Analysis by Richard Wade
Nate Diaz has reasserted himself as a top 10 lightweight following his battering of Donald Cerrone.
Compiling the rankings of twenty top mixed martial arts web sites, the USA TODAY / MMA Nation Consensus MMA Rankings present the top 25 fighters in MMA for the seven major weight classes. These world MMA rankings are the most accurate reflection of how the top fighters in MMA across all promotions like UFC, Strikeforce and ProElite are viewed by the experts who cover the sport.
| Rank | Fighter | Points | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankie Edgar | 400 | UFC | 1 |
| 2 | Gilbert Melendez | 376 | Strikeforce | 2 |
| 3 | Gray Maynard | 366 | UFC | 3 |
| 4 | Ben Henderson | 358 | UFC | 4 |
| 5 | Shinya Aoki | 315 | DREAM | 5 |
| 6 | Jim Miller | 311 | UFC | 7 |
| 7 | Clay Guida | 304 | UFC | 6 |
| 8 | Nate Diaz | 272 | UFC | 13 |
| 9 | Michael Chandler | 250 | Bellator | 9 |
| 10 | Anthony Pettis | 225 | UFC | 10 |
| 11 | Eddie Alvarez | 164 | Bellator | 11 |
| 12 | Joe Lauzon | 152 | UFC | 12 |
| 13 | Donald Cerrone | 149 | UFC | 8 |
| 14 | Gleison Tibau | 117 | UFC | 14 |
| 15 | Melvin Guillard | 115 | UFC | 15 |
| 16 | Dennis Siver | 91 | UFC | 16 |
| 17 | Sean Sherk | 85 | UFC | 17 |
| 18 | Rafael dos Anjos | 76 | UFC | 19 |
| 18 | Matt Wiman | 76 | UFC | 21 |
| 20 | Evan Dunham | 70 | UFC | 18 |
| 21 | George Sotiropoulos | 69 | UFC | 22 |
| 22 | Josh Thomson | 65 | Strikeforce | 23 |
| 22 | Jorge Masvidal | 65 | Strikeforce | 24 |
| 24 | Mac Danzig | 55 | UFC | 26 |
| 25 | Brian Cobb | 54 | MaximumFC | 26 |
Nate Diaz has reasserted himself as a top 10 lightweight following his battering of Donald Cerrone.
| Rank | Fighter | Points | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankie Edgar | 425 | UFC | 1 |
| 2 | Gilbert Melendez | 399 | Strikeforce | 2 |
| 3 | Gray Maynard | 391 | UFC | 3 |
| 4 | Ben Henderson | 378 | UFC | 4 |
| 5 | Shinya Aoki | 341 | DREAM | 5 |
| 6 | Clay Guida | 314 | UFC | 6 |
| 7 | Jim Miller | 301 | UFC | 7 |
| 8 | Donald Cerrone | 267 | UFC | 8 |
| 9 | Michael Chandler | 262 | Bellator | 10 |
| 10 | Anthony Pettis | 251 | UFC | 9 |
| 11 | Eddie Alvarez | 201 | Bellator | 11 |
| 12 | Joe Lauzon | 134 | UFC | 12 |
| 13 | Nate Diaz | 131 | UFC | 13 |
| 14 | Gleison Tibau | 126 | UFC | 14 |
| 15 | Melvin Guillard | 120 | UFC | 15 |
| 16 | Dennis Siver | 102 | UFC | 16 |
| 17 | Sean Sherk | 92 | UFC | 18 |
| 18 | Evan Dunham | 85 | UFC | 19 |
| 19 | Rafael dos Anjos | 84 | UFC | 20 |
| 20 | Sam Stout | 77 | UFC | 21 |
| 21 | Matt Wiman | 76 | UFC | 21 |
| 22 | George Sotiropoulos | 71 | UFC | 26 |
| 23 | Josh Thomson | 69 | K-1 | 23 |
| 24 | Jorge Masvidal | 68 | Strikeforce | 24 |
| 25 | Mizuto Hirota | 58 | DEEP | 27 |
#8 Donald Cerrone & #13 Nate Diaz will meet tomorrow night in a fight that promises to be a fight of the year contender.
