Dakota Ditcheva was the only fighter from the ESPN MMA pound-for-pound rankings who fought last weekend. Returning after a year away from the cage to heal injuries to both hands, she put on a dominant performance at PFL New York on Friday to remain undefeated. But Ditcheva's opponent, Denise Kielholtz, was a massive betting underdog, and the women's flyweight fight went the distance. As a result, Ditcheva remains right where she was in the women's top 10.
There are changes to the rankings, however, because of a change to the voting panel. (Welcome, Dre Waters.) In both the women's and men's top 10s, there is some shuffling for position. But no previously unranked fighters broke in. The same 20 fighters as before still fill the two sets of P4P rankings.
For the ESPN divisional MMA rankings, click here.
Note: Results are current; rankings are as of Aug. 5. To be eligible for the rankings, a fighter must have competed over the past 12 months or must have an upcoming fight booked. Fighters who have been dropped for inactivity can be reinstated only after they compete.
Women's pound-for-pound rankings
UFC flyweight champion
Record: 26-4-1
Last: W (UD) vs. Zhang Weili, Nov. 15, 2025
Next: TBA
Shevchenko's dominance came under question in 2022 and 2023, when she went 1-1-1 in a trilogy with Alexa Grasso. Boy, does that feel like a long time ago now. Shevchenko has more than reasserted herself as the best flyweight in the world, and now she's asserted herself as the No. 1 woman in the world, period. It wasn't surprising that she beat Zhang, but it was surprising how easy she made it look. -- Brett Okamoto
2. Zhang Weili
UFC flyweight / strawweight
Record: 26-4
Last: L (UD) vs. Valentina Shevchenko, Nov. 15, 2025
Next: TBA
It's hard to move up in weight, especially at the highest level. That sounds like it should be obvious, but Zhang had been dominant at 115 pounds for so long, some of us might have taken for granted how big of a challenge moving to 125 would be. UFC 322 was a bad night for Zhang, but she doesn't have many. And if she decides to stay at 125, it certainly seems reasonable she'll fare better in the future. -- Okamoto
3. Cris Cyborg
PFL featherweight champion
Record: 29-2, 1 NC
Last: W (Sub3) vs. Sara Collins, Dec. 13, 2025
Next: Aug. 22 vs. Ketlen Vieira
It had been a while since Cyborg had fought an elite opponent in MMA until she met Larissa Pacheco in 2024. That was a legitimate matchup -- and many within the industry were predicting Cyborg's downfall. Instead, she took out the PFL's two-weight champion, upending all of Pacheco's momentum. One of the original pioneers of women's MMA is once again a champion after getting her second career submission at PFL Lyon in December, but now she says she's ready to call it a career after her retirement fight with Vieira. -- Okamoto
T-4. Mackenzie Dern
UFC strawweight champion
Previous ranking: 6
Record: 16-5
Last: W (UD) vs. Virna Jandiroba, Oct. 25, 2025
Next: Aug. 15 vs. Gillian Robertson
Dern's rise to the 115-pound throne was truly a changing of the guard. She is the division's first first-time champion since 2019, because the previous three champs -- Zhang Weili, Carla Esparza and Rose Namajunas -- all were in their second reigns. Dern, nearly a decade into her MMA career after multiple jiu-jitsu world championships, has won three fights in a row. Her first defense is against another grappling-heavy fighter, Robertson, this summer in Philadelphia. -- Jeff Wagenheim
T-4. Natalia Silva
UFC flyweight
Record: 20-5-1
Last: W (UD) vs. Rose Namajunas, Jan. 24
Next: TBA
Silva is looking every bit the part of a future UFC champion following a dominant display against Alexa Grasso at UFC 315 and a victory over Namajunas at UFC 324. Silva's stick-and-move style has frustrated even the highest level of opponent, and she's got youth on her side as she won't turn 30 until 2027. -- Okamoto
6. Manon Fiorot
UFC flyweight
Previous ranking: 5
Record: 13-2
Last: W (TKO1) vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius, Oct. 18, 2025
Next: Sept. 12 vs. Alexa Grasso
Fiorot has handled everyone the UFC has put in front of her -- except the champion, Valentina Shevchenko, who defeated the Frenchwoman at UFC 315 in May 2025. But Fiorot could earn another shot at the belt if she can get past Grasso, a former champion, at Noche UFC. -- Wagenheim
PFL flyweight
Record: 16-0
Last: W (UD) vs. Denise Kielholtz, July 31
Next: TBA
Not only did Ditcheva win the PFL's flyweight season in 2024, but she did so in spectacular fashion -- a TKO finish over Taila Santos, who once challenged for a UFC title. Ditcheva fought only once in 2025, dominating Inaba in the co-main event of the first PFL Champions Series card in Cape Town, South Africa. She spent over a year on the sideline, healing injuries to both hands, and returned at PFL New York with a dominant win over Kielholtz. -- Okamoto
UFC flyweight
Record: 14-2
Last: W (Sub2) vs. Tracy Cortez, Nov. 15, 2025
Next: Aug. 15 vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius
Her rise toward the top of the division was derailed by a March 2024 loss to Manon Fiorot, but Blanchfield bounced back with two straight wins, including over two-time former strawweight champion Rose Namajunas in November 2024. If she wins her October bout with Jasudavicius, a fellow top-10 flyweight contender, Blanchfield could be on the verge of a title shot. -- Wagenheim
UFC strawweight
Record: 12-1
Last: W (Sub2) vs. Loopy Godínez, April 11
Next: TBA
If Suarez is still feeling the effects of last year's humbling defeat to Zhang Weili in a title challenge, she certainly didn't show it at UFC 327, overcoming early adversity to thrash Godinez, a fellow top-10 strawweight. Suarez is going to be a tough out for anyone at 115 pounds. -- Wagenheim
10. Alexa Grasso
UFC flyweight
Record: 17-5-1
Last: W (KO) vs. Maycee Barber, March 28
Next: Sept. 12 vs. Manon Fiorot
Grasso went nearly three years without winning a fight, but her 2023 win right before the skid was a huge one, a submission of Valentina Shevchenko for the UFC title. What followed were two more fights with Shevchenko -- a draw, then a loss -- and then a loss to Natalia Silva. That made the fight with Barber a must-win, and Grasso came through explosively. Next up is Fiorot, a fellow contender. -- Wagenheim
Other fighter receiving votes: Virna Jandiroba.
