Sherdog’s Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

Women’s Bantamweight

1. Amanda Nunes (14-4)

Many expected Nunes to defeat former women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey at UFC 207 in Las Vegas, but in her first title defense, she positively humiliated the Olympic judo bronze medalist, savagely knocking her out in a 48-second landslide and perhaps retiring the “Rowdy” one. Firmly entrenched as the top 135-pound woman in the world, Nunes now waits for a date to have a rematch with Valentina Shevchenko -- a woman she bested in March.

2. Valentina Shevchenko (14-2)

It was no piece of cake, but in her biggest bout to date, Shevchenko found a beautiful second-round armbar against Julianna Pena in the UFC on Fox 23 main event and cemented herself as the next challenger for champion Amanda Nunes. Nunes was the last woman to top “Bullet,” winning a decision over Shevchenko at UFC 196 in March 2016. Plus, a win for Shevchenko in the rematch could set up a historically noteworthy trilogy.

3. Holly Holm (10-2)

It was a dreadful year for Holm after her breakout conquering of Ronda Rousey in November 2015. First, Holm dropped her UFC title to Miesha Tate in a come-from-behind five-round submission loss at UFC 196 in March. Then, she was soundly outpointed over 25 minutes by Valentina Shevchenko in July. Despite the consecutive losses, she has the chance to make history in her next outing. At UFC 208 on Feb. 11, Holm will meet Dutch kickboxing queen Germaine de Randamie at 145 pounds to crown the inaugural UFC women’s featherweight champion. If Holm wins, she will join Randy Couture, B.J. Penn and Conor McGregor as the only fighters in history to win UFC titles in two weight classes

4. Julianna Pena (8-3)

Pena had her moments in the UFC on Fox 23 headliner, but ultimately, she could not finish her armbar in the first round and watched as opponent Valentina Shevchenko cinched one of her own late in the second. “The Venezuelan Vixen” still has one of the division's best hit lists; and at 27 years old, she has plenty of time to contend for a title.

5. Raquel Pennington (9-5)

A modern example of the MMA throwback philosophy of learning on the job, Pennington came off of “The Ultimate Fighter” with a 3-3 pro MMA record. Since then, “Rocky” has gone 6-2 in the Octagon, including a four-fight winning streak that now features former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Miesha Tate. Pennington pounded on Tate for 15 minutes at UFC 205, claiming the biggest win of her pro career.

6. Ronda Rousey (12-2)

After much anticipation, curiosity and speculation surrounding her title fight versus Amanda Nunes at UFC 208, Rousey’s Octagon return quickly turned into a disastrous nightmare. The Olympic judo bronze medalist was tagged immediately by Nunes and then brutally clobbered with a battery of punches before biting the dust in just 48 seconds. Even with consecutive, humiliating losses to Nunes and Holly Holm, Rousey still has one of the best resumes at 135 pounds. Whether or not she ever fights again at all has become the operative question.

7. Sara McMann (10-3)

After going 1-3 over a four-fight stint, it seemed as though McMann's days of serious bantamweight contention were done. Instead, the 2004 Olympic silver medalist has turned in impressive dominations over Jessica Eye and Alexis Davis in her last two outings and is now lined up to meet Gina Mazany -- a replacement for the injured Liz Carmouche -- at UFC Fight Night 105 on Feb. 19.

8. Cat Zingano (9-2)

Back from a 16-month absence, Zingano is now eligible to be ranked again, but the former UFC title challenger did not return on a positive note. Though “Alpha” started quickly against Julianna Pena at UFC 200, she could not keep up her wrestling attack, giving up her back in the second and third rounds, fending off rear-naked chokes until the final bell and losing a unanimous decision.

9. Tonya Evinger (18-5, 1 NC)

At Invicta 20 in November, Evinger got locked in an armbar by underdog Yana Kunitskaya for a moment lost her Invicta Fighting Championships 135-pound strap. Fortunately, sanity prevailed after the Missouri Office of Athletics reviewed the bout and deemed it a no-contest due to referee Mike England inexplicably telling Evinger she was not allowed to put her feet on her foe's face to free herself from the submission. Due to the unfortunate botch, Evinger got her title back and, more importantly, has the chance to atone for the screwy situation at Invicta 22 on March 25.

10. Liz Carmouche (11-5)

Carmouche's win over Katlyn Chookagian in her overdue Octagon return in November put her back on the 135-pound map. “Girl-rilla” was set to jump deeper into the wide-open 135-pound race on Feb. 19, but an injury has forced her to withdraw from a scheduled clash with Sara McMann at UFC Fight Night 109 in Halifax.

Other Contenders: Katlyn Chookagian, Alexis Davis, Germaine de Randamie, Ashlee Evans-Smith, Lauren Murphy

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