Sherdog’s Pound-for-Pound Top 10 Rankings

Leon Edwards let his fists and feet do most of the talking.

Heading into the UFC 296 main event, the build-up between “Rocky” and Colby Covington was loud and ugly, with most of the volume accounted for by the challenger, who showed up in mock Revolutionary War getup and made digs at Edwards’ father, who was murdered when Edwards was a teenager. While the noise clearly got under Edwards’ skin, the fight ended up being not a guns-blazing grudge match but a methodical dissection, with Edwards imposing his preferred brand of distance kickboxing match on the former All-American wrestler. With his second title defense in the books, Edwards holds steady at No. 4 in the men’s pound-for pound poll.

The co-main event of UFC 296 similarly failed to deliver the kind of fireworks fans might have expected, as flyweight king Alexandre Pantoja exploited Brandon Royval’s porous takedown defense for most of five rounds to take a well-deserved unanimous decision. While Royval had moments of success on the feet, they were few and far between, and his freewheeling grappling attack never really got untracked against the champ’s more positionally sound ground game. The first title defense by “The Cannibal” marks his fourth Top 10 win in a row, allowing him to leapfrog Vadim Nemkov, owing to his workrate and strength of schedule.

Note: Previous ranking in brackets.

1. Islam Makhachev (25-1) | UFC [1]

Makhachev made a statement at UFC 294, knocking out featherweight king Alexander Volkanovski with a head kick and follow-up punches in the opening round of their lightweight title clash at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The Dagestani standout has won 13 straight fights in the Octagon and thanks to consecutive title defenses against Volkanovski, can close the book on his rivalry with the Australian star. Makhachev’s next assignment could come against either Charles Oliveira, who pulled out of UFC 294 due to a cut, or Justin Gaethje, who has been lobbying hard for a title shot in interviews and on social media.

2. Jon Jones (27-1, 1 NC) | UFC [2]

After a three-year absence, Jones looked as strong as ever in a new division, authoring a first-round submission triumph against Ciryl Gane in the UFC 285 headliner on March 4 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The longtime light heavyweight king was scheduled for a UFC 295 showdown with ex-heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic at Madison Square Garden for his first title defense before a torn pectoral forced him to withdraw from the bout. The hope is that Jones vs. Miocic can be rebooked at some point in 2024.

3. Alexander Volkanovski (26-3) | UFC [3]

No one was surprised when Volkanovski agreed to a short-notice rematch with Islam Makhachev at UFC 294, but the City Kickboxing product couldn’t replicate his efforts from the first meeting, when he pushed the reigning lightweight champ to the brink of defeat. The rematch ended in much more emphatic fashion, as Volkanovski fell victim to a Makhachev head kick in the opening stanza. A featherweight title defense is next for Volkanovski, who will lock horns with top contender Ilia Topuria in the UFC 298 headliner.

4. Leon Edwards (22-3, 1 NC) | UFC [4]

For all the sound and fury promised by the public build-up between Edwards and challenger Colby Covington, the actual fight was a straightforward affair, lacking any of the eye-popping drama of Edwards’ pair of fights against Kamaru Usman. Instead, the champ forced Covington into the sort of mid-paced kickboxing match that characterized Edwards’ long rise to the top of the division, on his way to winning the first four rounds on all judges’ scorecards. While Edwards’ second title defense is unlikely to have earned him many new fans, it was a dominant showing against a veteran challenger. Whether Edwards’ next defense comes in the form of unfinished business against Belal Muhammad or a meeting with a streaking contender like Shavkat Rakhmonov, his place as one of the top fighters in the sport is secure for the moment.

5. Alex Pereira (9-2) | UFC [5]

Pereira has proven to be a quick study in MMA, as he became the ninth two-division champion in promotion history by virtue of a second-round stoppage of Jiri Prochazka in the UFC 295 headliner. It only took “Poatan” seven UFC appearances to capture gold at 185 and 205 pounds after conquering two divisions in Glory Kickboxing, making him one of the most accomplished combat sport athletes in recent memory. In the aftermath of his latest triumph, the Brazilian encouraged longtime rival Israel Adesanya to move up to light heavyweight for an MMA trilogy.

6. Charles Oliveira (34-9, 1 NC) | UFC [6]

After relinquishing his belt to Islam Makhachev in October 2022, Oliveira made an emphatic statement in his return, as he defeated top contender Beneil Dariush via first-round technical knockout in the UFC 289 co-main event. “Do Bronx” held his own with Dariush on the canvas, but it was on the feet that he did his best work, rattling the Kings MMA product with head kicks and heavy punches before sealing his victory with ground-and-pound. Unfortunately, a cut suffered in training forced Oliveira to pull out of a rematch against Makhachev at UFC 294.

7. Justin Gaethje (25-4) | UFC [7]

Gaethje picked up a statement win — and the UFC’s BMF belt — in style at UFC 291, getting the better of Dustin Poirier for six minutes before flattening him with a head kick. In avenging his 2018 loss to Poirier, “The Highlight” reaffirmed his status as a top contender in the UFC lightweight division. Gaethje believes he should be next in line for a title shot against reigning champion Islam Makhachev, though he could still have to wait for Charles Oliveira to get his rematch first.

8. Alexandre Pantoja (27-5) | UFC [9]

Pantoja put on a dominant performance in the co-main event of UFC 296, grounding Brandon Royval seemingly at will and doing grimy work from top position for most of five rounds. While the result was not the frenetic fireworks show fans may have hoped for, “The Cannibal” effectively denied Royval any chance to employ his hyper-aggressive kickboxing and grappling, retaining his belt while facing next to no real danger. One danger Pantoja does face is a dearth of ready contenders, as he is now 2-0 against Royval and 3-0 against Brandon Moreno, counting their meeting on “The Ultimate Fighter.” As such, Pantoja will have to hope that someone like Amir Albazi or Manel Kape puts on an impressive performance in their upcoming outings—and emerges healthy enough to fight again soon.

9. Vadim Nemkov (16-2, 1 NC) | Bellator [8]

Nemkov was largely dominant in his latest title defense, as he earned a clear-cut unanimous verdict over former UFC title challenger Yoel Romero in the Bellator 297 main event. The Fedorteam representative battered his adversary with straight punches and an arsenal of kicks while surviving a late Romero takedown in the final stanza. While a finish would have been an ideal punctuation to the night, Nemkov still had to respect the explosive ability of his opponent. The Russian standout is unbeaten in his last 12 professional outings, a stretch that also includes a victory in the Bellator 205-pound grand prix.

10. Sean O’Malley (17-1, 1 NC) UFC [10]

O’Malley silenced the doubters in emphatic fashion at UFC 292, as he finished Aljamain Sterling with an exquisite right hand and follow-up ground-and-pound in their bantamweight championship clash at TD Garden in Boston. “Sugar” already had all the makings of the promotion’s next big superstar, and now he has the hardware to go with it. Next up is a rematch with Marlon Vera — the only man to defeat him — in the UFC 299 headliner.

Other Contenders: Aljamain Sterling, Sean Strickland, Israel Adesanya, Max Holloway, Tom Aspinall.

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, Edward Carbajal, Marcelo Alonso, Tudor Leonte, Keith Shillan, Tyler Treese and Lev Pisarsky.