MFX MMA RANKINGS -- (JULY 30, '17)

[Cory]

Corys P4P Rankings

p4p
1. Demetrious Johnson (Flyweight) [25-2-1]
2. Conor McGregor (Featherweight) [21-3]
3. Jon Jones (Light Heavyweight) [23-1]
4. Stipe Miocic (Heavyweight) [17-2]
5. Joanna Jedrzejczyk (F. Strawweight) [14-0]
6. Max Holloway (Featherweight) [18-3]
7. Cody Garbrandt (Bantamweight) [10-0]
8. Tyron Woodley (Welterweight) [18-3-1]
9. Michael Bisping (Middleweight) [30-7]
10. Khabib Nurmagomedov (Lightweight) [24-0]


Heavyweight
1. Stipe Miocic (UFC) [17-2] *UFC Heavyweight Champion*
2. Cain Velasquez (UFC) [14-2]
3. Alistair Overeem (UFC) [43-15-1]
4. Junior Dos Santos (UFC) [18-5]
5. Fabricio Werdum (UFC) [21-7-1]
6. Ben Rothwell (UFC) [36-10]
7. Mark Hunt (UFC) [13-11-1]
8. Francis Ngannou (UFC) [10-1]
9. Derrick Lewis (UFC) [18-5-1]
10. Vitaly Minakov (Bellator) [20-0]

Light Heavyweight
1. Jon Jones (UFC) [23-1] *UFC Light Heavyweight Champion*   
2. Daniel Cormier (UFC) [19-2]
3. Alexander Gustafsson (UFC) [18-4]
4. Ryan Bader (UFC) [22-5]
5. Volkan Oezdemir (UFC) [15-1]
6. Anthony Johnson (UFC) [22-6]
7. Phil Davis (Bellator) [17-3-1] *Bellator Light Heavyweight Champion*
8. Jimi Manuwa (UFC) [17-3]
9. Shogun Rua (UFC) [25-10]
10. Liam McGeary (Bellator) [11-1]

Middleweight
1. Michael Bisping (UFC) [30-7] *UFC Middleweight Champion*
2. Robert Whittaker (UFC) [19-4] *INTERIM UFC Middleweight Champion*
3. Gegard Mousasi (UFC) [42-5-2]
4. Yoel Romero (UFC) [12-2]
5. Chris Weidman (UFC) [14-3]
6. Kelvin Gastelum (UFC) [14-3]
7. Jacare Souza (UFC) [24-5-1]
8. Luke Rockhold (UFC) [15-3]
9. Anderson Silva (UFC) [34-8-1]
10. Derek Brunson (UFC) [16-5]

Welterweight
1. Tyron Woodley (UFC) 18-3-1] *UFC Welterweight Champion*
2. Robbie Lawler (UFC) [28-11-1]
3. Stephen Thompson (UFC) [13-2-1]
4. Demian Maia (UFC) [25-7]
5. Douglas Lima (Bellator) [28-6] *Bellator Welterweight Champion*
6. Carlos Condit (UFC) [30-10]
7. Rory MacDonald (Bellator) [18-4]
8. Neil Magny (UFC) [18-4]
9. Ben Askren (One-FC) [15-0-1] *One-FC Welterweight Champion*
10. Jorge Masvidal (UFC) [32-11]

Lightweight
1. Conor McGregor (UFC) [21-3] *UFC Lightweight Champion*
2. Khabib Nurmagomedov (UFC) [24-0]
3. Tony Ferguson (UFC) [22-3]
4. Eddie Alvarez (UFC) [28-5-1]
5. Nate Diaz (UFC) [19-11]
6. Donald Cerrone (UFC) [32-9]
7. Michael Chandler (Bellator) [16-3] *Bellator Lightweight Champion*
8. Justin Gaethje (UFC) [18-0]
9. Rafael dos Anjos (UFC) [26-9]
10. Edson Barboza (UFC) [19-4]

Featherweight Rankings
1. Conor McGregor (UFC) [21-3]
2. Max Holloway (UFC) [18-3] *UFC Featherweight Champion*
3. Frankie Edgar (UFC) [22-5-1]
4. Jose Aldo (UFC) [26-3]
5. Chad Mendes (UFC) [17-4]
6. Cub Swanson (UFC) [25-7]
7. Daniel Straus (Bellator) [25-6] *Bellator Featherweight Champion*
8. Ricardo Lamas (UFC) [17-4]
9. Yair Rodriguez (UFC) [10-2]
10. Korean Zombie (UFC) [14-4]

