Sherdog’s Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

Lightweight

1. Conor McGregor (21-3)

McGregor on Jan. 28 went head-to-head with his promoter in a pay-per-view interview with MMA journalist Ariel Helwani while the UFC on Fox 23 card rolled from Denver. McGregor remains adamant that his next bout will be from the boxing ring, whether it comes against Floyd Mayweather Jr. or not. He continues to balk at the idea of facing Tony Ferguson, Khabib Nurmagomedov or anyone else outside of Mayweather.

2. Tony Ferguson (22-3)

Ferguson has been scheduled to meet Khabib Nurmagomedov three times, and three times it has fallen apart. Ahead of UFC 209, issues with Nurmagomedov’s weight cut led to his hospitalization and cancellation of their interim lightweight title contest. While “El Cucuy” has taken to calling out undisputed champion Conor McGregor, as well as Nate Diaz, what comes next for Ferguson is anyone’s guess.

3. Eddie Alvarez (28-5)

The lightweight division is a hard place to find an easy fight, and few fighters have thrived in the weight class as long as Alvarez. Suffice to say, it was a no-brainer that Alvarez was not going to get a softball fight, even after the destructive blowout loss to Conor McGregor that saw him drop the UFC lightweight title in November. Alvarez has verbally agreed to a showdown with fellow action-minded 155-pounder Dustin Poirier come UFC 211 on May 13 in Dallas.

4. Khabib Nurmagomedov (24-0)

Brutal luck again struck Nurmagomedov ahead of UFC 209, nixing his slated bout with Tony Ferguson for a third time; and this time, it was for an interim lightweight title. With six pounds to go in his weight cut, Nurmagomedov’s team took him to hospital and his medical issues forced the bout’s cancellation, breaking fans’ hearts one more time.

5. Rafael dos Anjos (25-9)

After losing the UFC lightweight title to Eddie Alvarez and dropping a 25-minute unanimous decision to Tony Ferguson, dos Anjos said he would only return to 155 pounds for a major payday. The Brazilian will now step up to 170 pounds to ply his trade. In his first welterweight appearance inside the Octagon, dos Anjos will face former Strikeforce champion Tarec Saffiedine at a UFC Fight Night event in Singapore on June 17.

6. Edson Barboza (19-4)

Barboza dropped the first round to Beneil Dariush on all three judges’ scorecards in their March 11 clash of ranked lightweights. That all changed instantaneously in the second round, where the Brazilian took flight off of a Dariush jab and clobbered his opponent with a counter flying knee that left him splayed out on his back. It was not only a huge win in a super-competitive division but the third victory in a row for Barboza. It also served as another potential “Knockout of the Year” for the man who authored the 2012 iteration with his wheel kick on Terry Etim.

7. Michael Chiesa (14-2)

Chiesa could not secure the bout he wanted with former UFC champion Eddie Alvarez, but he will still get a decent fight next time out. In fact, he will headline a UFC Fight Night bill opposite Kevin Lee on June 25 in Oklahoma City.

8. Michael Chandler (16-3)

The first time Bellator MMA went on pay-per-view with Bellator 120, Eddie Alvarez pulled out and Chandler wound up losing an interim lightweight title bout to Will Brooks. “Iron Mike” will hope things go a little better in his second PPV appearance, as he makes the second defense of his second Bellator reign against undefeated 7-0 Brent Primus on June 24.

9. Beneil Dariush (14-3)

At UFC Fight Night 106 on March 11 in Fortaleza, Brazil, Dariush looked fantastic against Edson Barboza for a round. Unfortunately for the Kings MMA product, Barboza went vertical in the second stanza, knocking Dariush senseless in highlight-reel fashion with a flying knee. Dariush is now 2-2 over his last four bouts.

10. Kevin Lee (15-2)

A winner in eight of his last nine outings, Lee has captured the gaze of the MMA world with his candor and trash talk, but he truly caught the public’s attention in March, when he rolled into Fortaleza, Brazil, and choked out Francisco Trinaldo in style. The 24-year-old’s skill -- and perhaps his mouth -- has been rewarded with a main event slot and a major opponent, as “The Motown Phenom” heads to Oklahoma City on June 25 to face Michael Chiesa in a UFC Fight Night headliner.

Other Contenders: Nate Diaz, Evan Dunham, Justin Gaethje, Michael Johnson, Dustin Poirier.

Continue Reading » Featherweight