Sherdog’s Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

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Women’s Bantamweight

1. Amanda Nunes (19-4)

It wasn’t a breathtaking knockout like some of her recent efforts, but Nunes showed a different aspect of her game at UFC 245. “Lioness” grounded Germaine de Randamie repeatedly and controlled the majority of their fight from top position en route to a unanimous decision victory in a bantamweight title clash at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Additionally, Nunes had to survive a few moments of adversity — something she hasn’t experienced of late — to earn her 10th straight triumph in the Octagon. Nunes has said she is interested in defending her featherweight crown next.

2. Germaine de Randamie (9-4)

De Randamie certainly had her moments against Amanda Nunes at UFC 245, but a lack of consistent takedown defense ultimately proved to be her undoing. “The Iron Lady” had some success on the feet and even threatened with a few submissions, but she was largely controlled on the canvas in losing a unanimous decision at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. As long as she’s active, the Dutchwoman figures to remain one of the top contenders in the division, as her only two defeats in nine bouts since 2012 have come at the hands of Nunes.

3. Holly Holm (12-5)

Give Holm and her team credit: “The Preacher’s Daughter” has maximized her marketability during her UFC tenure. However, Holm’s run may be nearing its end. The Jackson-Wink MMA stalwart never got going against Amanda Nunes in the UFC 239 co-headliner, as she fell victim to her own signature move – a head kick – at the 4:10 mark of the opening stanza. Since her monumental upset of Ronda Rousey, Holm is 0-4 in UFC title bouts. Holm was slated to rematch Raquel Pennington at UFC 243 in Melbourne, but the Jackson-Wink MMA product had to pull out of the matchup due to injury. The rematch has since been rescheduled for UFC 246 on Jan. 18.

4. Aspen Ladd (9-1)

Ladd rebounded from her disappointing loss to Germaine de Randamie this past summer in resounding fashion at UFC on ESPN 7, as she scored a third-round technical knockout victory against Yana Kunitskaya in Washington, D.C. One of the bantamweight division’s most ferocious competitors, Ladd has won four of her first five Octagon appearances, with three of those triumphs coming against opponents currently in Sherdog.com’s bantamweight poll.

5. Raquel Pennington (10-7)

Pennington garnered a much-needed victory at UFC on ESPN 4, halting a two-bout skid with a split-decision triumph against Irene Aldana in San Antonio. Pennington, a former title challenger who owns notable wins against the likes of Miesha Tate, Jessica Andrade and Roxanne Modafferi, now has seven bantamweight victories inside the Octagon — the second most in the history of the division behind only reigning champion Amanda Nunes. Pennington was supposed to face Holly Holm in a rematch at UFC 243, but “The Preacher’s Daughter” was forced to exit the card due to injury. The contest has been rescheduled for UFC 246 on Jan. 18.

6. Irene Aldana (12-5)

Aldana made a statement at UFC 245, knocking out the previously unbeaten Ketlen Vieira with a jumping left hook in the opening stanza of their preliminary bantamweight clash in Las Vegas. The Mexican fighter has now won five of her last six Octagon appearances and after besting an opponent who had been viewed as a top contender in the division, has to be on the short list of potential 135-pound title challengers.

7. Yana Kunitskaya (12-5)

Kunitskaya saw a modest two-fight winning streak come to an end at UFC on ESPN 7, as she fell to Aspen Ladd via third-round technical knockout in a featured contest at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. Kunitskaya had some success in the clinch in the second stanza but was dropped by a short left hook and follow-up ground-and-pound in the final frame. After challenging for featherweight gold in her Octagon debut, the 30-year-old Russian is now 2-2 in UFC competition overall.

8. Lina Lansberg (10-4)

Lansberg earned her second consecutive Octagon triumph at UFC Fight Night 160, taking a unanimous decision over “The Ultimate Fighter 28” winner Macy Chiasson in Copenhagen, Denmark, on Sept. 28. After a slow start, “Elbow Queen” rallied over the final 10 minutes, landing takedowns in Rounds 2 and 3 to hand Chiasson her first career defeat. After a rough start to her promotional tenure that included losses to Cristiane Justino, Aspen Ladd and Yana Kunitskaya, the 37-year-old Swede has posted back-to-back triumphs over Chiasson and Tonya Evinger. Lansberg will next lock horns with Sara McMann at UFC Raleigh on Jan. 25.

9. Tonya Evinger (19-8)

Evinger’s introduction to the UFC has been difficult, to say the least. In her third bid to earn her first Octagon triumph, the ex-Invicta champ again came up short, losing a clear-cut decision to Lina Lansberg at UFC Stockholm. That loss comes on the heels of back-to-back TKO defeats to Cristiane Justino and Aspen Ladd. Evinger had been unbeaten in her 11 previous bouts before signing with the Las Vegas-based promotion.

10. Ketlen Vieira (10-1)

Vieira kicked off her Ultimate Fighting Championship tenure with four straight victories, and after consecutive impressive performances against former title challengers Sara McMann and Cat Zingano, was considered to be a top contender for bantamweight gold. That momentum slowed somewhat after a prolonged absence, and in her first bout in more than a year she was shockingly knocked out in the opening stanza by Irene Aldana at UFC 245. The 28-year-old Nova Uniao product was doing well prior to the finish and remains a fighter to watch in a relatively shallow division.

Other Contenders: Marion Reneau, Macy Chiasson, Lucie Pudilova, Julianna Pena, Karol Rosa.

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