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In the co-main event of Bellator MMA’s three-title-fight extravaganza, Cristiane Justino mauled Cat Zingano in just four minutes. “Cris Cyborg” used her trademark blend of measured aggression and pure power to keep the challenger reeling, giving her no chance to put her vaunted ground game on display. The first-round TKO marked Justino’s sixth win in a row since relinquishing her Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight crown to Amanda Nunes in December 2018, and Zingano became yet another name on the champ’s nearly unparalleled résumé.
Immediately before Cyborg’s definitive thrashing of Zingano, the other women’s title fight at Bellator 300 was less clear-cut. Flyweight queen Liz Carmouche once again faced an overweight challenger, this time former champ Ilima-Lei Macfarlane, and once the fight started, the two fought like the good friends and longtime training partners they were. What might otherwise have been a ho-hum decision win for “Girl-Rilla” was lent a measure of drama when Macfarlane’s left leg began to betray her, leading to a Round 5 stoppage due to the accumulation of damage. While the fight might have been frustrating to witness, it left no doubt about Carmouche’s ascendancy over the division.
Note: Previous rankings listed in brackets.
1. Amanda Nunes (23-5) | UFC [1]
Nunes was rarely threatened in a lopsided unanimous decision triumph over Irene Aldana in the UFC 289 headliner, and she capped off that performance by announcing her retirement from mixed martial arts. “Lioness” exits the sport as a two-division champion and arguably the most accomplished female fighter of all-time with a resume that includes wins over the likes of Cristiane Justino, Valentina Shevchenko (twice), Ronda Rousey, Holly Holm, Miesha Tate, Germaine de Randamie and Julianna Pena. While Nunes leaves a potential trilogy with Pena on the table, she really had nothing left to accomplish in a decorated career. If her retirement holds up, Nunes’ rankings eligibility will expire on June 10, 2024.2. Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino (27-2, 1 NC) | Bellator [2]
“Cyborg” turned away another challenger with ease, as Cat Zingano found herself outstruck and outwrestled before succumbing to a torrent of ground-and-pound in the first round of their co-headlining tilt at Bellator 300. The win was Justino’s fifth straight in Bellator and sixth since her shocking knockout loss to Amanda Nunes almost five years ago. In light of Nunes’ recent retirement, and her choice even before then to focus on her bantamweight title, “Cyborg” is making an increasingly compelling case to reclaim her status as the top 145-pound woman in MMA.3. Alexa Grasso (16-3-1) | UFC [3]
Grasso proved she was no fluke in the UFC Fight Night 227 headliner, as she battled Valentina Shevchenko tooth-and-nail for five rounds at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The end result was a split draw that provided little in the way of closure for either woman, but it does allow Grasso gets to keep her flyweight crown for at least one more defense. Given the competitive nature of the rematch, a trilogy with Shevchenko remains very much in play.4. Weili Zhang (24-3) | UFC [4]
Zhang bullied Amanda Lemos for five rounds, winning a lopsided decision triumph in the UFC 292 co-main event. Currently on her second reign as strawweight queen, “Magnum” has rebounded from back-to-back losses to Rose Namajunas in 2021 to win her last three outings in impressive fashion. With a resume that includes notable wins over the likes of Lemos, Carla Esparza, Joanna Jedrzejczyk (twice), Jessica Andrade and Tecia Torres, the Chinese standout ranks among the top females in the sport.5. Valentina Shevchenko (23-4-1) | UFC [5]
Shevchenko displayed a champion’s resolve in her rematch with Alexa Grasso at UFC Fight Night 227, but a split draw kept “Bullet” from regaining the title she held for more than four years. To her credit, Shevchenko rebounded from being dropped for the first time in her UFC tenure to author a strong performance behind a stiff jab, solid wrestling and positional control. While Shevchenko felt she did enough to deserve the nod on the scorecards, the performance could very well be enough to warrant a trilogy bout against her Mexican rival.6. Carla Esparza (19-7) | UFC [6]
Esparza’s second reign as strawweight champion was as short-lived as the first, as she relinquished the crown to Weili Zhang in a second-round submission defeat in the UFC 281 co-main event. “Cookie Monster” rebuilt her career after the first title bout loss to Joanna Jedrzejczyk in 2015, and it’s possible she could rise to the top again — especially if the title changes hands. After having a six-bout winning streak snapped in defeat, Esparza will be in line to face another highly ranked foe in her next outing. That won’t come until 2024, as Esparza recently revealed that she is awaiting the birth of her first child.7. Liz Carmouche (20-7) | Bellator [7]
For the second time in a row, Carmouche staked her flyweight strap against a woman who was ineligible to win it, as Ilima-Lei Macfarlane missed weight for their feature tilt at Bellator 300 on Oct. 7, just as DeAnna Bennett did earlier this year. The fight itself was an awkward and tedious affair, as the two close friends and former longtime training partners engaged in a glorified sparring match for four full rounds before the challenger succumbed to a knee injury early in the fifth. While it might have lacked entertainment value, Carmouche’s one-sided handling of the former titleholder ran her Bellator record to 7-0 and affirmed her place as one of the promotion’s most dominant champs.8. Manon Fiorot (11-1) | UFC [8]
Fiorot relied on her superior size and power in the UFC Fight Night 225 co-main event, as she captured a unanimous decision triumph against former 115-pound champion Rose Namajunas. That makes six consecutive victories for Fiorot, tying her with Erin Blanchfield for the longest active winning streak in the division. She ranks among the top contenders for the next title shot at 125 pounds.9. Erin Blanchfield (12-1) UFC [9]
Blanchfield staked her claim to the No. 1 contender’s spot at 125 pounds, as she garnered a hard-fought unanimous decision triumph against former title challenger Taila Santos at UFC Fight Night 225 in Singapore. Blanchfield’s six-fight winning streak is currently the longest in the flyweight division, and she wasn’t shy about calling out the winner of the Alexa Grasso-Valentina Shevchenko championship rematch set for Sept. 16.10. Rose Namajunas (11-6) | UFC [10]
One bout removed from a perplexing performance against in a title bout against Carla Esparza, Namajunas came up short in her flyweight debut, losing a unanimous decision to Manon Fiorot at UFC Fight Night 225 in Paris. Though “Thug” Rose appeared to have injured her right hand in the bout, she also struggled with the size and physicality of an opponent in a larger weight class. It will be interesting to see how Namajunas rebounds from the second two-fight skid of her professional career.Other Contenders: Xiaonan Yan, Julianna Pena, Seika Izawa, Raquel Pennington, Larissa Pacheco.
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, Robert Sargent, Keith Shillan, Mike Sloan, Tyler Treese, John Brannigan and Lev Pisarsky.