Demetrious Johnson has quite a stranglehold on the Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight division.
Since capturing the title three years ago, the AMC Pankration ace has turned away Dodson (twice), John Moraga, Joseph Benavidez, Ali Bagautinov, Chris Cariaso and Kyoji Horiguchi. Johnson may not be a box-office draw, but his results speak for themselves and place the 29-year-old Madisonville, Ky., native among the sport’s pound-for-pound best.
Johnson was not the only noisemaker in the rankings. Valerie Letourneau slowed the ascent of Ukrainian prospect Maryna Moroz on Aug. 23, as she worked her way to a unanimous decision at a UFC Fight Night event in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. The 32-year-old Canadian has pieced together a four-fight winning streak and parlayed her recent success into a title shot against unbeaten women’s strawweight queen Joanna Jedrzejczyk at UFC 193 on Nov. 15. Letourneau enters the 115-pound rankings at No. 6, bumping American Top Team stablemate Tecia Torres to the list of other contenders.
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