Not only will Islam Makhachev be defending his 155-pound title against Arman Tsarukyan, he’ll also be risking his top spot in the promotion’s pound-for-pound rankings.
The latest UFC rankings have been updated in the wake of last weekend’s UFC Vegas 101 mixed martial arts (MMA) event, the first such refresh of the promotion’s 2025 fight campaign. Most of the categories remained the same as they did at the close of 2024, including the strawweight division, since Mackenzie Dern was already ranked two spots above Amanda Ribas ahead of today’s update. Dern avenged her loss to the Brazilian by way of third-round submission.
That said, the latest UFC rankings could be the last with Islam Makhachev atop the hotly-contested pound-for-pound chart. UFC CEO, Dana White, believes heavyweight champion Jon Jones, who also held gold at 205 pounds, deserves top billing; however, the media continues to rank Makhachev in the No. 1 spot. Losing his lightweight strap to Arman Tsarukyan at UFC 311 this weekend in Los Angeles will undoubtedly move “Bones” to the head of the class.
Here’s how the rankings are compiled, at least until AI takes over:
Rankings are 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 fighter is only eligible to be voted on if they are in active 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 champions can be voted on for the pound-for-pound rankings.
Take a look at what the latest rankings field looks like courtesy of UFC.com. Note: (+/- = movement in rankings, T = tie, *NR = Not previously ranked).
MEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND
1. Islam Makhachev
2. Jon Jones
3. Alex Pereira
4. Ilia Topuria
5. Belal Muhammad
6. Dricus Du Plessis
7. Merab Dvalishvili
8. Tom Aspinall
9. Alexandre Pantoja
10. Leon Edwards -1
11. Alexander Volkanovski
12. Max Holloway
13. Sean O’Malley
14. Sean Strickland
15. Charles Oliveira
FLYWEIGHT
Champion: Alexandre Pantoja
1. Brandon Royval
2. Brandon Moreno
3. Amir Albazi
4. Kai Kara France
5. Tatsuro Taira
6. Manel Kape
7. Alex Perez
8. Asu Almabayev
9. Steve Erceg
10. Tim Elliott
11. Tagir Ulanbekov
12. Charles Johnson
13. Bruno Silva
14. Kai Asakura
15. Joshua Van
BANTAMWEIGHT
Champion: Merab Dvalishvili
1. Sean O’Malley
2. Umar Nurmagomedov
3. Petr Yan
4. Cory Sandhagen
5. Deiveson Figueiredo
6. Marlon Vera
7. Henry Cejudo
8. Song Yadong
9. Rob Font
10. Mario Bautista
11. Jose Aldo
12. Kyler Phillips
13. Aiemann Zahabi
14. Marcus McGhee
15. Montel Jackson
FEATHERWEIGHT
Champion: Ilia Topuria
1. Alexander Volkanovski
2. Max Holloway
3. Diego Lopes
4. Movsar Evloev
5. Yair Rodriguez
6. Brian Ortega
7. Arnold Allen
8. Josh Emmett
9. Aljamain Sterling
10. Calvin Kattar
11. Lerone Murphy
12. Giga Chikadze
13. Bryce Mitchell
14. Dan Ige
15. Edson Barboza
LIGHTWEIGHT
Champion: Islam Makhachev
1. Arman Tsarukyan
2. Charles Oliveira
3. Justin Gaethje
4. Dustin Poirier
5. Max Holloway
6. Dan Hooker
7. Michael Chandler
8. Mateusz Gamrot
9. Beneil Dariush
10. Renato Moicano
11. Rafael Fiziev