Bantamweight Rankings
1. Cody Garbrandt (UFC) [10-0] *UFC Bantamweight Champion*
2. TJ Dillashaw (UFC) [14-3]
3. Dominick Cruz (UFC) [22-2]
4. John Lineker (UFC) [29-8]
5. Raphael Assuncao (UFC) [23-5]
6. Bibiano Fernandes (One-FC) [19-3] *One FC Bantamweight Champion*
7. Jimmie Rivera (UFC) [21-1]
8. Eduardo Dantas (Bellator) [19-4] *Bellator Bantamweight Champion*
9. Marlon Moraes (WSOF) [17-4-1] *WSOF Bantamweight Champion*
10. Bryan Caraway (UFC) [21-7]

Flyweight Rankings
1. Demetrious Johnson (UFC) [25-2-1] *UFC Flyweight Champion*
2. Joseph Benavidez (UFC) [24-4]
3. Kyoji Horiguchi (UFC) [16-2]
4. Henry Cejudo (UFC) [10-1]
5. Jussier da Silva (UFC) [18-4]
6. Ali Bagautinov (UFC) [13-4]
7. Wilson Reis (UFC) [21-7]
8. John Moraga (UFC) [16-4]
9. Zach Makovsky (UFC) [19-7]
10. Ian McCall (UFC) [13-5-1]

Female p4p Rankings
1. Joanna Jedrzejczyk (UFC) [14-0] *UFC Strawweight Champion*
2. Cris 'Cyborg' Justino (UFC) [18-1-1] *UFC Featherweight Champion*
3. Amanda Nunes (UFC) [14-4] *UFC Bantamweight Champion*
4. Valentina Shevchenko (UFC) [14-2]
5. Ronda Rousey (UFC) [12-2]
6. Claudia Gadelha (UFC) [15-2]
7. Julianna Pena (UFC) [8-3]
8. Germaine de Randamie (UFC) [7-3]
9. Rosa Namajunas (UFC) [6-3]
10. Karolina Kowalkiewicz (UFC) [10-2]

Female Bantamweight Rankings
1. Amanda Nunes (UFC) [14-4] *UFC Bantamweight Champion*
2. Valentina Shevchenko (UFC) [14-2]
3. Julianna Pena (UFC) [8-3]
4. Ronda Rousey (UFC) [12-2]
5. Holly Holm (UFC) [11-3]
6. Raquel Pennington (UFC) [9-5]
7. Cat Zingano (UFC) [9-2]
8. Liz Carmouche (UFC) [11-5]
9. Sara McMann (UFC) [9-3]
10. Bethe Correia (UFC) [10-3-1]

Female Strawweight Rankings
1. Joanna Jedrzejczyk (UFC) [14-0] *UFC Strawweight Champion*
2. Claudia Gadelha (UFC) [15-2]
3. Rose Namajunas (UFC) [6-3]
4. Karolina Kowalkiewicz (UFC) [10-2]
5. Carla Esparza (UFC) [11-3]
6. Tecia Torres (UFC) [7-1]
7. Jessica Aguilar (UFC) [19-5]
8. Michelle Waterson (UFC) [14-5]
9. Maryna Moroz (UFC) [7-1]
10. Cynthia Calvillo (UFC) [5-0]

[Cory]

Jon's P4P Rankings

p4p
1. Jon Jones (Light Heavyweight) [21-1]
2. Jose Aldo (Featherweight) [25-1]
3. Demetrious Johnson (Flyweight) [22-2-1]
4. Chris Weidman (Middleweight) [13-0]
5. Ronda Rousey (Women's Bantamweight) [11-0]
6. Robbie Lawler (Welterweight) [25-10]
7. TJ Dillashaw (Bantamweight) [12-2]
8. Rafael dos Anjos (Lightweight) [24-7]
9. Daniel Cormier (Light Heavyweight) [16-1]
10a. Cain Velasquez (Heavyweight) [13-2]
10b. Fabricio Werdum (Heavyweight) [20-5-1]


Heavyweight
1. Fabricio Werdum (UFC) [20-5-1] *UFC Heavyweight Champion*
2. Cain Velasquez (UFC) [13-2]
3. Junior Dos Santos (UFC) [17-3]
4. Travis Browne (UFC) [17-2-1]
5. Stipe Miocic (UFC) [12-2]
6. Mark Hunt (UFC) [10-9-1]
7. Alistair Overeem (UFC) [39-14]
8. Andrei Arlovski (UFC) [23-10]
9. Vitaly Minakov (Bellator) [14-0] *Bellator Heavyweight Champion*
10. Frank Mir (UFC) [17-9]


