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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

In the ever-shifting MMA landscape, ranking the world’s greatest fighters might seem like a fool’s errand, but that’s exactly what we’ve set out to do with the MMA Fighting Global Rankings. Here, our esteemed panel sorts out the movers and shakers from every division to provide you with the most definitive list of the best fighters on the planet.

Updated pound-for-pound rankings can be found here.

This month, you may notice one curious removal from the list due to inactivity: Upcoming UFC 303 headliner Michael Chandler.

The lightweight star is expected to fight Conor McGregor on June 29, but after not competing in 18 months (actually 19 months by the time fight night rolls around), he is now subject to the rules for automatic removal, so he joins his rival among the unranked.

Though this may sound unfair with the fight just weeks away, keep in mind that Chandler isn’t officially active again until that cage door closes — and who knows if the mercurial McGregor even makes it to Las Vegas (he couldn’t even make it to Dublin!). And if Chandler loses, will he still merit a return to the rankings?

For now, he’s out.

Check out the complete June rankings below.

[Ed. note: Our rankings panel recently dropped from eight members to seven. That means one ballot’s points completely left the board, which had an effect across several divisions. If you see movement in a division that doesn’t relate to recent bouts, that’s probably why.]

Heavyweight

MMA Fighting

Recent results for ranked fighters (previous ranking shown): No. 6 Jailton Almeida def. Alexandr Romanov

Upcoming bouts featuring ranked fighters: No. 1 Tom Aspinall vs. No. 4 Curtis Blaydes (UFC 304, July 27), No. 3 Sergei Pavlovich vs. No. 7 Alexander Volkov (UFC Fight Night, June 22), No. 14 Phil De Fries vs. Augusto Sakai (KSW 95, June 7)

Fighters also receiving votes (number of ballot appearances shown): Derrick Lewis (4), Linton Vassell (3), Ryan Bader (1), Denis Goltsov (1)

Falling out of the rankings (previous ranking shown): N/A

Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Light Heavyweight

MMA Fighting

Recent results for ranked fighters (previous ranking shown): No. 13 Anthony Smith def. Vitor Petrino, Bogdan Guskov def. No. 14 Ryan Spann

Upcoming bouts featuring ranked fighters: No. 6 Jamahal Hill vs. No. 14 (tied) Carlos Ulberg (UFC 303, June 29), No. 8 Johnny Walker vs. No. 15 Volkan Oezdemir (UFC Fight Night, June 22)

Fighters also receiving votes (number of ballot appearances shown): Azamat Murzakanov (2), Bogdan Guskov (2), Alonzo Menifield (1)

Falling out of the rankings (previous ranking shown): No. 15 Ryan Spann

Middleweight

MMA Fighting

Recent results for ranked fighters (previous ranking shown): No. 2 Sean Strickland def. No. 8 Paulo Costa

Upcoming bouts featuring ranked fighters: No. 4 Robert Whittaker vs. No. 10 Khamzat Chimaev (UFC Fight Night, June 22), No. 5 Jared Cannonier vs. No. 11 Nassourdine Imavov (UFC Louisville, June 8)

Fighters also receiving votes (number of ballot appearances shown): Caio Borralho (3), Jack Hermansson (2), Fabian Edwards (2), Impa Kasanganay (1),Ikram Aliskerov (1), Chris Curtis (1)

Falling out of the rankings (previous ranking shown): No. 14 Fabian Edwards

Welterweight

MMA Fighting

Recent results for ranked fighters (previous ranking shown): No. 13 Joaquin Buckley def. Nursulton Ruziboev, Shamil Musaev def. No. 15 Logan Storley

Upcoming bouts featuring ranked fighters: No. 1 Leon Edwards vs. No. 4 Belal Muhammad (UFC 304, July 27), No. 7 Jason Jackson vs. Ramazan Kuramagomedov (Bellator Dublin, June 22), No. 8 Ian Machado Garry vs. No. 13 (tied) Michael Page (UFC 303, June 29), No. 15 Vicente Luque vs. Nick Diaz (UFC Abu Dhabi, Aug. 3)