12. Benoit Saint Denis
13. Paddy Pimblett
14. Jalin Turner
15. Joel Alvarez
WELTERWEIGHT
Champion: Belal Muhammed
1. Leon Edwards
2. Shavkat Rakhmonov
3. Kamaru Usman
4. Jack Della Maddalena
6. Sean Brady
6. Joaquin Buckley
7. Ian Machado Garry
8. Gilbert Burns
9. Colby Covington
10. Geoff Neal
11. Stephen Thompson
12. Michael Morales
13. Carlos Prates
14. Vicente Luque
15. Michael Page
MIDDLEWEIGHT
Champion: Dricus Du Plessis
1. Sean Strickland
2. Israel Adesanya
3. Khamzat Chimaev
4. Robert Whittaker
5. Nassourdine Imavov
6. Caio Borralho
7. Marvin Vettori
8. Jared Cannonier
9. Brendan Allen
10. Roman Dolidze
11. Paulo Costa
12. Anthony Hernandez +1
13. Jack Hermansson -1
14. Shara Magomedov
15. Michel Pereira
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT
Champion: Alex Pereira
1. Magomed Ankalaev
2. Jiri Prochazka
3. Jamahal Hill
4. Jan Blachowicz
5. Aleksandar Rakic
6. Carlos Ulberg
7. Khalil Rountree
8. Nikita Krylov
9. Volkan Oezdemir
10. Johnny Walker
11. Dominick Reyes
12. Azamat Murzakanov
13. Bogdan Guskov
14. Anthony Smith
15. Alonzo Menifield
HEAVYWEIGHT
Champion: Jon Jones
1. Tom Aspinall
2. Ciryl Gane
3. Alexander Volkov
4. Sergei Pavlovich
5. Curtis Blaydes
6. Jailton Almeida
7. Serghei Spivac
8. Marcin Tybura
9. Jairzinho Rozenstruik
10. Derrick Lewis
11. Tai Tuivasa
12. Marcos Rogerio De Lima
13. Waldo Cortes Acosta
14. Shamil Gaziev
15. Mick Parkin
WOMEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND
1. Valentina Shevchenko
2. Zhang Weili
3. Alexa Grasso
4. Julianna Pena
5. Manon Fiorot
6. Erin Blanchfield
7. Kayla Harrison
8. Rose Namajunas
9. Raquel Pennington
10. Tatiana Suarez
11. Yan Xiaonan
12. Virna Jandiroba
13. Jessica Andrade
14. Natalia Silva
15. Maycee Barber
WOMEN’S STRAWWEIGHT
Champion: Zhang Weili
1. Tatiana Suarez
2. Yan Xiaonan
3. Virna Jandiroba
4. Jessica Andrade
5. Amanda Lemos
6. Mackenzie Dern
7. Iasmin Lucindo
8. Amanda Ribas
9. Marina Rodriguez
10. Tabatha Ricci
11. Loopy Godinez
12. Gillian Robertson
13. Angela Hill
14. Luana Pinheiro
15. Tecia Pennington
WOMEN’S FLYWEIGHT
Champion: Valentina Shevchenko
1. Alexa Grasso
2. Manon Fiorot
3. Erin Blanchfield
4. Maycee Barber
5. Natalia Silva
6. Rose Namajunas
7. Jessica Andrade +1
8. Katlyn Cerminara -1
9. Viviane Araújo
10. Amanda Ribas
11. Tracy Cortez
12. Jasmine Jasudavicius
13. Karine Silva
14. Ariane Da Silva
15. Miranda Maverick
WOMEN’S BANTAMWEIGHT
Champion: Julianna Pena
1. Raquel Pennington
2. Kayla Harrison
3. Ketlen Vieira
4. (T) Macy Chiasson
4. (T) Norma Dumont
6. (T) Irene Aldana
6. (T) Mayra Bueno Silva
8. Holly Holm
9. Karol Rosa
10. Yana Santos
11. Miesha Tate
12. Julia Avila
13. Ailin Perez
14. Jacqueline Cavalcanti
15. Chelsea Chandler
You can expect these rankings to change around this time next week, following the UFC 311: “Makhachev vs. Tsarukyan 2” pay-per-view (PPV) event on ESPN+, scheduled for Sat., Jan. 18, 2025 at Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, California.
For much more on that upcoming fight card click here.