Welterweight Champion
Last month: no. 7

The forgotten man at welterweight is Kamaru Usman, who one year ago saw one of the greatest title reigns in UFC history come to an end at the hands of Leon Edwards. Since losing the rematch in March, the path forward has been murky for the Nigerian Nightmare. He was interested in a fight with Khamzat Chimaev, but that was a non-starter for the UFC. He was recently calling out Stephen Thompson, too, which piqued Thompson’s interest, but with burgeoning star Ian Garry calling out Wonderboy at UFC 292, Usman might find himself on the outside looking in. Whatever the case, he’s in a no-man’s-land at 170 pounds, and the appetite to see him fight the winner of Covington and Edwards—each of whom he’s fought twice, beating the former and losing to the latter—isn’t very big.

Others receiving votes: Alexandre Pantoja, Alex Pereira

Women’s Pound-for-Pound rankings

1. Zhang Weili

UFC Strawweight Champion
Last month: no. 1

Listen, the judge that turned in a 49-45 scorecard for Zhang Weili’s win against Amanda Lemos at UFC 292 must’ve bopped off at the Sam Adams brewery for a few tall ones beforehand. Weili outstruck the Brazilian challenger 288-22 over the course of 25 minutes, scoring six different takedowns in which she rained elbows, hammerfists, punches, and pure hell for huge portions of the fight. The score was closer to 50-40, with all five rounds perfectly justifiable as 10-8s. With three straight wins, Weili is at the very peak of her powers, which makes a fight with the equally dominant Tatiana Suarez about as good as it gets.

2. Alexa Grasso

UFC Flyweight Champion
Last month: no. 2

As a special treat for Mexican Independence Day on September 16th, Guadalajara’s own Alexa Grasso will take on Valentina Shevchenko at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Anybody who thought the first fight was a fluke back in March will tune in to see if Shevchenko, the longtime flyweight queen, can reclaim the throne. Yet if you go back and watch the first fight, it looks less and less fluky. Grasso had moments early, in the middle, and especially late, when she seized upon Shevchenko’s chin and tried to pop her head off her shoulders. What the tape tells us is that A) Grasso was well prepared for everything Valentina would throw at her, and B) she wasn’t intimidated even a little bit.

3. Valentina Shevchenko

Former UFC Flyweight Champion
Last month: no. 3

The passage of time is cruel, and the truth of the matter is that Valentina Shevchenko is 35 years old, which is right on the cusp of when most fighters (outside of the men’s heavyweight division) begin to decline. Will that be the case for Shevchenko, widely considered one of the great women’s mixed martial artists of all time? We will find out come September. She wanted the rematch with Grasso because losing the first time struck her as an anomaly. Losing again will sting far, far worse, and it’ll drop her out of title contention. Maybe Shevchenko can take some inspiration from fellow GOAT Amanda Nunes, who lost the bantamweight title against Julianna Pena at UFC 277 only to snatch it back from her in the nastiest, most emphatic way possible seven months later.

4. Cris Cyborg

Bellator Featherweight Champion
Last month: Not ranked

Cyborg hasn’t competed in a cage since April 2022, yet the fight she wanted most is now scheduled for the big Bellator 300 blowout on October 7th. Cat Zingano carries more than a shadow of doubt for the fight, as she has a victory over Amanda Nunes (the same Nunes who gave Cyborg her only loss in the last 18 years). Everything we just warned about Shevchenko hasn’t affected Cyborg at all. Since turning 35 years old she’s gone a perfect 4-0 with three finishes. Now 38, the end of the line is visible for the Brazilian icon. She wants to fight until she’s 40, to put a bow on what would then be a 20-year career in which she wreaked havoc across five major promotions.

