Pound for pound: Justin Gaethje knocks Dustin Poirier out … and is in
In the aftermath of a combat sports weekend that, between boxing and MMA, featured three huge events happening simultaneously around the world, one might expect the fighter rankings to be in upheaval.
However, the ESPN pound-for-pound MMA rankings are holding steady at the upper end of the men’s and women’s top-10s. The most significant changes involve new entries to the rankings.
On the men’s side, there’s a change at No. 10, and it should come as no surprise to anyone who watched UFC 291. Dustin Poirier had held down that position for a while, but after Justin Gaethje knocked him out in the main event on Saturday night in Salt Lake City, it’s now Gaethje occupying the final spot in the rankings.
The women’s top 10 sees a bit more change, in part because former No. 4 Julianna Peña became ineligible once a year passed since her last fight. So several of the fighters who were below her in the rankings move up a spot, and in comes Rizin super atomweight champ Seika Izawa. The undefeated 25-year-old made the first defense of her 108-pound title a success this past weekend, defeating Claire Lopez in just 66 seconds during the Bellator x Rizin 2 co-promotion just outside Izawa’s adopted hometown of Tokyo. She is the first Rizin fighter to break into the ESPN rankings, and she does so at No. 8.
For the ESPN divisional MMA rankings, click here.
Note: Results are current; rankings as of Aug. 1. In order to be eligible for the rankings, a fighter must have competed over the past 12 months or must have an upcoming fight booked. Fighters who have been dropped for inactivity can be reinstated only after they compete.
Men’s pound-for-pound rankings
UFC featherweight champion
Record: 26-2
Last: W (TKO3) Yair Rodriguez, July 8, 2023
Next: TBD
UFC lightweight champion
Record: 24-1
Last: W (UD) Alexander Volkanovski, Feb. 11, 2023
Next: Oct. 21 vs. Charles Oliveira
3. Jon Jones 
UFC heavyweight champion
Record: 27-1, 1 NC
Last: W (Sub1) Ciryl Gane, March 4, 2023
Next: Nov. 11 vs. Stipe Miocic
UFC middleweight champion
Record: 24-2
Last: W (TKO2) Alex Pereira, April 8, 2023
Next: TBD vs. Dricus Du Plessis
5. Leon Edwards
UFC welterweight champion
Record: 21-3, 1 NC
Last: W (MD) Kamaru Usman, March 18, 2023
Next: TBD
UFC lightweight
Record: 34-9, 1 NC
Last: W (TKO1) Beneil Dariush, June 10, 2023
Next: Oct. 21 vs. Islam Makhachev
UFC bantamweight champion
Record: 22-3
Last: W (SD) Henry Cejudo, May 6, 2023
Next: Aug. 19 vs. Sean O’Malley
8. Kamaru Usman
UFC welterweight
Record: 20-3
Last: L (MD) Leon Edwards, March 18, 2023
Next: TBD
UFC flyweight champion
Record: 26-5
Last: W (SD) Brandon Moreno, July 8, 2023
Next: TBD
10. Justin Gaethje 
UFC lightweight
Previous ranking: Unranked
Record: 25-4
Last: W (KO) Dustin Poirier, July 29, 2023
Next: TBD
Other fighters receiving votes: Alex Pereira, Brandon Moreno, Max Holloway and Demetrious Johnson.
How our panel voted
Brett Okamoto: 1. Alexander Volkanovski; 2. Islam Makhachev; 3. Jon Jones; 4. Israel Adesanya; 5. Leon Edwards; 6. Charles Oliveira; 7. Aljamain Sterling; 8. Kamaru Usman; 9. Alexandre Pantoja; 109. Max Holloway.
Marc Raimondi: 1. Jones; 2. Makhachev; 3. Volkanovski; 4. Adesanya; 5. Sterling; 6. Edwards; 7. Oliveira; 8. Pantoja; 9. Usman; 10. Brandon Moreno.
Megan Anderson: 1. Jones; 2. Volkanovski; 3. Makhachev; 4. Adesanya; 5. Edwards; 6. Oliveira; 7. Usman; 8. Sterling; 9. Pantoja; 10. Justin Gaethje.