| Rank | Fighter | Points | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankie Edgar | 400 | UFC | 1 |
| 2 | Gilbert Melendez | 377 | Strikeforce | 2 |
| 3 | Gray Maynard | 367 | UFC | 3 |
| 4 | Ben Henderson | 352 | UFC | 4 |
| 5 | Shinya Aoki | 321 | DREAM | 6 |
| 6 | Clay Guida | 289 | UFC | 7 |
| 7 | Jim Miller | 277 | UFC | 8 |
| 8 | Donald Cerrone | 241 | UFC | 13 |
| 9 | Anthony Pettis | 230 | UFC | 9 |
| 10 | Michael Chandler | 226 | Bellator | 42 |
| 11 | Eddie Alvarez | 185 | Bellator | 4 |
| 12 | Joe Lauzon | 113 | UFC | 15 |
| 13 | Nate Diaz | 112 | UFC | 12 |
| 14 | Gleison Tibau | 109 | UFC | 19 |
| 15 | Melvin Guillard | 105 | UFC | 11 |
| 16 | Dennis Siver | 95 | UFC | 10 |
| 17 | B.J. Penn | 93 | UFC | 14 |
| 18 | Sean Sherk | 87 | UFC | 16 |
| 19 | Evan Dunham | 80 | UFC | 17 |
| 20 | Rafael dos Anjos | 77 | UFC | 18 |
| 21 | Matt Wiman | 71 | UFC | 20 |
| 21 | Sam Stout | 71 | UFC | 22 |
| 23 | Josh Thomson | 69 | Strikeforce | 23 |
| 24 | Jorge Masvidal | 68 | Strikeforce | 21 |
| 25 | Kenny Florian | 67 | UFC | 25 |
By far December's biggest lightweight fight scheduled is #2 Gilbert Melendez vs. #24 Jorge Masvidal at Strikeforce's 12/17 event.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankie Edgar | 100 | UFC | 1 |
| 2 | Gilbert Melendez | 94 | Strikeforce | 3 |
| 3 | Gray Maynard | 92 | UFC | 2 |
| 4 | Eddie Alvarez | 80 | Bellator | 5 |
| 4 | Ben Henderson | 80 | UFC | 6 |
| 6 | Shinya Aoki | 78 | 4 | |
| 7 | Clay Guida | 73 | UFC | 7 |
| 8 | Jim Miller | 69 | UFC | 8 |
| 9 | Anthony Pettis | 57 | UFC | 10 |
| 10 | Dennis Siver | 40 | UFC | 12 |
| 11 | Melvin Guillard | 37 | UFC | 9 |
| 12 | Nate Diaz | 32 | UFC | 14 |
| 13 | Donald Cerrone | 31 | UFC | 18 |
| 14 | B.J. Penn | 28 | UFC | 11 |
| 15 | Joe Lauzon | 27 | UFC | 32 |
| 16 | Sean Sherk | 25 | UFC | 13 |
| 17 | Evan Dunham | 24 | UFC | 17 |
| 18 | Rafael dos Anjos | 24 | UFC | 16 |
| 19 | Gleison Tibau | 22 | UFC | 19 |
| 20 | Matt Wiman | 19 | UFC | 24 |
| 21 | Jorge Masvidal | 18 | Strikeforce | 20 |
| 22 | Sam Stout | 17 | UFC | 21 |
| 23 | Josh Thomson | 16 | 22 | |
| 24 | Tatsuya Kawajiri | 16 | 15 | |
| 25 | Kenny Florian | 16 | UFC | 31 |
UFC on Fox's undercard offers one of the better clashes of highly ranked lightweights available in #4 Ben Henderson vs. #7 Clay Guida.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankie Edgar | 100 | UFC | 1 |
| 2 | Gray Maynard | 95 | UFC | 2 |
| 3 | Gilbert Melendez | 92 | Strikeforce | 3 |
| 4 | Shinya Aoki | 81 | DREAM | 4 |
| 5 | Eddie Alvarez | 79 | Bellator | 5 |
| 6 | Ben Henderson | 75 | UFC | 7 |
| 7 | Clay Guida | 72 | UFC | 6 |
| 8 | Jim Miller | 66 | UFC | 8 |
| 9 | Melvin Guillard | 64 | UFC | 9 |
| 10 | Anthony Pettis | 48 | UFC | 10 |
| 11 | B.J. Penn | 37 | UFC | 11 |
| 12 | Dennis Siver | 36 | UFC | 14 |
| 13 | Sean Sherk | 30 | UFC | 13 |
| 14 | Nate Diaz | 29 | UFC | NR |
| 15 | Tatsuya Kawajiri | 28 | DREAM | 12 |
| 16 | Rafael dos Anjos | 25 | UFC | 15 |
| 17 | Evan Dunham | 24 | UFC | 16 |
| 18 | Donald Cerrone | 22 | UFC | 18 |
| 19 | Gleison Tibau | 21 | UFC | 17 |
| 20 | Jorge Masvidal | 19 | Strikeforce | 20 |
| 21 | Sam Stout | 17 | UFC | 23 |
| 22 | Josh Thomson | 16 | K-1 | 22 |
| 23 | George Sotiropoulos | 15 | UFC | 24 |
