Welcome to the latest update to the MMA Fighting pound-for-pound rankings, where every month our esteemed panel sort through the noise to answer one question: Who are the best overall male and female MMA fighters in the world?
Let’s take a look at how things stand following a pair of title fights at UFC 307 in Salt Lake City, and a performance from one contender that has her on the cusp of a top 5 spot.
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Julianna Peña and Raquel PenningtonPhoto by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
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Throwing four of the best bantamweights in the world on the same card was bound to shake up the women’s pound-for-pound charts and Saturday’s results didn’t disappoint.
Kayla Harrison led off the UFC 307 main card with a convincing win over perennial contender Ketlen Vieira. It wasn’t a first-round demolition, but rather a gutsy 15-minute performance that showed how much Harrison has matured in her sixth year as an MMA fighter. It’s no stretch to say Harrison’s first two UFC opponents, Vieira and Holly Holm are a considerable step up from what she faced in the PFL (with the exception of Larissa Pacheco, who Harrison still holds two wins over) and she’s impressed against both, in different ways.
The win over Vieira bumped Harrison up four spots to No. 8 in our rankings, one spot higher than her previous best. The Harrison hype train headed for champion station appears to be right on track.
With a split nod over Raquel Pennington, Peña is the UFC bantamweight champion once again, which puts her back in the rankings at No. 13 and in the driver’s seat if she has anything to say about it. Her ideal opponent is retired rival Amanda Nunes, the woman Peña beat at UFC 269 to score one of the most shocking championship upsets ever, only to immediately return the title at UFC 277 when Nunes pummeled her for five rounds.
It’s doubtful “The Lioness” awakens from her slumber to deal with Peña, so a title defense against Harrison feels inevitable. The winner could find themselves cracking the top 5 of the pound-for-pound rankings, something no women’s bantamweight has done since Nunes’ retirement in June 2023.
Falling out of the rankings (previous ranking shown): No. 20 Macy Chiasson
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Alex PereiraPhoto by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
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Alex Pereira shut down a spirited effort from Khalil Rountree Jr., so there’s not a lot to report when it comes to the men’s side of the list, though Pereira’s dominance and popularity continue to push the question of just how close he is to usurping Islam Makhachev in the No. 1 spot.
Few would dispute Makhachev’s status as the best fighter in the world, but activity matters and Pereira has a strong case to top the charts with his fourth title fight victory in less than a year. To add further context, Makhachev has fought five times since the start of 2022, smoking Charles Oliveira to claim the lightweight title and then going 2-0 against featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski. His most recent outing saw him finish Dustin Poirier, one of the best lightweights ever.
Given that lightweight is widely considered to be a stronger division than light heavyweight or middleweight, it’s fair to keep Makhachev at No. 1. But if he doesn’t book a title fight soon, and Pereira keeps up this pace, Makhachev might not be able to hold “Poatan” for long.
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Recent results for ranked fighters (previous ranking shown): No. 2 Alex Pereira def. Khalil Rountree Jr.
The six-person voting panel consists of MMA Fighting staffers Alexander K. Lee, Guilherme Cruz, Mike Heck, E. Casey Leydon, Damon Martin and Jed Meshew.
Updates to the rankings will be completed following every UFC pay-per-view. Fighters will be removed from the rankings if they do not compete within 18 months of their most recent bout.
Should a fighter announce their retirement, our panel will decide whether that fighter should immediately be removed from the rankings or maintain their position until further notice (let’s put it this way: we’d have taken Khabib Nurmagomedov out of our rankings a lot quicker than the UFC did).
As a reminder, the notion of pound-for-pound supremacy is always going to inherently be subjective. When you’re debating whether someone like Sean Strickland should be ranked above someone like Charles Oliveira, there is no true right answer. In other words: It’s not serious business, folks.
Thoughts? Questions? Concerns? Make your voice heard in the comments below.
Joe Rogan provided some inside information about the absolute force behind Alex Pereira’s strikes following UFC 307.
Rogan, who called the action with Jon Anik and Daniel Cormier during Saturday’s event in Salt Lake City, revealed on the broadcast following Pereira’s fourth-round knockout of Khalil Rountree in the headliner that he spoke with referee Marc Goddard — the third man in the octagon with the two light heavyweight championship competitors — about the fight.
What Rogan heard he needed to share immediately.
“I was in the octagon after the fight and Marc Goddard came up to me and he said, ‘I’ve been doing this for 20 years,’” Rogan said. “And he goes, ‘The way he hits people, the sound is like nothing that I’ve ever heard before.’
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“He said, ‘It’s ungodly.’ That’s what he kept saying. He says it’s ungodly.”
Pereira made a strong case for the 2024 Fighter of the Year with his third title defense of the year, and third sensational knockout. “Poatan” began the year with a brutal knockout of Jamahal Hill at UFC 300 in April, and followed it up with a head kick finish of Jiri Prochazka in June at UFC 303.
Manchester United winger Alejandro Garnacho has pulled out of Argentina’s World Cup qualifiers against Venezuela and Bolivia with a knee problem.
The 20-year-old, who played the full 90 minutes of United’s 0-0 Premier League draw at Aston Villa on Sunday with a strapping on his left knee, has been replaced in the Argentina squad by Leicester City’s Facundo Buonanotte.
The world champions are top of the South American qualifying standings – two points ahead of second-placed Colombia.
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Lionel Scaloni’s Argentina travel to sixth-placed Venezuela on Thursday and host Bolivia, who are eighth, next Tuesday.
Garnacho has won seven caps for his country and helped Argentina clinch a record 16th Copa America title in the summer.