Carlos Contreras Legaspi: 1. Volkanovski; 2. Makhachev; 3. Jones; 4. Adesanya; 5. Edwards; 6. Oliveira; 7. Usman; 8. Sterling; 9. Alex Pereira; 10. Gaethje.
Eddie Maisonet III: 1. Volkanovski; 2. Makhachev; 3. Adesanya; 4. Jones; 5. Sterling; 6. Oliveira; 7. Edwards; 8. Usman; 9. Pantoja; 10. Demetrious Johnson.
Jeff Wagenheim: 1. Makhachev; 2. Volkanovski; 3. Jones; 4. Adesanya; 5. Edwards; 6. Oliveira; 7. Sterling; 8. Pantoja; 9. Usman; 10. Moreno.
1. Zhang Weili
UFC strawweight champion
Record: 23-3
Last: W (Sub2) Carla Esparza, Nov. 12, 2022
Next: Aug. 19 vs. Amanda Lemos
UFC flyweight
Record: 22-4
Last: L (Sub4) Alexa Grasso, March 4, 2023
Next: TBD
3. Alexa Grasso
UFC flyweight champion
Record: 16-3
Last: W (Sub4) Valentina Shevchenko, March 4, 2023
Next: TBD
UFC flyweight
Previous ranking: 5
Record: 11-1
Last: W (Sub2) Jessica Andrade, Feb. 18, 2023
Next: TBD
UFC strawweight
Previous ranking: 6
Record: 19-7
Last: L (Sub2) Zhang Weili, Nov. 12, 2022
Next: TBD
6. Yan Xiaonan
UFC strawweight
Previous ranking: 7
Record: 17-3
Last: W (KO1) Jessica Andrade, May 6, 2023
Next: TBD
PFL lightweight
Previous ranking: 8
Record: 15-1
Last: L (UD) Larissa Pacheco, Nov. 25, 2022
Next: TBD
8. Seika Izawa
Rizin super atomweight champion
Previous ranking: Unranked
Record: 11-0
Last: W (Sub1) Claire Lopez, July 30, 2023
Next: TBD
Bellator flyweight champion
Previous ranking: 10
Record: 19-7
Last: W (Sub4) DeAnna Bennett, April 21, 2023
Next: TBD
10. Amanda Lemos 
UFC strawweight
Previous ranking: 9
Record: 13-2-1
Last: W (TKO3) Marina Rodriguez, Nov. 5, 2022
Next: Aug. 19 vs. Zhang Weili
Other fighters receiving votes: Jessica Andrade, Larissa Pacheco, Raquel Pennington, Manon Fiorot, Taila Santos and Mayra Bueno Silva.
How our panel voted
Brett Okamoto: 1. Valentina Shevchenko; 2. Zhang Weili; 3. Alexa Grasso; 4. Kayla Harrison; 5. Erin Blanchfield; 6. Carla Esparza; 7. Jessica Andrade; 8. Yan Xiaonan; 9. Amanda Lemos; 10. Seika Izawa.
Marc Raimondi: 1. Shevchenko; 2. Zhang; 3. Grasso; 4. Blanchfield; 5. Esparza; 6. Yan; 7. Izawa; 8. Lemos; 9. Liz Carmouche; 10. Raquel Pennington.
Megan Anderson: 1. Zhang; 2. Shevchenko; 3. Grasso; 4. Esparza; 5. Blanchfield; 6. Yan; 7. Pennington; 8. Manon Fiorot; 9. Taila Santos; 10. Mayra Bueno Silva.
Carlos Contreras Legaspi: 1. Zhang; 2. Shevchenko; 3. Grasso; 4. Harrison; 5. Esparza; 6. Blanchfield; 7. Yan; 8. Andrade; 9. Larissa Pacheco; 10. Carmouche.
Eddie Maisonet III: 1. Zhang; 2. Grasso; 3. Shevchenko; 4. Blanchfield; 5. Lemos; 6. Pacheco; 7. Harrison; 8. Izawa; 9. Carmouche; 10. Yan.
Jeff Wagenheim: 1. Zhang; 2. Shevchenko; 3. Grasso; 4. Blanchfield; 5. Esparza; 6. Carmouche; 7. Yan; 8. Izawa; 9. Lemos; 10. Pennington.