Light Heavyweight
1. Jon Jones (UFC) [21-1] *UFC Light Heavyweight Champion*
2. Anthony Johnson (UFC) [19-4]
3. Daniel Cormier (UFC) ]15-1]
4. Alexander Gustafsson (UFC) [16-2]
5. Rashad Evans (UFC) [19-3-1]
6. Ryan Bader (UFC) [19-4]
7. Glover Teixeira (UFC) [22-3]
8. Phil Davis (UFC) [13-3]
9. Ovince St. Preux (UFC) [17-6]
10. Liam McGeary (Bellator) [10-0] *Bellator Light Heavyweight Champion*

Middleweight
1. Chris Weidman (UFC) [12-0] *UFC Middleweight Champion*
2. Anderson Silva (UFC) [34-6]
3. Vitor Belfort (UFC) [24-10]
4. Luke Rockhold (UFC) [13-2]
5. Ronaldo Souza (UFC) [21-3]
6. Lyoto Machida (UFC) [22-5)
7. Gegard Mousasi (UFC) [36-5-2]
8. Yoel Romero (UFC) [9-1]
9. Thales Leites (UFC) [25-4]
10. Tim Kennedy (UFC) [18-5]


Welterweight
1. Robbie Lawler (UFC) [25-10] *UFC Welterweight Champion*
2. Johny Hendricks (UFC) [17-3]
3. Rory MacDonald (UFC) [18-2]
4. Tyron Woodley (UFC) [15-3]
5. Carlos Condit (UFC) [29-8]
6. Ben Askren (One FC) [14-0] *One FC Welterweight Champion*
7. Hector Lombard (UFC) [35-4-1]
8. Matt Brown (UFC) [19-13] 
9. Demian Maia (UFC) [19-6]
10. Kevin Gastelum (UFC) [10-1]


Lightweight
1. Rafael dos Anjos [24-7] *UFC Lightweight Champion*
2. Anthony Pettis (UFC) [18-3]
3. Khabib Nurmagomedov (UFC) [22-0]
4. Donald Cerrone (UFC) [27-6]
5. Benson Henderson (UFC) [22-5]
6. Gilbert Melendez (UFC) [22-4]
7. TJ Grant (UFC) [21-5]
8. Eddie Alvarez (UFC) [25-4]
9. Nate Diaz (UFC) [17-10]
10. Myles Jury (UFC) [15-1]


Featherweight Rankings
1. Jose Aldo (UFC) [25-1]*UFC Featherweight Champion*
2. Frankie Edgar (UFC) [18-4-1]
3. Chad Mendes (UFC) [16-2]
4. Ricardo Lamas (UFC) [15-3]
5. Conor McGregor (UFC) [17-2]
6. Patricio Freire (Bellator) [23-2] *Bellator Featherweight Champion*
7. Cub Swanson (UFC) [21-6]
8. Dennis Bermudez (UFC) [14-4]
9. Dustin Porier (UFC) [16-4]
10. Max Holloway (UFC) [12-3]

Bantamweight Rankings
1. TJ Dillashaw (UFC) [11-2] *UFC Bantamweight Champion*
2. Renan Barao (UFC) [33-2]
3. Dominick Cruz (UFC) [20-1]
4. Urijah Faber (UFC) [32-7]
5. Michael McDonald (UFC) [16-3]
6. Raphael Assuncao (UFC) [23-4]
7. Bibiano Fernandes (One FC) [17-3] *One FC Bantamweight Champion*
8. Joe Warren (Bellator) [12-3] *Bellator Bantamweight Champion*
9. Eduardo Dantas (Bellator) [16-4]
10. Takeya Mizugaki (UFC) [20-8-2]


Flyweight Rankings
1. Demetrious Johnson (UFC) [21-2-1] *UFC Flyweight Champion*
2. John Dodson (UFC) [16-6]
3. Joseph Benavidez (UFC) [21-4]
4. Jussier Formiga (UFC) [17-3]
5. Ali Bagautinov (UFC) [13-3]
6. John Moraga (UFC) [16-3]
7. Kyoji Horiguchi (UFC) [15-1]
8. John Lineker (UFC) [25-7]
9. Ian McCall (UFC) [13-5-1]
10. Zach Makovsky (UFC) [19-5]


