Sherdog’s Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

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Featherweight

1. Ilia Topuria (17-0) | UFC [1]

Topuria called his shot and delivered, as he knocked out Charles Oliveira in the UFC 317 headliner. With the victory, “El Matador” becomes the first undefeated fighter to be a two-division UFC champion. Topuria now has successive knockout victories over Alexander Volkanovski, Max Holloway and Oliveira — a run that’s as impressive as any in recent memory. Topuria won’t fight during the first quarter of 2026 due to personal matters, but a matchup against the Justin Gaethje-Paddy Pimblett winner could be imminent when he is ready to return. At featherweight, the Georgian-Spaniard’s rankings eligibility will expire on April 26, 2026.

2. Alexander Volkanovski (27-4) | UFC [2]

Even at 36 years old, Volkanovski showed he still has something left in the tank, as he reclaimed featherweight gold with a hard-fought decision triumph against Diego Lopes in the UFC 314 headliner. It was a much-needed return to the win column for the Aussie on the heels of back-to-back knockout losses against Ilia Topuria and Islam Makhachev. While worthy contenders such as Lerone Murphy and Movsar Evloev loomed large, Volkanovski will instead square off against Lopes once again in the UFC 325 main event.

3. Max Holloway (27-8) | UFC [3]

The third time proved to be the charm for Holloway, who played the role of spoiler by defeating Dustin Poirier via unanimous decision in the UFC 318 headliner in New Orleans. While Poirier bids the sport farewell, “Blessed” looks capable of making a run at 155 pounds at this stage of his UFC career. Holloway will next put his BMF belt on the line in a rematch against Charles Oliveira — more than 15 years after their first meeting — in the UFC 326 main event..

4. Movsar Evloev (19-0) | UFC [4]

Evloev survived by the skin of his teeth at UFC 310, as he took a narrow unanimous verdict over former bantamweight champ Aljamain Sterling in a grappling-heavy affair. The Russian’s resume now includes triumphs over the likes of Sterling, Arnold Allen and Diego Lopes, but the lack of finishes on his resume — all nine of his UFC wins have gone the distance — could impede his progress to the top of the division. Evloev was supposed to face Aaron Pico in a five-round co-main event at UFC Abu Dhabi on July 26 before withdrawing due to injury.

5. Diego Lopes (27-7) | UFC [5]

One bout removed from a loss to Alexander Volkanovski in a featherweight title bout at UFC 314, Lopes proved he still has plenty to offer the featherweight division, as he finished surging Fighting Nerds talent Jean Silva with a spinning back elbow and punches in the second round of their headlining bout at Noche UFC in San Antonio. Lopes was dominant in the opening stanza but he had to weather some adversity from his fellow Brazilian before using Silva’s own move against him to begin the finishing sequence in the second stanza. The Lobo Gym MMA product will get another shot at championship glory sooner than expected when he meets Volkanovski in a rematch in the UFC 325 headliner on Jan. 31.

6. Arnold Allen (20-3) | UFC [6]

Allen snapped a two-fight skid at UFC 304, taking a unanimous decision triumph over Giga Chikadze in Manchester. While the 30-year-old Brit couldn’t get past difficult tests against the likes of Max Holloway and Movsar Evloev, he nonetheless owns an 11-2 mark in UFC competition. “Almighty” will return from a hiatus that lasted well over a year when he meets Jean Silva at UFC 324.

7. Lerone Murphy (17-0-1) UFC [7]

After going nearly four years without a finish, Murphy made the strongest statement possible in the UFC 319 co-headliner, where he rendered Aaron Pico unconscious with a spinning back elbow in the opening stanza of their encounter at the United Center in Chicago on Aug. 16. Murphy’s promotional winning streak now stands at nine, and his latest effort may have very well punched his ticket to a UFC featherweight title shot.

8. Yair Rodriguez (20-5, 1 NC) | UFC [8]

Rodriguez gave Patricio Freire a rude welcome to the featherweight division at UFC 314, controlling the range with his versatile striking arsenal to take a clear-cut unanimous decision triumph over the former Bellator champion at the Kaseya Center in Miami. That ends a two-fight losing streak for “El Pantera,” was rumored to be receiving a title shot against Alexander Volkanovski at Noche UFC before the event was moved from Guadalajara to San Antonio.

9. Jean Silva (16-3) | UFC [9]

Silva came up short in his biggest fight to date, falling to Diego Lopes via second-round technical knockout in the Noche UFC main event on Sept. 13 in San Antonio. “Lord” recovered from a disastrous first round to put some serious pressure on his Brazilian counterpart in Round 2 before succumbing to a spinning back elbow and follow-up punches at the 4:48 mark of the period. Silva’s stock shouldn’t fall too far following a defeat that occurred in a “Fight of the Year” candidate. Next, the Brazilian will square off against Arnold Allen at UFC 324.

10. Timur Khizriev (18-0) | PFL [10]

Khizriev completed a strong 2024 campaign with a unanimous decision triumph over Brendan Loughnane to earn a Professional Fighters League featherweight championship. After a year that also included wins over the likes of Gabriel Braga, Enrique Barzola and Brett Johns, the 29-year-old Dagestani has not competed in 2025. However, he did have a scary encounter where he was hospitalized after being shot by two attackers in his home country in July.

Other Contenders: Youssef Zalal, Aljamain Sterling, Rajabali Shaidullaev, Steve Garcia, Movlid Khaybulaev.

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