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Lightweight
1. Khabib Nurmagomedov (28-0)
Nurmagomedov needed less than 15 minutes to dispatch Dustin Poirier at UFC 242, and he made it look astonishingly easy. “The Eagle” overwhelmed his opponent with takedowns and pressure from the outset of the bout, gradually wearing Poirier down until he secured the rear-naked choke submission at the 2:06 mark of Round 3. The reigning lightweight champion’s winning streak is now at 12, which ties him with Tony Ferguson for the sixth-longest winning streak in UFC history. Nurmagomedov has targeted March or April of 2020 for his next title defense, which he wants to be against Ferguson.2. Tony Ferguson (25-3)
It wasn’t necessarily the ending he envisioned, but Ferguson appeared to be well on his way to defeating Donald Cerrone at UFC 238 before the contest was halted prior to round three due to “Cowboy’s” swollen eye. Cerrone certainly got his shots in, but “El Cucuy” utilized his usual multi-faceted offensive approach to land more than 50 significant strikes in both the first and second rounds. With 12 consecutive wins under his belt, there is no more deserving No. 1 contender at lightweight than Ferguson, and perhaps after Khabib Nurmagomedov’s dominant victory over Dustin Poirier at UFC 242, “El Cucuy” will indeed be next in line. Even the champion himself seems to think Ferguson is the most worthy challenger.3. Dustin Poirier (25-6)
There was some sentiment that Poirier possessed the necessary tools to defeat Khabib Nurmagomedov heading into their title unification bout at UFC 242. However, once the opening bell rung, it was all Nurmagomedov right up until “The Eagle” applied a fight-ending rear-naked choke at the 2:06 mark of Round 3. For Poirier, positive moments were few and far between — a couple solid punches on the feet and a Hail Mary guillotine attempt — but ultimately the American Top Team representative could do little to halt the momentum of his opponent as a six-bout unbeaten streak came to an end.4. Justin Gaethje (21-2)
A former World Series of Fighting champion, Gaethje continues to inch closer to lightweight title contention in the UFC. “The Highlight” earned his third consecutive first-round stoppage at UFC Vancouver, as he defeated Donald Cerrone via TKO at the 4:18 mark of Round 1 in the evening’s main event on Sept. 14. Since dropping back-to-back fights against Dustin Poirier and Eddie Alvarez, the Grudge Training Center product has finished Cerrone, Edson Barboza and James Vick inside of a round. Gaethje will await a shot at the winner of the expected title clash between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson.5. Donald Cerrone (36-13)
Cerrone’s brief lightweight resurgence has come to a screeching halt in the form of back-to-back stoppage losses at the hands of Justin Gaethje and Tony Ferguson. In his most recent outing, “Cowboy” succumbed to the punching power of Gaethje in a first-round TKO defeat at UFC Vancouver. There is no shame in losing to two of the division’s top contenders, and Cerrone continues to be one of the Las Vegas-based promotion’s most popular action fighters. As long as the BMF Ranch founder wants to continue competing, there will be no shortage of opponents waiting in line to face him.6. Kevin Lee (17-5)
Lee hoped for a fresh start at 170 pounds, but instead he fatigued down the stretch in a fourth-round submission loss to Rafael dos Anjos at UFC Rochester. Once tabbed as a future champion, Lee has serious questions to answer after losing three of his last four Octagon appearances. “The Motown Phenom” will return to the lightweight division for his next outing, when he locks horns with the undefeated Gregor Gillespie at UFC 244 on Nov. 2.7. Gregor Gillespie (13-0)
Gillespie absolutely dominated Yancy Medeiros at UFC Brooklyn, outlanding his opponent by a 51-to-1 count in significant strikes en route to a second-round technical knockout stoppage. That makes six consecutive Octagon triumphs for the former NCAA All-American, who is a suffocating wrestler in the mold of Khabib Nurmagomedov. While he isn’t quite championship material just yet, Gillespie deserves to face a top lightweight contender in his next outing. He will get that opportunity to step up in competition when he squares off against Kevin Lee at UFC 244.8. Paul Felder (17-4)
Felder avenged a previous loss to Edson Barboza at UFC 242, as he outdueled his Brazilian foe to take an entertaining split-decision triumph in Abu Dhabi on Sept. 7. “The Irish Dragon” is on a roll, with victories in five of his last six Octagon appearances, and his only loss during that time was a split-decision setback to Mike Perry that occurred at 170 pounds. After beginning his promotional tenure with a 4-3 mark, Felder appears to have evolved being just being an entertaining action fighter into someone who could make some serious noise in the lightweight division.9. Edson Barboza (20-8)
It hasn’t been the best stretch for Barboza, who has lost four of his last five UFC outings dating back to December 2017. However, the competition (Khabib Nurmagomedov, Kevin Lee, Justin Gaethje, Paul Felder) has been nothing but top notch during that period. And in case anyone needs a reminder of what the Brazilian can do at his best, just look back at his thorough beatdown of Dan Hooker at UFC on Fox 31 in December 2018. Additionally, his most recent loss, a split-decision setback to Felder in a rematch at UFC 242, was a bout that the majority of media members scored in favor of the 33-year-old Rio de Janeiro native.10. Dan Hooker (19-8)
Thanks to pinpoint long-range striking and excellent takedown defense, Hooker cruised to a unanimous decision victory over former title challenger Al Iaquinta in the UFC 243 co-main event in Melbourne on Oct. 5. “The Hangman” has won two fights in a row since being brutalized by Edson Barboza in 2018 and been victorious in six of his last seven Octagon appearances overall — with all but one of those triumphs coming inside the distance. After his win, Hooker set his sights on another former lightweight contender in Dustin Poirier.Other Contenders: Al Iaquinta, Islam Makhachev, Charles Oliveira, Patricio Freire, Patricky Freire.
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