How our panel voted
Brett Okamoto: 1. Valentina Shevchenko; 2. Zhang Weili; 3. Cris Cyborg; 4. Manon Fiorot; 5. Mackenzie Dern; 6. Dakota Ditcheva; 7. Natalia Silva; 8. Erin Blanchfield; 9. Tatiana Suarez; 10. Virna Jandiroba.
Carlos Contreras Legaspi: 1. Shevchenko; 2. Cyborg; 3. Zhang; 4. Ditcheva; 5. Dern; 6. Silva; 7. Alexa Grasso; 8. Suarez; 9. Fiorot; 10. Blanchfield.
Andrew Davis: 1. Shevchenko; 2. Zhang; 3. Cyborg; 4. Dern; 5. Silva; 6. Fiorot; 7. Blanchfield; 8. Ditcheva; 9. Suarez; 10. Jandiroba.
Dre Waters: 1. Shevchenko; 2. Zhang; 3. Cyborg; 4. Silva; 5. Fiorot; 6. Dern; 7. Ditcheva; 8. Blanchfield; 9. Suarez; 10. Grasso.
Jeff Wagenheim: 1. Shevchenko; 2. Zhang; 3. Cyborg; 4. Fiorot; 5. Silva; 6. Blanchfield; 7. Dern; 8. Suarez; 9. Ditcheva; 10. Grasso.
Men's pound-for-pound rankings
UFC welterweight champion
Record: 28-1
Last: W (UD) vs. Jack Della Maddalena, Nov. 15, 2025
Next: Aug. 15 vs. Ian Machado Garry
Makhachev vacated the UFC lightweight championship to go for a second title at welterweight. By winning that belt last November with a thrashing of Jack Della Maddalena, Makhachev has staked his place among MMA's greatest -- not just in today's sport but of all time. He will go for his 17th straight win later this month in his first defense of the 170-pound title. That would break the UFC record for consecutive wins Makhachev shares with Anderson Silva. -- Wagenheim
2. Petr Yan
UFC bantamweight champion
Record: 20-5
Last: W (UD) vs. Merab Dvalishvili, Dec. 6, 2025
Next: TBA
What a return to the top it's been for Yan. He began his career with 15 consecutive wins before going on a 1-4 run from 2021 to 2023. That almost doesn't feel real now, after watching him reclaim his throne against Dvalishvili, who once handed him the worst loss of his career. Yan took a major detour, but this was the destination we felt he was capable of before the skid. He once again looks like one of the absolute best fighters on the planet. -- Okamoto
UFC bantamweight
Record: 21-5
Last: L (UD) vs. Petr Yan, Dec. 6, 2025
Next: TBA
Dvalishvili was on one of the most impressive runs through the UFC's bantamweight division ever. Not only did he defeat Sean O'Malley for the second time in nine months at UFC 316, but he showcased a new part of his game, finishing O'Malley with a third-round guillotine. Starting in August 2022, Dvalishvili beat José Aldo, Yan, Henry Cejudo, O'Malley (twice), Umar Nurmagomedov and Cory Sandhagen. But at UFC 323, in an attempt to become the first champion in UFC history to successfully defend his title four times in a calendar year, Dvalishvili lost his title in a rematch with Yan. -- Okamoto
4. Tom Aspinall
UFC heavyweight champion
Previous ranking: Tied for 3
Record: 15-3, 1 NC
Last: NC1 vs. Ciryl Gane, Oct. 25, 2025
Next: TBA
You can make a case that Aspinall is the most dynamic, skillful, talented heavyweight the sport has seen. He is dominating opponents in a way that is unmatched. No one can last a round with him. He had hoped to prove his supremacy against Jon Jones, but Jones opted to retire, elevating Aspinall from interim champion. His first defense of the undisputed belt ended anticlimactically, as an eye poke resulted in his UFC 321 fight with Gane being declared a no contest. -- Okamoto
5. Ilia Topuria
UFC lightweight
Record: 17-1
Last: L (TKO4) vs. Justin Gaethje, June 14
Next: TBA
Topuria was an undefeated two-division champion when he ran into Gaethje at UFC Freedom 250 and was brutalized in a stoppage loss. How will that affect the immediate future of Topuria? His knockout wins over two of the greatest featherweights, Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway, gave him an intimidating aura. Can the former champion get that back? -- Wagenheim
UFC lightweight champion
Previous ranking: 7
Record: 28-5
