Sherdog’s Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

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Women’s Atomweight

1. Seika Izawa (13-0) | Rizin [1]

Izawa captured the Deep Jewels atomweight title with a second-round ninja choke submission of Si Yoon Park at Deep Jewels 44 on March 24 at New Pier Hall in Tokyo. With the victory — her fourth straight via submission — Izawa claimed her third championship belt and continues to solidify herself as one of the sport’s most impressive lighter weight female fighters. Izawa will next face Kanna Asakura at Rizin 48 on Sept. 29.

2. Si Woo Park (12-5) | Rizin [2]

Park outpointed Machi Fukuda to claim the Deep Jewels interim strawweight title at Deep Jewels 45. Since the bout was contested at strawweight, it does not affect Park’s standing at atomweight. Nonetheless, the “Korean Queen Bee” has won seven of her last eight outings, with her lone setback coming to Rizin champ Seika Izawa at Rizin 40. With a resume that also includes wins over Ayaka Hamasaki, Kanna Asakura and Rena Kubota, Park remains entrenched as one of the top fighters in the division.

3. Jillian DeCoursey (6-4) | Invicta [3]

DeCoursey ran into a buzzsaw at Invicta FC 53, relinquishing her atomweight title to Rayanne Amanda dos Santos by unanimous decision in a fight that saw her outstruck, outgrappled and outhustled for five rounds by a younger, larger opponent. It was a shocking reversal of recent fortunes for “Lionheart,” who came into the fight on the momentum of back-to-back first-round finishes in her last two Invicta appearances. Whether the setback was just a bump in the road, or an indication of a competitive decline by a 38-year-old working in MMA’s lightest, fastest weight division, will remain to be seen in DeCoursey’s next outing.

4. Namiko Kawabata (5-4) | Jewels [4]

Kawabata halted a three-fight losing skid with a unanimous decision victory against Saki Kitamura in a super atomweight bout at Deep Jewels 46. By securing her first triumph since September 2022, the 37-year-old Mouri Dojo product maintains her standing in the division.

5. Si Yoon Park (6-4) Jewels [5]

Park’s bid to retain her atomweight belt came up short in the Deep Jewels 44 main event, where she succumbed to a Seika Izawa ninja choke in the second round of their encounter in Tokyo. That setback snaps a five-bout winning streak for the South Korean, who remains the reigning atomweight queen in the Black Combat promotion.

6. Elisandra Ferreira de Oliveira (8-2) | Invicta [15]

Ferreira de Oliveira continued her momentum in the main event of Invicta FC 57, as she captured the promotion’s atomweight crown with a five-round verdict against Andressa Romero at Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kansas. “Lili” has won four consecutive contests within the all-female promotion, a run that also includes triumphs over Katie Saull, Flor Hernandez and Marisa Messer-Belenchia. The 26-year-old Brazilian hasn’t demonstrated much finishing ability thus far — seven of her eight career victories have gone the distance — but that does mean she has accumulated plenty of experience in longer fights.

7. Andressa Romero (7-5-1) | Invicta [6]

One bout removed from her upset victory over Deep Jewels microweight queen Saori Oshima, Romero was unable to claim atomweight gold at Invicta FC 57, where she fell to Elisandra Ferreira de Oliveira via unanimous decision at Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kansas. It marked the second consecutive atomweight appearance for “Gauchinha,” who moved down from strawweight after losing three of her last four outings at 115 pounds.

8. Saori Oshima (14-5) | Jewels [7]

Oshima suffered an upset loss in her United States debut, dropping a unanimous verdict to converted strawweight Andressa Romero at Invicta FC 55 on June 28. The setback snapped a two-bout winning streak for “Little Giant,” who was coming off a first-round stoppage of Aya Murakami to unify the Deep and Deep Jewels microweight titles in May.

9. Rena Kubota (15-5) | Rizin [8]

Kubota shone at Super Rizin 3 on July 28, busting up Kate Oyama with second-round punches at Saitama Super Arena. While the popular kickboxer remains near the bottom of the Top 10 for now thanks to some head-to-head losses, she figures to have plenty of chances to elevate her stock in the near future, thanks to Rizin’s working relationships with most other promotions with atomweight divisions.

10. Kanna Asakura (20-7) | Rizin [9]

Asakura captured a unanimous decision triumph against Mei Yamaguchi in her most recent appearance at Rizin “Landmark Vol. 5” in April 2023. The 26-year-old has won two of her last three outings within the Japanese promotion and will look to keep that momentum going when she faces Seika Izawa in a non-title affair at Rizin 48, which will serve as Asakura’s retirement bout.

Other Contenders: Ayaka Watanabe, Satomi Takano, Chihiro Sawada, Anastasia Nikolakakos, Ana Palacios.

Sherdog’s divisional and pound-for-pound rankings are compiled by a panel of Sherdog.com staff members and contributors: Tristen Critchfield, Mike Fridley, Brian Knapp, Ben Duffy, Jay Pettry, Marcelo Alonso, Keith Shillan, Tyler Treese, Sayan Nag, Christian Stein and Rob Sargent.

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