Another top 5

Last week I went through my top 5 favourite male fighters in MMA. This week we are looking at the ladies. Again, this is based on who I think are the best and it is very subjective – everyone has their own opinions, and I respect that. This list will move from 5 to 1, with 1 being the best in my opinion.

In at #5: Ronda Rousey
Rousey is on the list for what she did for women’s MMA. Before Rousey, Dana White declared women would never be in the UFC. Rousey convinced Dana otherwise and blazed a trail for female fighters to follow. Rousey is the only American female to medal at the Olympics in Judo. She then transitioned into MMA where she found monumental success with her takedown and famous armbar. That doesn’t sound particularly amazing as most fighters can do a takedown and get an armbar. Rousey, however, did that to everyone in the first round – 11 or her first 12 wins came in the first round. Rousey was the first and last bantamweight champion in Strikeforce and was the first bantamweight champion in the UFC.

Rousey was also the first women to main event in the UFC and the first women to be inducted into the UFC hall of fame. Rousey did a lot of really good things for women’s MMA. Like many fighters, Rousey doesn’t come without her faults. Her attitude after fights left something to be desired and she would often disrespect a beaten opponent. Rousey’s one-dimensional fighting style would eventually catch up with her and she finished her MMA career with two very bad losses. Without her though, the women’s division would not be what it is today. At the peak Rousey-mania, she was considered the most dominant female athlete in sports – which I thought was a big of a reach for someone who only had 12 wins. Regardless, she racked up some very good wins, drew many new fans into the UFC and MMA more generally, and became a role model for many young women interested in combat sports.

#4: Rose Namajunas
Although there are other women with a better win-loss record than the ‘Thug’, it is the way she fights that puts her on my list. She also beat Jedrzejczyk to win the strawweight title with a quick KO, then took her apart in the rematch over 5 rounds. Jedrzejczyk was going to be on the list but as she got beaten very convincingly by two people on the list, she was left off.

At the time of the title fight Jedrzejczyk was considered one of the best strikers, male or female, in the UFC. Then comes unassuming looking Rose, who is not that athletic looking, doesn’t have the mean stare and has quite a humble demeaner about her. So, you thought the tough looking, tough talking and a fighter with a bad ass last name would keep her win streak going against Rose. Then Rose who has a very good ground game and has won multiple fights via submission stands with one of the best strikers in the game you are thinking uh oh, then 3:03 minutes later Rose has knocked Jedrzejczyk down and gets the win. In the rematch Jedrzejczyk said she took the fight a bit easy and this one is going to be hers. This time Rose stood with her for 5 rounds and picked her apart and no one had seen someone out strike Jedrzejczyk to the point she made it look easy. For her unassuming look and her self-confessed mental battle that she has every time she fights, I have found myself really liking how Rose performs and have put her at 4 on my list.

#3: Valentina Shevchenko
For me, Shevchenko is one of the most well-rounded fighters in the sport. Shevchenko has a striking background (to put it mildly) with a kickboxing record of 57 wins and 2 losses and a pro boxing record of 2 wins from 2 fights. You can see that Shevchenko is an elite striker by any measure. 3 of her kickboxing wins are against Jedrzejczyk as well.

In addition to her striking, Shevchenko also holds a black belt and master of sport in Judo. This means she is just as dangerous on the ground with 7 of her wins coming by way of submission. When Shevchenko fought Holly Holm – who is a kickboxing world champion and a multiple time boxing world champion – Shevchenko really showed her ability. Holm, who is a southpaw was taken apart by Shevchenko. Every time Holm would throw a straight left, Shevchenko would throw a perfectly timed spinning attack – either a back fist or a kick. When you think of the mechanics, this means that Shevchenko’s counter is going over Holm’s punch making it very hard to defend, let alone counter. This was the difference between them in their fight in my opinion. Shevchenko’s all-around ability and her go-forward style puts her right at the pointy end of my favourite fighters, male or female.

Shevchenko is just a badass, plain, and simple.

#2: Cyborg
Cris Cyborg has to be on any list of top female fighters. After losing her first MMA fight in 2005, Cyborg went on to win 20 fights over 13 years. This was one of the reasons I did not like Rousey being called the most dominant female athlete/fighter on the planet. As Cyborg had won almost twice as many fights over 13 years of dominance. Cyborg is also the only MMA fighter, male or female, to win the grand slam holding world championships across 4 major MMA promotions.

Cyborg is a very well-rounded fighter and has won the world championships in BJJ twice. Even with her grappling ability, Cyborg would often overpower opponents with brute force. Cyborg would walk her opponent down, walking through their strikes, and then unleash power shots that her opponents could not deal. Despite looking the part of a typical fighter with her fearsome fighting style, very mean looking and well-muscled (steroids?), Cyborg is a lovely person by all accounts and after her fights she would get 100 hamburgers from the local takeaway and go feed the homeless. When she got beaten for the first time in 13 years, she made no excuses and congratulated her opponent. Inside and outside the ring, she’s an absolute legend of the sport.

#1: Amanda Nunes: The Lioness
The top of my list goes to the first two division women’s champion in the UFC and the third person to hold titles in two classes. Nunes has also beaten 3 people on this list with a split decision victory over Shevchenko and then knocking out both Rousey and Cyborg (first loss in 13 years).

Nunes is very well rounded, holding a BJJ black belt and a Judo brown belt. This would leave you to think that Nunes wins her fights on the ground, but this is not the case. Out of the 19 wins, 3 came via submissions but she’s stopped 13 by TKO. You can see that Nunes has some very good striking. Nunes is happy to stand and trade with anyone, this was shown when Nunes fought Cyborg who is one of the most feared strikers in the division. Nunes stood toe-to-toe with her and knocked her out. Nunes can keep a fight standing with her takedown defence and utilise her striking.

Looking at Nunes, many don’t associate her with having the power to knock people out. However, her use of reach and technique give Nunes’ punches more grunt than you would expect from someone of her build. Nunes also has that mentality to throw to hurt you and not worry about what comes back. A while back I wrote one of these posts called ‘Amanda who?’ as it seemed that Nunes was not getting the marketing that she deserved, and I could not figure out why. Nunes produces very exciting fights, yet the hype machine is not behind her. Regardless, when the history of MMA is written, Amanda Nunes will be at the very top of the list.

This is who I think are the top women in MMA, yes Rousey has retired. Would love to hear your top 5.

Gareth Lewis
Head MMA Instructor