| 24 | Matt Wiman | 14 | UFC | 25 |
| 25 | Mizuto Hirota | 14 | DEEP | 32 |
We finally get the third installment of #1 Frankie Edgar vs. #2 Gray Maynard this month as the two headline UFC 136.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankie Edgar | 100 | UFC | 1 |
| 2 | Gray Maynard | 95 | UFC | 2 |
| 3 | Gilbert Melendez | 92 | Strikeforce | 3 |
| 4 | Shinya Aoki | 80 | Bellator | 4 |
| 5 | Eddie Alvarez | 73 | Bellator | 5 |
| 6 | Clay Guida | 73 | UFC | 7 |
| 7 | Ben Henderson | 69 | UFC | 14 |
| 8 | Jim Miller | 67 | UFC | 6 |
| 9 | Melvin Guillard | 62 | UFC | 8 |
| 10 | Anthony Pettis | 46 | UFC | 10 |
| 11 | B.J. Penn | 40 | UFC | 13 |
| 12 | Tatsuya Kawajiri | 40 | DREAM | 9 |
| 13 | Sean Sherk | 38 | UFC | 11 |
| 14 | Dennis Siver | 36 | UFC | 12 |
| 15 | Rafael dos Anjos | 24 | UFC | 16 |
| 16 | Evan Dunham | 23 | UFC | 18 |
| 17 | Gleison Tibau | 23 | UFC | 17 |
| 18 | Donald Cerrone | 21 | UFC | 23 |
| 19 | Takanori Gomi | 21 | UFC | 15 |
| 20 | Jorge Masvidal | 19 | Strikeforce | 21 |
| 21 | Kenny Florian | 19 | UFC | 19 |
| 22 | Josh Thomson | 18 | Strikeforce | 20 |
| 23 | Sam Stout | 18 | UFC | 22 |
| 24 | George Sotiropoulos | 15 | UFC | 24 |
| 25 | Matt Wiman | 14 | UFC | 27 |
Former WEC champion Ben Henderson made the leap to the elite of the lightweight division when he out classed the always game Jim Miller.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankie Edgar | 100 | UFC | 1 |
| 2 | Gray Maynard | 95 | UFC | 2 |
| 3 | Gilbert Melendez | 92 | Strikeforce | 3 |
| 4 | Shinya Aoki | 81 | Strikeforce | 4 |
| 5 | Eddie Alvarez | 79 | Bellator | 5 |
| 6 | Jim Miller | 77 | UFC | 6 |
| 7 | Clay Guida | 65 | UFC | 7 |
| 8 | Melvin Guillard | 64 | UFC | 10 |
| 9 | Tatsuya Kawajiri | 53 | Strikeforce | 8 |
| 10 | Anthony Pettis | 45 | UFC | 11 |
| 11 | Sean Sherk | 44 | UFC | 9 |
| 12 | Dennis Siver | 41 | UFC | 13 |
| 13 | B.J. Penn | 40 | UFC | 12 |
| 14 | Ben Henderson | 29 | UFC | 14 |
| 15 | Takanori Gomi | 24 | UFC | 16 |
| 16 | Rafael dos Anjos | 23 | UFC | NR |
| 17 | Gleison Tibau | 23 | UFC | 18 |
| 18 | Evan Dunham | 23 | UFC | 17 |
| 19 | Kenny Florian | 22 | UFC | 22 |
| 20 | Josh Thomson | 19 | K-1 | 19 |
| 21 | Jorge Masvidal | 18 | Strikeforce | 21 |
| 22 | Sam Stout | 18 | UFC | 23 |
| 23 | Donald Cerrone | 18 | UFC | 29 |
| 24 | George Sotiropoulos | 16 | UFC | 15 |
| 25 | Mac Danzig | 15 | UFC | 19 |
The fans finally get the fight they've been waiting for since January when #1 Frankie Edgar defends his belt a second time against #2 Gray Maynard at UFC 136.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankie Edgar | 99 | UFC | 1 |
| 2 | Gray Maynard | 95 | UFC | 2 |
| 3 | Gilbert Melendez | 93 | Strikeforce | 3 |
| 4 | Shinya Aoki | 83 | DREAM | 4 |
| 5 | Eddie Alvarez | 77 | Bellator | 5 |
| 6 | Jim Miller | 76 | UFC | 6 |
| 7 | Clay Guida | 67 | UFC | 13 |
| 8 | Tatsuya Kawajiri | 57 | Strikeforce | 8 |
| 9 | Sean Sherk | 49 | UFC | 10 |
| 10 | Melvin Guillard | 48 | UFC | 11 |
| 11 | Anthony Pettis | 45 | UFC | 9 |
| 12 | B.J. Penn | 40 | UFC | 12 |
| 13 | Dennis Siver | 37 | UFC | 15 |
| 14 | Ben Henderson | 33 | UFC | 18 |
| 15 | George Sotiropoulos | 30 | UFC | 14 |
| 16 | Takanori Gomi | 25 | UFC | 16 |
| 17 | Evan Dunham | 24 | UFC | 17 |