Fighters also receiving votes (number of ballot appearances shown): Magomed Magomedkerimov (3), Randy Brown (2), Colby Covington (1), Rinat Fakhretdinov (1), Magomed Umalatov (1)

Falling out of the rankings (previous ranking shown): No. 15 Logan Storley

Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Lightweight

MMA Fighting

Recent results for ranked fighters (previous ranking shown): No. 1 Islam Makhachev def. No. 6 Dustin Poirier

Upcoming bouts featuring ranked fighters: N/A

Fighters also receiving votes (number of ballot appearances shown): Bobby Green (2), Jalin Turner (1), Matt Frevola (1), Drew Dober (1), Drakkar Klose (1), Tofiq Musayev (1)

Falling out of the rankings (previous ranking shown): No. 10 (tied) Michael Chandler (inactivity)

Featherweight

MMA Fighting

Recent results for ranked fighters (previous ranking shown): N/A

Upcoming bouts featuring ranked fighters: No. 7 Arnold Allen vs. No. 13 Giga Chikadze (UFC 304, July 27), No. 15 Dan Ige vs. Joanderson Brito (UFC Fight Night, July 20)

Fighters also receiving votes (number of ballot appearances shown): Bryce Mitchell (3), Movlid Khaybulaev (1), Lerone Murphy (3), Chihiro Suzuki (1), Adam Borics (1), Joanderson Brito (1)

Falling out of the rankings (previous ranking shown): N/A

Bantamweight

MMA Fighting

Recent results for ranked fighters (previous ranking shown): No. 3 Patchy Mix def. Magomed Magomedov, Jose Aldo def. No. 14 Jonathan Martinez

Upcoming bouts featuring ranked fighters: No. 4 Cory Sandhagen vs. No. 8 Umar Nurmagomedov (UFC Abu Dhabi, Aug. 3), No. 7 Sergio Pettis vs. No. 4 FLW Kyoji Horiguchi (RIZIN 47, June 9), No. 9 Deiveson Figueiredo vs. No. 10 Marlon Vera (UFC Abu Dhabi, Aug. 3)

Fighters also receiving votes (number of ballot appearances shown): Kai Asakura (3), Kyler Phillips (3), Jonathan Martinez (3), Mario Bautista (1)

Falling out of the rankings (previous ranking shown): No. 15 Kyler Phillips

Flyweight

MMA Fighting

Recent results for ranked fighters (previous ranking shown): No. 1 Alexandre Pantoja def. No. 14 Steve Erceg, No. 12 Alex Perez def. No. 10 (tied) Matheus Nicolau

Upcoming bouts featuring ranked fighters: No. 4 Kyoji Horiguchi vs. Sergio Pettis (bantamweight bout) (RIZIN 47, June 9), No. 9 (tied) Muhammad Mokaev vs. No. 9 (tied) Manel Kape (UFC 304, July 27), No. 12 Alex Perez vs. No. 13 Tatsuro Taira (UFC Fight Night, June 15)

Fighters also receiving votes (number of ballot appearances shown): Askar Akarov (1), Azamat Kerefov (1), Kairat Akhmetov (1), Hiromasa Ougikubo (1)

Falling out of the rankings (previous ranking shown): N/A

Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images

Women’s Bantamweight

MMA Fighting

Recent results for ranked fighters (previous ranking shown): N/A

Upcoming bouts featuring ranked fighters: No. 3 Mayra Bueno Silva vs. No. 8 Macy Chiasson (UFC 303, June 29), No. 12 Talita Bernardo vs. Olga Rubin (Invicta FC 55, June 28)

Fighters also receiving votes (number of ballot appearances shown): Tainara Lisboa (2), Melissa Mullins (2), Lucie Pudilova (2), Julia Avila (1)

