How do the best mixed martial artists on the planet measure up against each other, regardless of division? That’s the question our USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie women’s pound-for-pound rankings aims to answer.
Fight fans are in for a treat this Saturday when two top-five fighters square off as Valentina Shevchenko puts her flyweight championship on the line against Zhang Weili, who recently vacated the strawweight title for an opportunity to become a UFC two-division champ.
Before Shevchenko and Weili shake things up, see below to find out how the top 15 rank.
Note: Results are through Oct. 25.
1. Kayla Harrison
Record: 19-1Division: Bantamweight (UFC champion)Last fight: Win, Julianna Peña via second-round submission, June 7Next fight: TBD
Since joining the UFC after a dominant five years in the PFL, Harrison has made good on her big talk all while competing (and struggling to make weight) at 135 pounds, with wins over former champ Holly Holm and Ketlen Vieira before making easy work of then-bantamweight champ Peña. With the title now in her hands, we await a possible superfight with women’s GOAT and former teammate Amanda Nunes to be booked.
2. Cris Cyborg
Record: 28-2Division: Featherweight (PFL champion)Last fight: Win, Larissa Pacheco via unanimous decision, Oct. 19, 2024Next fight: TBD
Years of dominance and a current eight-fight winning streak have kept Cyborg in the top tier of the pound-for-pound rankings for a long time, but it’ll be interesting to see how much longer the 40-year-old veteran remains near the top.
3. Zhang Weili
Record: 26-3Division: Strawweight, flyweightLast fight: Win, Tatiana Suarez via unanimous decision, Feb. 9Next fight: Nov. 15 vs. Valentina Shevchenko
The first Chinese champion in UFC history, Weili recently vacated her strawweight title for the opportunity to become a two-division champ when she meets Shevchenko at UFC 322. Weili, a two-time champ at 115 pounds, had defended her title three consecutive times against Amanda Lemos, Yan Xiaonan, and most recently TSuarez in convincing fashion.
4. Valentina Shevchenko
Record: 25-4-1Division: Flyweight (UFC champion)Last fight: Win, Manon Fiorot via unanimous decision, May 10Next fight: Nov. 15 vs. Zhang Weili
Shevchenko, now a two-time flyweight champ after reclaiming the title following a trilogy with Alexa Grasso, will enter UFC 322 looking to defend the belt for a ninth time in her career. At 37, she’s shown no signs of slowing down.
5. Larissa Pacheco
Record: 23-5Division: FeatherweightLast fight: Loss, Cris Cyborg via unanimous decision, Oct. 19, 2024Next fight: TBD
In her only fight of 2024, Pacheco performed well against Cyborg but ultimately dropped a unanimous decision. Prior to the defeat, she had been on a 10-fight winning streak, which included a 2022 upset of Harrison. Pacheco didn’t compete in 2025 and what comes next is up in the air after she parted ways with the PFL in October.
6. Julianna Peña
Record: 12-6Division: BantamweightLast fight: Loss, Kayla Harrison via second-round division, June 7Next fight: TBD
Peña was dominated by Harrison to lose the UFC bantamweight title eight months after she won it with a controversial split decision win over Raquel Pennington. Peña’s December 2021 upset of Amanda Nunes is what propelled her into the pound-for-pound rankings.
7. Raquel Pennington
Record: 16-9Division: BantamweightLast fight: Loss, Julianna Peña via split decision, Oct. 5, 2024Next fight: TBD
If not for a controversial loss to Peña that cost her the UFC bantamweight championship, Pennington, 37, could be higher on this list – or she’d have been the one to fall victim to Harrison anyway. As it stands, the 12-year UFC veteran has been out of action for more than a year thanks, in part, to her recent withdrawal from a scheduled September bout with Norma Dumont due to injury.
8. Manon Fiorot
Record: 13-2Division: FlyweightLast fight: Win, Jasmine Jasudavicius via first-round TKO, Oct. 18Next fight: TBD
After coming up short in her UFC flyweight title shot against Shevchenko, Fiorot rebounded with a definitive first-round TKO win over Jasudavicius that keeps her among the top female fighters at 125 pounds.
9. Erin Blanchfield
Record: 13-2Division: FlyweightLast fight: Win, Rose Namajunas via unanimous decision, Nov. 2, 2024Next fight: Nov. 15 vs. Tracy Cortez
Blanchfield was on course for a UFC flyweight title shot but stumbled by losing to Fiorot, who received the shot on the strength of that victory. A win over Cortez at UFC 322 would put Blanchfield in consideration for the next shot as it would give her back-to-back wins.
10. Mackenzie Dern
Record: 16-5Division: Strawweight (UFC champion)Last fight: Win, Virna Jandiroba via unanimous decision, Oct. 25Next fight: TBD
Dern was on a downward trajectory after back-to-back losses to Jessica Andrade and Amanda Lemos before rebounding with consecutive wins over Loopy Godinez and Amanda Ribas to position herself to fight for the title vacated by Weili. Dern was tested but ultimately came out victorious in her rematch with Jandiroba to claim the 115-pound title.
11. Virna Jandiroba
Record: 22-4Division: StrawweightLast fight: Loss, Mackenzie Dern via unanimous decision, Oct. 25Next fight: TBD
Jandiroba came up short in her bid for the vacant UFC strawweight title, losing to Dern, which halted her winning streak at five.
12. Tatiana Suarez
Record: 11-1Division: StrawweightLast fight: Win, Amanda Lemos via unanimous decision, Sept. 13Next fight: TBD
Suarez, long considered a lock to be a future UFC champion, received a rude awakening in her title fight to Weili, but a nice win over Lemos in September, combined with Dern expressing interest in Suarez as her first title defense, means her second shot could come sooner than later.
13. Natalia Silva
Record: 19-5-1Division: FlyweightLast fight: Win, Alexa Grasso via unanimous decision, May 10Next fight: TBD
Silva, who’s on a 13-fight overall winning streak and hasn’t lost since 2017, announced herself as a serious threat at 125 pounds in a big way by outclassing Grasso in her last fight. Silva in all likelihood is awaiting the winner of Shevchenko-Weili to challenge for the flyweight title.
14. Dakota Ditcheva
Record: 15-0Division: FlyweightLast fight: Won, Sumiko Inaba via unanimous decision, July 19Next fight: TBD
Ditcheva continues to pass the eye test in the PFL, which is where she’ll compete for the foreseeable future after re-signing with the promotion. Ditcheva’s November 2024 TKO finish of former UFC title challenger Taila Santos is unquestionably the most impressive win on her undefeated resume. Unless the PFL acquires someone notable, it’s likely to remain so.
15. Alexa Grasso
Record: 16-5-1Division: FlyweightLast fight: Loss, Natalia Silva via unanimous decision, May 10Next fight: TBD
Grasso’s 2023 upset of Shevchenko to claim the UFC flyweight title was the crowning achievement of her career, but it’s been downhill since then after she fought Shevchenko to a draw in the rematch and lost the trilogy. To follow that chapter of her career, Grasso was outclassed by Silva.