| 18 | Gleison Tibau | 21 | UFC | 25 |
| 19 | Josh Thomson | 18 | K-1 | 19 |
| 19 | Mac Danzig | 18 | UFC | 21 |
| 21 | Jorge Masvidal | 18 | Strikeforce | 24 |
| 22 | Kenny Florian | 17 | UFC | 7 |
| 23 | Sam Stout | 17 | UFC | 35 |
| 24 | Jadamba Narantungalag | 14 | WVR | 22 |
| 25 | Kurt Pellegrino | 14 | UFC | 30 |
| 25 | Brian Cobb | 14 | MaximumFC | 33 |
#10 Melvin Guillard, #13 Dennis Siver and #15 George Sotiropoulos will all compete against unranked opponents this Saturday at UFC 132.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankie Edgar | 99 | UFC | 1 |
| 2 | Gray Maynard | 94 | UFC | 2 |
| 3 | Gilbert Melendez | 93 | Strikeforce | 3 |
| 4 | Shinya Aoki | 82 | Strikeforce | 4 |
| 5 | Eddie Alvarez | 78 | Bellator | 5 |
| 6 | Jim Miller | 78 | UFC | 6 |
| 7 | Kenny Florian | 66 | UFC | 7 |
| 8 | Anthony Pettis | 55 | UFC | 9 |
| 8 | Tatsuya Kawajiri | 55 | Strikeforce | 8 |
| 10 | Sean Sherk | 51 | UFC | 10 |
| 11 | Melvin Guillard | 49 | UFC | 11 |
| 12 | B.J. Penn | 39 | UFC | 12 |
| 13 | Clay Guida | 37 | UFC | 13 |
| 14 | George Sotiropoulos | 34 | UFC | 14 |
| 15 | Dennis Siver | 34 | UFC | 15 |
| 16 | Ben Henderson | 27 | UFC | 18 |
| 17 | Takanori Gomi | 26 | UFC | 16 |
| 18 | Evan Dunham | 25 | UFC | 17 |
| 19 | Mac Danzig | 17 | UFC | 21 |
| 19 | Gleison Tibau | 17 | UFC | 25 |
| 21 | Josh Thomson | 15 | K-1 | 19 |
| 22 | Mizuto Hirota | 14 | K-1 | 29 |
| 23 | Nik Lentz | 14 | UFC | 20 |
| 24 | Gesias Cavalcante | 13 | Strikeforce | 27 |
| 25 | Jadamba Narantungalag | 13 | WVR | 21 |
The only top 5 lightweight with a fight scheduled in the near future is #4 Shinya Aoki who will be challenged by unranked Rich Clementi.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankie Edgar | 99 | UFC | 1 |
| 2 | Gray Maynard | 94 | UFC | 2 |
| 3 | Gilbert Melendez | 93 | Strikeforce | 3 |
| 4 | Shinya Aoki | 83 | Strikeforce | 4 |
| 5 | Eddie Alvarez | 80 | Bellator | 6 |
| 6 | Jim Miller | 76 | UFC | 5 |
| 7 | Kenny Florian | 71 | UFC | 7 |
| 8 | Tatsuya Kawajiri | 56 | Strikeforce | 8 |
| 9 | Anthony Pettis | 51 | UFC | 10 |
| 10 | Sean Sherk | 50 | UFC | 9 |
| 11 | Melvin Guillard | 47 | UFC | 11 |
| 12 | B.J. Penn | 39 | UFC | 15 |
| 13 | Clay Guida | 34 | UFC | 12 |
| 14 | George Sotiropoulos | 29 | UFC | 13 |
| 15 | Dennis Siver | 27 | UFC | 14 |
| 16 | Takanori Gomi | 24 | UFC | 16 |
| 17 | Evan Dunham | 21 | UFC | 17 |
| 18 | Ben Henderson | 19 | UFC | 18 |
| 19 | Josh Thomson | 18 | K-1 | 20 |
| 20 | Nik Lentz | 17 | UFC | 23 |
| 21 | Mac Danzig | 16 | UFC | 21 |
| 21 | Jadamba Narantungalag | 16 | WVR | 25 |
| 23 | Satoru Kitaoka | 15 | DEEP | 25 |
| 23 | Jorge Masvidal | 15 | Strikeforce | 29 |
| 25 | Gleison Tibau | 15 | UFC | 19 |
The highly anticipated third meeting between #1 Frankie Edgar and #2 Gray Maynard is almost upon us with UFC 130 less than a month away.
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Based on the premise that all MMA rankings are subjective but that it’s still useful and informative to know who the online MMA community as a whole ranks as the best fighters in MMA, we collect and average the rankings of the top MMA websites to produce our consensus rankings. Show more »
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