LAS VEGAS – The pre-fight activities are in the books for Dana White’s Contender Series 75 following Monday’s official weigh-ins and faceoffs.
For the ninth event of the season, 10 fighters will vie for UFC contracts in their fights, including light heavyweights Islem Masraf (3-0) vs. Artem Vakhitov (2-1), who headline the show.
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At the conclusion of the official weigh-ins, the fighters came face to face for staredowns. Check out the highlights in the video above and a photo gallery from the weigh-ins and faceoffs below.
Dana White’s Contender Series 75 takes place Tuesday and streams on ESPN+.
Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and more content with fans of mixed martial arts.
SALT LAKE CITY – Ryan Spann said he intended to stay away from the guillotine choke at UFC 307. But when the opportunity presented itself, he couldn’t help but indulge.
“I was trying to stay away from it because we both have a move that we’re good at,” Spann told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a post-fight news conference Saturday. “His move is supposed to be the counter to my move. So we ended up seeing who had the better move, I suppose.”
Spann (22-10 MMA, 8-5 UFC) submitted longtime UFC veteran Ovince Saint Preux (27-18 MMA, 15-13 UFC) with his signature high-elbow guillotine choke at 1:35 of Round 1 at Delta Center.
Despite the fight’s brevity, Spann said he felt there were some obvious mistakes he made.
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“I felt, at times, in there, while moving, that I was a little sloppy. I didn’t do things conducive to what we’ve been working on every day at Fortis. I want to fix that and clean that up. … I felt it when I did it. There were a couple times I looked over like, ‘Hey, I know. My bad.’”
Now that a three-fight skid is snapped and he’s back in the win column, Spann is excited to try to build off that momentum in his return. But until his manager and coach Sayif Saud gets the offer from UFC matchmaker Mick Maynard, Spann will be enjoying life as a dad.
“I just want to get back to work,” Spann said. “I’m blessed with the opportunity to be able to do this and provide for my family. So we’re just going to get back to work. My son is starting and has always started football. Because I’ve been so busy with this, I’ve had to miss out on some things. Now, I can focus on him while doing my work at the same time.”
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 307.
Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and more content with fans of mixed martial arts.
Alex Pereira’s remarkable run in the UFC continued with a fourth-round knockout of Khalil Rountree in the main event of UFC 307 to retain the light heavyweight championship. “Poatan” has many options in front of him, and while he says he plans to remain at 205 to defend his belt, is that what ultimately happens for one of the UFC’s biggest stars?
On an all-new edition of On To the Next One, MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck and Alexander K. Lee discuss what could be next for Pereira and Rountree following their thrilling headliner on Saturday night in Salt Lake City. Additionally, future matchups are discussed for new women’s bantamweight champ Julianna Peña and Raquel Pennington after their co-main event ended with a controversial split decision, Mario Bautista following his split decision victory against Jose Aldo, Roman Dolidze after his injury TKO win over Kevin Holland, along with fellow main card winner Kayla Harrison, and more.
Watch the UFC 307 edition of On To the Next One in the video above. Audio-only versions of the podcast can be found below, on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio, and wherever you find your favorite podcasts.
Carling will partner with the SPFL for the next three seasons
Health campaigners have criticised the Scottish Professional Football League’s new sponsorship deal with a major lager brand.
The SPFL announced the partnership with Carling for the next three seasons, which will see the brand promoted at league and Premier Sports Cup matches.
However Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems (SHAAP) said the deal will lead to more consumption of alcohol during a public health crisis.
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Figures released last month by National Records of Scotland revealed there had been 1,277 alcohol deaths in Scotland in 2023, which marked the highest number in 15 years.
The partnership will see the company marketed as the official beer of the league.
The SPFL said this would include a number of “engaging opportunities for supporters” to get involved with.
‘Out of step’
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Dr Peter Rice, the chairman of SHAAP, said mass marketing lager to fans is “out of step” with the need to tackle the harm alcohol can cause.
He added: “All the evidence shows that the more we are exposed to mass marketing of this sort, the more alcohol is consumed and therefore the more damage to our health is done.
“Right now Scotland is in the grip of an alcohol public health crisis that needs to be addressed – encouraging people to consume more is not the answer.
“This lack of duty of care to fans flies in the face of our research which shows that while many football fans recognise the need to generate income for Scottish football, there is not so much appetite for that income to come from the alcohol industry.”
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Alison Douglas, the CEO of Alcohol Focus Scotland called the decision “particularly disappointing” given the recent statistics regarding alcohol deaths.
She said: “This marketing will be on full display to children across Scotland who idolise their teams and their favourite players. Big alcohol brands capitalise on this, signing deals with sports teams and leagues as a means to ‘recruit the heavy using loyalists of tomorrow’.
“The evidence is overwhelming, alcohol marketing increases alcohol consumption and early onset alcohol use by children and young people.”
‘A rich history’
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Dr Rice called on authorities to “aim a bit higher” with sponsorship deals, and both SHAAP and AFS pointed to Scottish women’s football as an example of this – with SHAAP itself having partnered with the women’s game since 2019.
Neil Doncaster, SPFL group chief executive, said the deal was “fantastic news” as the company has “a rich history” of supporting the Scottish game.
Carling previously sponsored Celtic and Rangers, as well as the Scottish national team.
A number of clubs in Scotland have alcohol related sponsorship deals.
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Lee Willett, Carling brand director at Molson Coors Beverage Company, said they were “committed to supporting the beautiful game at every level here in Scotland”, citing grassroots initiatives.
The partnership was secured for the SPFL by the Scottish Football Marketing venture.
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