Last: W (TKO4) vs. Ilia Topuria, June 14
Next: TBA
Gaethje has spent his 15-year career thrilling MMA fans, but before this past weekend, all he had to show for it -- aside from 15 bonus checks in 15 UFC appearances -- were two missed opportunities to be an undisputed champion. But his fourth-round TKO of Topuria got Gaethje over the hump. It was an aggressive, resilient performance in a back-and-forth battle that is a prime candidate for fight of the year. More important for Gaethje: At age 37, he is finally sitting at the top of the mountain. -- Wagenheim
UFC featherweight champion
Previous ranking: 8
Record: 28-4
Last: W (UD) vs. Diego Lopes, Jan. 31
Next: TBA
It felt as if the sport had started to write Volkanovski's eulogy following his knockout loss to Ilia Topuria in February 2024. Volkanovski noticed and made a point of proving to everyone he still has plenty left by recapturing the featherweight belt at UFC 314, the first of two consecutive wins over Lopes. His age (37) will likely continue to be a prefight topic, which is fine because Volkanovski enjoys proving people wrong. -- Okamoto
UFC flyweight
Previous ranking: 6
Record: 30-6
Last: L (TKO1) vs. Joshua Van, Dec. 6, 2025
Next: TBA
Pantoja became the UFC's unquestioned flyweight king by racking up four title defenses, including two in pay-per-view main events in 2024. He built his winning streak to eight in his UFC 317 win over Kai Kara-France, whom he had already defeated before, like other challengers. But he lost his belt in a gruesome way, injuring his elbow in the opening seconds of a UFC 323 fight with Van. -- Okamoto
9. Ciryl Gane
UFC heavyweight interim champion
Previous ranking: 10
Record: 14-2, 1 NC
Last: W (TKO2) vs. Alex Pereira, June 14
Next: TBA
Gane is pretty unique in that he is the first -- and could very well go down as the only -- heavyweight to face its four biggest names in Francis Ngannou, Jon Jones, Tom Aspinall and Pereira. None of those four have fought each other, yet all four have have fought the Frenchman. Gane was 0-2 with a no- contest against that group, before he knocked out Pereira in the second round of their interim title fight. Gane was heralded as the future of the generation when he first broke onto the scene, but endured growing pains in losses to Ngannou and Jones. He looks very formidable now, and no one will be counting him out if and when he faces Aspinall in a title unification bout. -- Okamoto
10. Alex Pereira
UFC heavyweight / light heavyweight
Previous ranking: 9
Record: 13-4
Last: L (TKO2) vs. Ciryl Gane, June 14
Next: TBA
He was on the verge of making history. Pereira was a UFC champion at middleweight, then light heavyweight, but his unprecedented pursuit of a belt in a third weight class did not go well for the Brazilian, who lost an interim heavyweight title fight to Gane on the White House card. At 39 years old, Pereira does not have much time left to recapture the magic. -- Wagenheim
Other fighters receiving votes: Joshua Van and Arman Tsarukyan.
How our panel voted
Brett Okamoto: 1. Islam Makhachev; 2. Petr Yan; 3. Merab Dvalishvili; 4. Ilia Topuria; 5. Alexander Volkanovski; 6. Ciryl Gane; 7. Tom Aspinall; 8. Arman Tsarukyan; 9. Alex Pereira; 10. Alexandre Pantoja.
Carlos Contreras Legaspi: 1. Makhachev; 2. Volkanovski; 3. Justin Gaethje; 4. Topuria; 5. Pereira; 6. Dvalishvili; 7. Gane; 8. Joshua Van; 9. Yan; 10. Pantoja.
Andrew Davis: 1. Makhachev; 2. Aspinall; 3. Yan; 4. Dvalishvili; 5. Pantoja; 6. Gaethje; 7. Topuria; 8. Volkanovski; 9. Gane; 10. Pereira.
Dre Waters: 1. Makhachev; 2. Aspinall; 3. Yan; 4. Dvalishvili; 5. Pantoja; 6. Gaethje; 7. Volkanovski; 8. Topuria; 9. Gane; 10. Van.
Jeff Wagenheim: 1. Makhachev; 2. Aspinall; 3. Pantoja; 4. Yan; 5. Gaethje; 6. Dvalishvili; 7. Topuria; 8. Gane; 9. Pereira; 10. Volkanovski.