Falling out of the rankings (previous ranking shown): No. 15 Melissa Mullins

Women’s Flyweight

MMA Fighting

Recent results for ranked fighters (previous ranking shown): N/A

Upcoming bouts featuring ranked fighters: No. 13 Viviane Araujo vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius (UFC Fight Night, July 13), No. 5 Taila Santos vs. Jena Bishop (PFL 4, June 13), No. 6 Liz Carmouche vs. Kana Watanabe (PFL 4, June 13), No. 7 Maycee Barber vs. No. 10 Rose Namajunas (UFC Denver, July 13), No. 12 Viviane Araujo vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius (UFC Denver, July 13)

Fighters also receiving votes (number of ballot appearances shown): Karine Silva (4), Ariane Lipski (2), Julianna Velasquez (1), Jena Bishop (1)

Falling out of the rankings (previous ranking shown): No. 15 Julianna Velasquez

Strawweight

MMA Fighting

Recent results for ranked fighters (previous ranking shown): No. 12 Angela Hill def. Luana Pinheiro, No. 13 Tabatha Ricci def. Tecia Pennington, Iasmin Lucindo def. No. 15 Karolina Kowalkiewicz

Upcoming bouts featuring ranked fighters: No. 5 Amanda Lemos vs. No. 6 Virna Jandiroba (UFC Fight Night, July 20), No. 8 Mackenzie Dern vs. No. 10 Loopy Godinez (UFC Abu Dhabi, Aug. 3), No. 14 Gillian Robertson vs. Michelle Waterson-Gomez (UFC 303, June 29)

Fighters also receiving votes (number of ballot appearances shown): Loma Lookboonmee (5), Karolina Kowalkiewicz (2), Tecia Pennington (1), Danni McCormack (1)

Falling out of the rankings (previous ranking shown: No. 6 Carla Esaprza (inactivity), No. 15 Karolina Kowalkiewicz

A refresher on the ground rules:

• The seven-person voting panel consists of MMA Fighting staffers Shaheen Al-Shatti, Alexander K. Lee, Guilherme Cruz, Mike Heck, E. Casey Leydon, Damon Martin, and Jed Meshew.
• Fighters will be removed from the rankings if they do not compete within 18 months of their most recent bout. Updates to the rankings are typically completed following each month’s UFC pay-per-view.
• Should a fighter announce their retirement, our panel will decide whether that fighter should immediately be removed from the rankings or maintain their position until further notice. (Let’s put it this way: We’d have taken Khabib Nurmagomedov out of our rankings a lot quicker than the UFC did.)
• Holding a promotion’s title does not guarantee that fighter will be viewed as the best in their promotion. Additionally, fighters who regularly compete or hold titles in multiple weight classes are eligible to be ranked in multiple lists.

Thoughts? Questions? Concerns? Make your voice heard in the comments below.

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Lightweight champion Islam Makhachev successfully defended his title for a third time against former interim titleholder Dustin Poirier in the UFC 302 main event last Saturday.  The title bout earned ‘Fight of the Night’ honors.  

Two of the judges had the fight tied after four rounds.  Poirier was able to fend off most of Makhachev’s takedown attempts after the opening round keeping the match on their feet.  While Makhachev consistently looked to get the fight to the ground, he wasn’t outmatched in the striking department.  

Most known for his grappling prowess with 12 submission wins, Makhachev isn’t exactly a fish out of water when it comes to striking.  Five of his 26 wins have been by knockout.  He stopped former featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski with a head kick followed by punches in his previous fight heading into the UFC 302 title bout against Poirier.   

UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley believes Makhachev’s striking is largely underrated.  “Islam is underrated striking,” O’Malley said on his YouTube channel.  “He was ripping some sweet combos.”  

The title loss may have been Poirier’s last octagon performance.  Having lost three title fights, Poirier will go down as arguably the greatest UFC fighter never to hold win UFC gold.  

UFC 302 took place at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.  The lightweight title bout between Makhachev and Poirier headlined the pay-per-view event.  The event marked the fight promotion’s tenth event in Newark.         