5. Tatiana Suarez

UFC Strawweight Contender
Last month: Not ranked

There are a handful of fighters that carve out an air of certain, inevitable tyranny as they rise up the ranks. Khabib Nurmagomedov had that feeling in men’s lightweight. Jon Jones had it at light heavyweight. And Tatiana Suarez has it at women’s strawweight. Because she has wrestling in her repertoire, she can take the fight where she wants it. She has power and precision, which translates to superior skills in general. She’s a warrior who has overcome life-threatening events, multiple injuries, and everybody’s very best shot. Undefeated at 10-0, she has taken very little damage over the course of her career. If the UFC sets up a title fight between her and Zhang Weili, that might be the best matchup since the first Jones-Cormier battle.

6. Rose Namajunas

Former UFC Strawweight Champion; Current Flyweight Contender
Last month: no. 4

Namajunas is moving up to flyweight because she says the new challenge scares her. Why not? She has conquered the women’s strawweight division twice and is now chasing a bit of history with the intention to overthrow everyone at 125, beginning with the highly ranked Manon Fiorot. The greatest thing is that in Thug Rose’s absence her stock has only risen, even after losing her title to Carla Esparza in 2022. That’s because those two victories over Zhang Weili are aging very, very well. The fact that she stopped the current strawweight champion and then backed it up six months later packs into a legacy that is still very much being defined at just 31 years old.

7. Erin Blanchfield

UFC Flyweight Contender
Last month: no. 5

The 24-year-old Blanchfield’s undefeated UFC run has been transformative in that she quickly went from prospect to contender to inevitable future champion at warp speed. The showdown with Taila Santos goes down this coming weekend in Singapore, and it very well could serve as a title eliminator as Grasso-Shevchenko plays out (though Manon Fiorot and Rose Namajunas may have something to say about that). There’s a reason Blanchfield’s been hyped as the next champion of the division, and it’s because she blitzes people and turns them into a pulp on the ground. She carries the nickname “Cold Blooded,” and you know what? It’s damn apt.

8. Julianna Pena

Former UFC Bantamweight Champion
Last month: no. 7

This year has been a big-time bummer for Pena. She was booked to take on Amanda Nunes for a third time at UFC 289 to try to win the series (as well as the bantamweight title), but rather than her own Thrilla in Manila, it became the Remover in Vancouver. In a nutshell, Pena got hurt and was replaced by Irene Aldana, who got thoroughly dominated by Nunes. If that weren’t enough, Nunes promptly laid down her gloves and retired after the fight. As for Pena? All she can do is try to make lemonade from the lemons she’s been dealt. There won’t be a Nunes trilogy, but she is almost certainly in line to fight for the vacant bantamweight title.

9. Yan Xiaonan

UFC Strawweight Contender
Last month: no. 8

Before the UFC booked Zhang Weili into a title defense against Amanda Lemos, there were a lot of people clamoring for an all-Chinese 115-pound title fight between Weili and Xiaonan, preferably in mainland China. That would do business, right? Well, the UFC opted to stick Weili in what turned into a showcase bout with Lemos, and now we’re right back where we started. Of course, circumstances change in MMA with each passing weekend. The biggest fight the UFC could make currently would be Weili-Suarez, but you can’t go wrong with a Weili-Xiaonan fight either. Besides, if not Weili, who makes sense for Xiaonan to fight? Esparza is pregnant and out of action; Namajunas has moved to flyweight; Lemos just got busted up against Weili; and Jessica Andrade has already lost to “Fury.” (If Weili wants time away, the obvious choice would be a title eliminator between Xiaonan and Suarez, but we need to sit down. All this is making us dizzy …)

10. Manon Fiorot

UFC Flyweight Contender
Last month: no. 9

Fighting in Paris is a big deal for the “Beast from Nice.” Fiorot has quietly rattled off 10 straight victories, with five of those coming in the UFC. Beating the likes of Katlyn Chookagian and Jennifer Maia is great, but hanging an L on Rose Namajunas will make an undeniable statement. France is going to be in her corner, and there are definitely title implications in place for Fiorot, who last fought in October 2022. What does she do in the biggest fight of her career, in which she’ll make the walk as the featured fighter in the co-main event on September 2nd? That’s what carries the suspense in this one, but for a non-title fight, they don’t come any bigger.

Others receiving votes: Larissa Pacheco