Combat Press Women’s MMA Rankings: August 2019

With the growing popularity of women’s MMA, it is important to recognize these women with a rankings system similar to the men. Between the UFC’s inclusion of a bantamweight division, its addition of a strawweight division, its recent announcement of a flyweight division and the all-female promotion of Invicta FC, more and more women are being exposed to casual and hardcore fans alike. Every month, Combat Press compiles the staff’s individual rankings from featherweight to atomweight to create the Combat Press Women’s MMA Rankings.

Note: the numbers in parentheses represent the fighter’s ranking from the previous rankings.

1. Amanda Nunes (1)
2. Cris “Cyborg” Justino (2)
3. Julia Budd (3)
4. Holly Holm (4)
5. Felicia Spencer (5)
6. Megan Anderson (6)
7. Talita Nogueira (8)
8. Olga Rubin (7)
9. Arlene Blencowe (9)
10. Leslie Smith (-)

Dropped from the rankings: Kaitlin Young (10)

Two of the best solidified their status in the month of July. Cris Cyborg put in another dominant performance against undefeated prospect Felicia Spencer to perhaps score a rematch with Amanda Nunes. Meanwhile, Bellator champion Julia Budd continued her reign of dominance by swatting away the challenge of Olga Rubin at Bellator 224. On that same card, Leslie Smith added a victory over Sinead Kavanagh. Smith slies into the No. 10 spot in the rankings, thereby bumping Kaitlin Young from the polls. In August, Young will have a chance to regain her spot when she meets Pam Sorenson in the Invicta FC 36 headliner.

1. Amanda Nunes (1)
2. Germaine de Randamie (2)
3. Holly Holm (3)
4. Ketlen Vieira (4)
5. Aspen Ladd (5)
6. Raquel Pennington (6)
7. Cat Zingano (7)
8. Julianna Peña (-)
9. Yana Kunitskaya (8)
10. Lina Länsberg (9)

Dropped from the rankings: Marion Reneau (10)

Amanda Nunes has solidified her claim for consideration as the greatest female fighter of all time with another huge win in July, when she knocked out Holly Holm at UFC 239. She may find another challenge in the form of Germaine de Randamie, who scored a quick knockout over Aspen Ladd in the main event of UFC on ESPN+ 13 in Sacramento. Meanwhile, at UFC on ESPN 4, Raquel Pennington notched a win over Irene Aldana to keep herself relevant.

1. Valentina Shevchenko (1)
2. Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (2)
3. Liz Carmouche (3)
4. Jessica Eye (4)
5. Katlyn Chookagian (5)
6. Jennifer Maia (6)
7. Vanessa Porto (7)
8. Roxanne Modafferi (9)
9. Andrea Lee (10)
10. Viviane Araujo (-)

Dropped from the rankings: Alexis Davis (8)

Jennifer Maia continued to make the case for a title shot with her performance at UFC on ESPN 4, where the former Invicta champion scored a decision win over Roxanne Modafferi. Viviane Araujo jumps into the top 10 following an impressive UFC outing against Alexis Davis at UFC 240. The loss pushes Davis out of the rankings. In August, top-ranked 125er and UFC champ Valentina Shevchenko takes on Liz Carmouche.

1. Jessica Andrade (1)
2. Rose Namajunas (2)
3. Joanna Jędrzejczyk (3)
4. Tatiana Suarez (4)
5. Nina Ansaroff (5)
6. Claudia Gadelha (6)
7. Weili Zhang (7)
8. Michelle Waterson (8)
9. Carla Esparza (9)
10. Tecia Torres (10)/Alexa Grasso (10)

Claudia Gadelha scored another big win when she decisioned Randa Markos at UFC 239. In August, Jessica Andrade defends her title for the first time against Weili Zhang in Zhang’s backyard of China. Also, Tecia Torres will look to break her tie for the No. 10 slot when she fights Marina Rodriguez.

1. Ayaka Hamasaki (1)
2. Seo Hee Ham (2)
3. Jinh Yu Frey (3)
4. Minna Grusander (4)
5. Ashley Cummins (5)
6. Alesha Zappitella (6)
7. Lindsey VanZandt (7)
8. Kelly D’Angelo (8)
9. Mina Kurobe (9)
10. Miyuu Yamamoto (10)

Seo Hee Ham continues to be a force at atomweight. The South Korean fighter demolished Tomo Maesawa with grounded knees to score a finish in their fight at Rizin 17. Also in Japan, Mina Kurobe held on to her top-10 status with a victory over Yi Ji Lee at Shooto’s July 15 event. In August, top-ranked Ayaka Hamasaki takes on Suwana Boonsom, Alesha Zappitella looks to get back into the win column against former top-10 fighter Kanna Asakura, and Lindsey VanZandt meets up with Jessica Delboni.

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Editor’s Note: Fighters are eligible to be ranked if they have competed in the last 18 months. Any fighter that chooses to switch weight classes will be ranked in their previous weight class until they have competed twice in their new division. Fighters who announce their retirement will remain ranked for a period of six months following their final bout.