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Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) recently updated its official rankings to reflect the performances the UFC 302: “Makhachev vs. Poirier” pay-per-view (PPV) event, which took place last weekend (Sat., June 1, 2024) at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The most notable change came in the middleweight division, where one-time title challenger Paulo Costa slipped to No. 8 in the wake of his split decision loss to former 185-pound titleholder Sean Strickland.

The 33 year-old “Eraser” (14-4) has now dropped four of his last five.

Here’s how UFC compiles its official rankings:

Rankings were generated by a voting panel made up of media members. The media members were asked to vote for who they feel are the top fighters in the UFC by weight-class and pound-for-pound. A fighter is only eligible to be voted on if they are in active status in the UFC. A fighter can appear in more than one weight division at a time. The champion and interim champion are considered to be in the top positions of their respective divisions and therefore are not eligible for voting by weight-class. However, the champions can be voted on for the pound-for-pound rankings.

Take a look at what the latest rankings field looks like courtesy of UFC.com. Note: (+/- = movement in rankings, T = tie, *NR = Not previously ranked).

MEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND

1. Islam Makhachev
2. Jon Jones
3. Leon Edwards
4. Alex Pereira
5. Ilia Topuria
6. Sean O’Malley
7. Alexander Volkanovski
8. Max Holloway
9. Dricus Du Plessis
10. Alexandre Pantoja
11. Israel Adesanya
12. Charles Oliveira +1
13. Tom Aspinall -1
14. Sean Strickland
15. Aljamain Sterling

FLYWEIGHT

Champion: Alexandre Pantoja

1. Brandon Royval
2. Brandon Moreno
3. Amir Albazi
4. Kai Kara France
5. Alex Perez
6. Muhammad Mokaev
7. Manel Kape
8. Matheus Nicolau
9. Steve Erceg
10. Tim Elliott
11. Matt Schnell
12. Tagir Ulanbekov
13. Tatsuro Taira
14. David Dvorak +1
15. Cody Durden *NR

BANTAMWEIGHT

Champion: Sean O’Malley

1. Merab Dvalishvili
2. Cory Sandhagen
3. Petr Yan
4. Marlon Vera
5. Henry Cejudo
6. Deiveson Figueiredo
7. Song Yadong
8. Jose Aldo
9. Rob Font
10. Umar Nurmagomedov
11. Kyler Phillips
12. Mario Bautista
13. Dominick Cruz
14. Jonathan Martinez
15. Pedro Munhoz

FEATHERWEIGHT

Champion: Ilia Topuria

1. Alexander Volkanovski
2. Max Holloway
3. Brian Ortega
4. Yair Rodriguez
5. Movsar Evloev
6. Arnold Allen
7. Josh Emmett
8. Aljamain Sterling
9. (T) Giga Chikadze
9. (T) Calvin Kattar
11. Lerone Murphy
12. Bryce Mitchell
13. Dan Ige
14. Diego Lopes
15. Edson Barboza

LIGHTWEIGHT

Champion: Islam Makhachev

1. Arman Tsarukyan
2. Charles Oliveira
3. Justin Gaethje
4. Dustin Poirier
5. Mateusz Gamrot
6. Michael Chandler
7. Beneil Dariush
8. Rafael Fiziev
9. Max Holloway
10. Renato Moicano
11. Dan Hooker
12. Jalin Turner
13. Benoit Saint-Denis
14. Rafael dos Anjos
15. Bobby Green

WELTERWEIGHT

Champion: Leon Edwards

1. Kamaru Usman
2. Belal Muhammed
3. Shavkat Rakhmonov
4. Colby Covington
5. Jack Della Maddalena
6. Gilbert Burns
7. Ian Machado Garry
8. Sean Brady
9. Stephen Thompson
10. Geoff Neal
11. Joaquin Buckley
12. Neil Magny
13. Michael Page
14. Vicente Luque
15. Kevin Holland

