Women’s Atomweight
1. Ayaka Hamasaki (14-2)
Though she has enjoyed a distinguished career as a strawweight, Hamasaki would surely love to forget her return to 115 pounds, as the Invicta atomweight champion was torn apart by Brazilian Livia Renata Souza in 101 seconds in March. What better way to forget such a loss than to go back and defend the crown of the division you rule? Unfortunately for the 35-year-old Japanese fighter, her next title defense figures to come against Jinh Yu Frey, who was soundly besting Hamasaki in their September 2016 Invicta title fight until the ringside physician halted the challenger on a cut.2. Jinh Yu Frey (6-2)
It has been a bittersweet year or so for Frey. In September, she was in firm control of her Invicta atomweight championship fight with Ayaka Hamasaki, until a cut unceremoniously ended her title bid. In March, she was set to meet undefeated Brazilian Janaisa Morandin, but her opponent missed weight by five pounds. Finally, at Invicta 24, Frey earned a presumptive second crack at Hamasaki in her title eliminator with Ashley Cummins, prevailing via unanimous decision.3. Herica Tiburcio (11-4)
It was nearly two years ago that Ayaka Hamasaki upset Tiburcio to take the Invicta atomweight title. It was over 14 months ago that Tiburcio came back to the Invicta cage, only to be upset by Jinh Yu Frey. Now, the 25-year-old Brazilian has put together back-to-back decision wins over Simona Soukupova and fellow ranker Tessa Simpson and may not be far off from another crack at Invicta's 105-pound strap.4. Seo Hee Ham (18-8)
Following her disappointing 1-3 run in the UFC while competing as a strawweight, Ham got back to basics at Road Fighting Championship 39 on June 10. Cutting back down to atomweight and headlining in her native South Korea, “Hamderlei Silva” put on a show, pasted Japan's Mina Kurobe en route to a third-round knockout and claimed the vacant Road Fighting Championship title, all while re-announcing herself as one of the best fighters in the division.5. Mina Kurobe (10-3)
Kurobe had been on a hot streak prior to her showdown with Seo Hee Ham, picking up wins over Tomo Maesawa, Saori Ishioka and Naho Sugiyama. However, the 40-year-old fighter's roll slowed considerably at Road Fighting Championship 39 in South Korea on June 10 in her first fight ever outside of Japan, as “Hamderlei Silva” beat her down for 14 minutes before notching the third-round knockout.6. Naho Sugiyama (12-5)
Sugiyama topped Emi Tomimatsu in June to become Deep Jewels atomweight champion. Unfortunately, in her first title defense on Feb. 25, she could not replicate her November 2015 win over Mina Kurobe, dropping a unanimous decision and the strap.7. Tessa Simpson (5-2)
Since finishing college and returning to MMA, Simpson has been sterling, taking quality wins over Satomi Takano and Simona Soukupova. At Invicta 23, the Guam native took a jump up in competition, faced former promotional atomweight champion Herica Tiburcio and pushed the Brazilian to the limit. However, Simpson ultimately wound up losing a split decision on the scorecards after 15 minutes.8. Janaisa Morandin (9-0)
With a perfect 9-0 record and an exciting fight style that has resulted in six stoppages, it seemed like everything was coming together for Morandin when she was lined up to face former Invicta title challenger Jinh Yu Frey on March 25. The 22-year-old Brazilian even received a sponsorship and fight gear from comedian Hannibal Burress. Unfortunately, “The Evil Princess” blew weight by five pounds, nixing the bout.9. Satomi Takano (10-8)
Takano in May picked up her second career win over Tomo Maesawa to boost her ledger. Now, she is scheduled for action under the Deep Jewels banner against another promotional regular. At Deep Jewels 17 on Aug. 26 in Tokyo, she will take on Emi Tomimatsu, who defeated “Sarami” via split decision back in November 2015.10. Julia Jones (5-0)
Jones in May was scheduled to take on fellow top-10 talent Tessa Simpson at Invicta FC 17. However, the bout -- which would have provided some clarity for the 105-pound division -- was scrapped. Instead, “Jewels” returned in September, dominating Stephanie Skinner and choking her out in the first round to run her pro record to 5-0.Other Contenders: Ashley Cummins, Paulina Granados, Tomo Maesawa, Andy Nguyen, Sheila Padilla.