Female p4p Rankings
1. Ronda Rousey (UFC) [11-0] *UFC Female Bantamweight Champion*
2. Cristiane Justino (Invicta) [13-1] *Invicta Featherweight Champion*
3. Barb Honchak (Invicta) [10-2] *Invicta Flyweight Champion*
4. Cat Zigano (UFC) [9-1]
5. Joanna Jędrzejczyk (9-0) *UFC Female Strawweight Champion*
6. Jessica Aguilar (WSOF) [19-4] *WSOF Women's Strawweight Champion*
7. Miesha Tate (UFC) [16-5]
8. Alexis Davis (UFC) [16-6]
9. Sarah Kaufman (UFC) 17-2]
10. Claudia Gadelha (UFC) [12-1]

[Cory]

FLINS RANKINGS


TBA

[Duckman]

How come Fedor is still number one HW when he hasn't beaten anyone of real note for a while?

Peace

Duckman

[Cory]

Cuz its Fedor, thats the only real way I can put it. He's still cleaned the division, and he's beaten Sylvia and Arlovski when they were still regarded as legit, as I usually tend to hold a "what have you shown me over the past two years", but if Lesnar tops Velasquez, he'll obviously become my new #1 as hes more active then Fedor, and has cleaned out the top contenders in the division (well still Dos Santos)

[Duckman]

Moot point I suppose but I reckon Brock has to be number one heavyweight.  Fedor may be Fedor but honestly, he hasn't fought anyone near the level Brock has in the past 2 years. 

Just my take, seems like Fedor is only there because he's your favourite, not because of his recent performances.

Peace

Duckman

[The Dudester]

The argument FOR Fedor:

31 consecutive wins, a feat no one has ever done. he beat Nog in Nog's prime when Nog was the #1 HW in the world, and he did it twice. He defeated Sylvia, who was still top 5 coming out of UFC, as well as Arlovski, who was arguably the 2nd ranked HW when they fought. Rogers was breaking into the top 10 when Fedor fought him.

Fedor did indeed lose to Werdum, but fedor's shown over the years that he's the top dog at the HW division and has proven it.

The argument AGAINST Fedor:

Sure, his fights with Sylvia and Arlovksi they were ranked THEN, but hindsight shows they were both over rated. Same with Rogers. Werdum was barely a top ten guy and Fedor got beat. Meanwhile, Brock's facing off with the up and comers, Couture, Herring, Mir and (well, ok, ONE up and com
er) Carwin.

It comes down to personal value. Do you value a 31 fight win streak against top 5 opponents AT THE TIME OF THE FIGHT, Cro Cop, Nog x2, Herring x2, Syvlia, Arlovski and going undefeated and separating yourself from the pack by 50 miles..

OR...

Does one loss to a top ten opponent, and hindsight to attack credibility of fighters of years prior close the 50 mile gap between fedor and everyone else?

[The Dudester]

To Cory:

I think where you and I have different opinions is it seems you take into account HOW you win, while I hold in account it's whether you win because ultimately, that is what matters.

Silva is on the longest win streak in the UFC currently, and all time. GSP has lost during Silva's run, which a loss is a loss, no matter how flukish.

That's why I put Silva 1, GSP 2, simple because one has been defeated while the other has not.

[MitchMMA]

I have to agree with Duckman here, sorry Cory  

Before I get into the Fedor/Brock argument, I want to first ask you why you have Fabricio Werdum ranked at number 7? Werdum's 1st round submission over Fedor (who you have ranked #1) should be more than enough to put the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt into the top 3 or at least top 5. Granted, dos Santos completely smashed Werdum so one can make a case that dos Santos should be ranked higher than him but that was also two years ago. Since that loss, Werdum has gone 3-0 and granted his two decision wins over Mike Kyle and Antonio Silva weren't THAT impressive but how can he be ranked below the top 5 after subbing Fedor in mere minutes?

Shane Carwin is probably my favorite heavyweight fighter in the world, as part of the media I am not supposed to say I have favorites but I really do consider myself a big Carwin fan. That said, I don't think he should be ranked ahead of Werdum. Carwin looked very impressive early on against Brock but it also showed that he has glaring weaknesses in his conditioning and submission defense.

Any top 10 heavyweight that can weather Carwin's early storm and avoid his massive punching power, will be able to defeat him in the later rounds.

Here's how I would personally rank the heavyweight division right now:

1. Brock Lesnar
2. Fabricio Werdum
3. Fedor Emelianenko
4. Cain Velasquez
5. Alistair Overeem
6. Junior dos Santos
7. Shane Carwin
8. Frank Mir
9. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
10. Antonio Silva


But that's just how I view the top guys right now. Everyone has their own opinion. Rankings, in the grand scheme of things, don't mean much. They are merely speculation and a fun way to generate some interesting MMA discussion.