MIDDLEWEIGHT

Champion: Dricus Du Plessis

1. Sean Strickland
2. Israel Adesanya
3. Robert Whittaker
4. Jared Cannonier
5. Marvin Vettori
6. Brendan Allen
7. Nassourdine Imavov +1
8. Paulo Costa -1
9. Jack Hermansson
10. Khamzat Chimaev
11. Roman Dolidze
12. Caio Borralho
13. Michel Pereira
14. Anthony Hernandez
15. Chris Curtis

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT

Champion: Alex Pereira

1. Jiri Prochazka
2. Magomed Ankalaev
3. Jamahal Hill
4. Jan Blachowicz
5. Aleksandar Rakic
6. Nikita Krylov
7. Johnny Walker
8. Khalil Rountree
9. Volkan Oezdemir
10. Anthony Smith
11. Carlos Ulberg
12. Bogdan Guskov
13. Alonzo Menifield
14. Azamat Murzakanov
15. Dominick Reyes

HEAVYWEIGHT

Champion: Jon Jones

1. Tom Aspinall
2. Ciryl Gane
3. Sergei Pavlovich
4. Curtis Blaydes
5. Alexander Volkov
6. Stipe Miocic
7. Jailton Almeida
8. Marcin Tybura
9. Serghei Spivac
10. Derrick Lewis
11. Tai Tuivasa
12. Jairzinho Rozenstruik
13. Alexandr Romanov
14. Marcos Rogerio De Lima
15. Rodrigo Nascimento

WOMEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND

1. Alexa Grasso
2. Zhang Weili
3. Valentina Shevchenko
4. Manon Fiorot
5. (T) Julianna Pena
5. (T) Raquel Pennington
7. Rose Namajunas
8. Erin Blanchfield
9. Tatiana Suarez
10. Yan Xiaonan
11. Jessica Andrade
12. Amanda Lemos
13. Ketlen Vieira
14. Kayla Harrison
15. Maycee Barber

WOMEN’S STRAWWEIGHT

Champion: Zhang Weili

1. Tatiana Suarez
2. Yan Xiaonan
3. Amanda Lemos
4. Jessica Andrade
5. Virna Jandiroba
6. Marina Rodriguez
7. Mackenzie Dern
8. Amanda Ribas
9. Angela Hill
10. Loopy Godinez
11. Tabatha Ricci
12. Luana Pinheiro
13. Iasmin Lucindo
14. Michelle Waterson-Gomez
15. Gillian Robertson

WOMEN’S FLYWEIGHT

Champion: Alexa Grasso

1. Valentina Shevchenko
2. Manon Fiorot
3. Erin Blanchfield
4. Maycee Barber
5. Jessica Andrade
6. Rose Namajunas
7. Katlyn Cerminara
8. Natalia Silva
9. Amanda Ribas
10. Viviane Araújo
11. Tracy Cortez
12. Karine Silva
13. Ariane Da Silva
14. Casey O’Neill
15. Jasmine Jasudavicius

WOMEN’S BANTAMWEIGHT

Champion: Raquel Pennington

1. Julianna Pena
2. Ketlen Vieira
3. Mayra Bueno Silva
4. Kayla Harrison
5. Irene Aldana
6. Holly Holm
7. Macy Chiasson
8. Miesha Tate
9. Karol Rosa
10. Norma Dumont
11. Pannie Kianzad
12. Yana Santos
13. Julia Avila
14. Chelsea Chandler
15. Germaine De Randamie

You can expect these rankings to change around this time next week, particularly in the middleweight division, following the UFC Louisville: “Cannonier vs. Imavov” mixed martial arts (MMA) event on ESPN+, scheduled for Sat., June 8, 2024 at KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky.

For much more on that upcoming fight card click here.

MMAmania.com – All Posts

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Dustin Poirier confessed after his fifth-round submission loss to Islam Makhachev at UFC 302 that he may have competed for the last time in his career. While he hasn’t made any definitive decisions just yet, veteran UFC analyst and friend Alan Jouban hopes that Poirier ultimately lands on retirement.

