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Welterweight
1. Leon Edwards (20-3, 1 NC) | UFC [1]
Edwards is living proof that a fight is never over until the final bell sounds. “Rocky” was well behind on the scorecards against Kamaru Usman with time winding down in the fifth round of their headlining bout at UFC 278 when he unleashed a head kick knockout that will go down in history. Edwards, who endured some hard luck at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, will carry an 11-fight unbeaten streak into his first 170-pound title defense. Edwards will attempt to prove that his most recent victory was no fluke in a trilogy bout against “The Nigerian Nightmare” at UFC 286 in London.2. Kamaru Usman (20-2) | UFC [2]
In MMA, all good things must come to an end, and that includes Usman’s 15-fight UFC winning streak. “The Nigerian Nightmare” was well on his way to a clear-cut unanimous decision triumph over Leon Edwards in the UFC 278 main event when his opponent shocked the world with a head-kick knockout late in the fifth round. Usman will get a chance for redemption when he faces Edwards in a championship trilogy bout at UFC 286 in London.3. Colby Covington (17-3) | UFC [3]
Covington’s grudge match against Jorge Masvidal at UFC 272 went exactly as one might expect, as “Chaos” relied on his relentless grappling to cruise to a unanimous verdict over his former American Top Team stablemate. Shortly thereafter, Covington’s rivalry with Masvidal spilled outside of the Octagon following an alleged assault in Miami in which “Gamebred” is accused of attacking his rival for talking about his kids. Covington did not fight again in 2022, and his next move could be quite interesting indeed.4. Belal Muhammad (22-3, 1 NC) | UFC [4]
Muhammad kept the pressure on Sean Brady throughout their UFC 280 encounter, and that ultimately led to a technical knockout victory at the 4:47 mark of the second round of their clash in Abu Dhabi. By removing Brady from the ranks of the undefeated, “Remember the Name” extends his unbeaten streak to nine. With a resume that also includes wins over the likes of Vicente Luque, Stephen Thompson and Demian Maia, Muhammad continues to move closer to a title shot at 170 pounds.5. Khamzat Chimaev (12-0) | UFC [5]
Chimaev missed weight so badly ahead of UFC 279 that his headlining matchup with Nate Diaz was scrapped in favor of a 180-pound catchweight bout against Kevin Holland, which he dominated in the form of a first-round submission victory. In the aftermath, the Allstars Training Center representative showed no remorse for his troubles on the scales, but he’ll need to be more professional if he is to receive a welterweight title shot. Chimaev says he plans on competing at both 170 and 185 pounds going forward, and no matter where he fights, “Borz” figures to be a force with which to be reckoned as his career progresses.6. Gilbert Burns (20-5) | UFC [6]
While Burns ultimately couldn’t derail the Khamzat Chimaev hype train in a unanimous decision loss at UFC 273, “Durinho” didn’t see his stock fall much in a back-and-forth slugfest that will go down as one of the best fights of 2022. The former welterweight title challenger has lost two of his last three Octagon appearances, with his other defeat coming via third-round TKO against reigning champ Kamaru Usman at UFC 258. Up next, Burns will square off against Neil Magny at UFC 283 in Rio de Janeiro.7. Yaroslav Amosov (26-0) | Bellator [7]
Amosov gave Ukraine its first major MMA champion with an impressive performance against Douglas Lima in the Bellator 260 main event. The combat sambo champion held his own with Lima on the feet and grounded the Brazilian in every round to win a unanimous decision and claim the 170-pound throne. Amosov was supposed to make his next title defense against Michael Page at Bellator 281, but the conflict between Russia and the champ’s native Ukraine forced him to pull out of the fight as he helped to defend his home country against invasion. Amosov will return to defend his title against interim king Logan Storley in a rematch at Bellator 291.8. Stephen Thompson (17-6-1) | UFC [8]
Thompson put on a striking masterclass in the UFC on ESPN 42 main event, outdueling Kevin Holland over four rounds to force a corner stoppage at the Amway Center in Orlando, Fla., on Dec. 3. After struggling against the grappling of Belal Muhammad and Gilbert Burns in his last two outings, “Wonderboy” excelled against an opponent who was willing to engage on the karateka’s terms. Even at 39 years old, Thompson is capable of putting on high-quality performances in the Octagon — provided he receives the right type of matchup.9. Sean Brady (15-1) | UFC [9]
Brady’s undefeated run came to the end at UFC 280 in a second-round technical knockout loss to Belal Muhammad in Abu Dhabi on Oct. 22. The Philadelphia native was unable to ground his opponent, and as a result, he was eventually overwhelmed by Muhammad’s pressure and volume striking. Brady, who is still 5-1 in UFC competition, will attempt to get back on track when he meets Michel Pereira at UFC on ESPN 43.10. Shavkat Rakhmonov (16-0) UFC [10]
Rakhmonov dominated Neil Magny in a way that few have at UFC on ESPN 38, grounding his foe and unleashing ground-and-pound before securing a tapout late in Round 2. The Kazakhstan native’s resume includes four finishes within the Las Vegas-based promotion and 16 victories inside the distance overall. “Nomad” was supposed to face fellow ranked welterweight Geoff Neal at UFC Fight Night 217 before an injury forced his opponent to exit the event. The bout vs. Neal has been rescheduled for UFC 285.Other Contenders: Geoff Neal, Vicente Luque, Michael Chiesa, Logan Storley, Jorge Masvidal.
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