As far as the Fedor/Brock argument, I personally think Fedor is on a slow decline where as Brock is rapidly improving but that's just my opinion. I definitely don't think Fedor is the best heavyweight in the world right now but he's still one of the best in the division, that's for sure.

Could Fedor beat Brock if they fought this year? Maybe. In a few years? I think Brock would smash him.

Unfortunately it doesn't look like that fight will ever happen .

I also think that Brock's recent string of wins over Carwin, Mir and Couture are more impressive than Fedor's last three wins over Rogers, Arlovski, and Sylvia. I think Rogers is extremely overrated, personally. Arlovski and Sylvia were quality wins though but I believe Frank Mir and Randy Couture are higher quality victories.

Just my two cents though

But Cory makes great points too.

[Duckman]

That's my point.  This isn't a pound for pound ranking when Fedor was in Pride smashing all those big names.  We're talking 2010 and the guy isn't fighting top level fights on a regular enough basis for me to be considered a number one rank.

The heavyweight who holds the World Title of the company with the deepest talent pool has to be above a guy who is hand picking opponents to maintain his reputation that was built at least 5 years ago.

It's like saying Italy are the best football team in the world because they won the 2006 World Cup.

Good debate though guys, very interesting points made all round.

Peace

Duckman

[The Dudester]

By taking into account the last three opponents, we're looking at Couture, Mir and Carwin vs Sylvia, Arlovski and Rogers.

Well, you could break those down into individual fights.

Rogers v Carwin. Both guys hit HARD. We've seen Rogers go three rounds, we've seen him go 1.5 with Fedor, including a portion of rd 1 where Rogers unleashed a heavy flurry of GnP and didn't gas. However... Carwin hits REALLY hard. Overall, I think it's pretty much a push. Carwins biggest win was Mir, while Rogers was Arlovski.

Arlovski vs Couture. Randy wouldn't have a chance when it comes to striking, as he doesn't have KO power nor the striking ability of Arlovski. Couture's strength would be in the grappling, but AA has shown for years he's got good TDD and submission defense.

That leaves Mir v Sylvia... The advantage goes to Mir.

When you break it down the level of competition really isn't that far off.

I still would put Fedor at #1 because he had a extremely WIIIIDDDEEEE gap between him and the rest of the division. The loss narrows that gap, but I dont think it pushes anyone over him due to how far he was compared to the other HW's, which includes Brock who's only had 6 total fights, 1 Korean Can and 1 loss.

But as for GSP and Silva, I always had them right after him as it was, so I wouldn't argue about either of them jumping past him in P4P.

[Cory]

Maddox hit it on the head, a independent p4p will always have some form of biasness as its a personal opinion, and I think Fedors dominace and one slip up isn't enough to slip him from the first spot. But if Lesnar puts away Velasquez, he's essentially cleared the division, and he is my #1. Untill then, The Last Emperor is staying up top.

I like the discussion over my p4p, I like to hear everyones views. I get shit for having Diaz in my p4p, but as my opinion, hes be the most dominate WW aside from GSP (id say about tied with Fitch, but Diaz has finished thus hes #2), hes top 4 best striker in MMA, along with Belfort, Silva, and Aldo.

[Cory]

Also, never really thought about this but it could impare ones judgement is how do you base your p4p rankings by? Is it wins or talent?

The Fedor/Brock debate, it's like well Brock has defeated tougher opponents in recent memory, but is Brock better than Fedor? On most accounts, he is not, there for he isn't the best heavyweight fighter in the world.

I'd like to believe with the hours I've spent maintaining my own, independent list for almost 2 years now, I'd like to think i take both of these in consideration, with more weight on wins rather talent, but the talent aspect I do consider in my rankings.

Lets just see a few examples:

I have Aoki, Penn, Alvarez, and Melendez all higher than current #1 contender Gray Maynard. Maynard may be on a better win streak in the top promotion, but I think Aoki would easily submit Maynard on the ground, Penn would dominate Maynard if he even gave a shit about MMA anymore (hes going to slip down my list soon), and I think Alvarez and Melendez are toss ups. You could also say the same thing considering how high Nick Diaz is on my WW list.

[Cory]

Updated after UFC 119

[Cory]

updated after UFC 120 + 121


New #1 HW fighter in Cain Velasquez