Even before coming up short in his third attempt at becoming undisputed UFC champion, Poirier admitted that the end could be near. After accomplishing so much in a the sport with a resume that includes a murderer’s row of competition, the 35-year-old Louisiana native only had one box left to check on his list.

Coming up short from claiming that elusive UFC title could potentially convince Poirier to come back for one final run, but Jouban explains that losing to Makhachev the way he did, would actually provide a perfect exit for the fan-favorite fighter.

“I haven’t spoken to him since the fight — I would say walk away,” Jouban said on the latest episode of The Fighter vs. The Writer. “I would tell him to walk away. I think it’s been on his mind for a while. Since I’ve been talking to him for the last three years since I’ve been home [in Louisiana], he’s been bringing it up. ‘I don’t know how many more I left’ and then he gets a fight and then he knocks somebody out ‘one more.’ He gets a loss ‘I can’t live with that loss.’ Gets a win, ‘we’ll see what happens.’ Title fight comes, you can’t turn it down but he’s already got the money fight. People are chasing the belt, or they’re chasing Conor McGregor, and he’s done both.

“He’s said it a million times what is there left for me? He lost a fight that people probably gained even more — if it’s even possible ­— respect for him. It was such a competitive fight against the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world, who he handpicked Dustin because he thought it was a stylistic easier matchup. Dustin put him in deeper water than he’s ever been in his life against Islam. I think it’s a loss that you can hold your head high on. It’s one that’s easy to walk away from.”

Poirier said at the UFC 302 post-fight press conference that a win over Makhachev would have almost certainly marked the end of his career, because he would have accomplished everything he set out to do when he first became a mixed martial artist.

As much as it stings to never hold that title, Poirier knows getting back for a fourth shot at UFC gold would be impossibly tough at this stage of his career. If that’s no longer the goal, he’s not sure if there’s really a point to sticking around any longer.

Even in defeat, Jouban doesn’t believe Poirier has any reason to hang his head, because he took Makhachev to the brink before he fell by submission in the fifth round. It may not be the storybook ending that Poirier wanted, but Jouban understands how rarely that actually happens in this sport.

“It was so climactic in the approach in the buildup to this fight, how can you relive that?” Jouban said. “How can you go through all that again and say OK, my next fight against who? A No. 5, 6, or 7 ranked guy? Is that going to give me that same feeling that it did just fighting with the world watching and the world saluting me? I don’t think he’s going to get that feeling again.

“I’ve told him before, if you can go out on a victory, it’s going to feel so much better. When he lost the ‘BMF’ [title fight] to [Justin] Gaethje, it ate him alive. He cleansed his soul with Benoit Saint Denis, and I think his soul is still cleansed even in defeat against Islam because of the way he performed. I thought he fought like a champion. Islam was just a better guy that night. I’d say hang up that hat, continue everything else you’re doing in your career. That way this sport doesn’t retire him, he retires [from the sport].”

That last statement has been a big determining factor for Poirier deciding whether or not to fight again.

Right now, he’s still one of the top lightweight fighters in the world but there are dozens of examples of championship level fighters who refuse to retire and end up leaving on long losing streaks, looking like a shell of their former selves.

The difference in this case is Jouban knows there’s no shame whatsoever in losing to a fighter like Makhachev, especially with the way that Poirier performed on Saturday night.

“He got submitted, so what?” Jouban said. “We get submitted everyday in the gym. I go out like that all the time. It’s not a big deal. You’re not hurt. Maybe he has some injuries. I heard that his knee could be messed up. I really hope that is not the case. That’s going to make a possible retirement tougher. His nose is fractured, things like that but if we’re talking about just the fight, not the injuries, not this and that — that’s the type of loss I would love to go out on.

“Where every single person it seemed like in the arena was rooting for you. The celebrities, everybody loved Dustin. They were making video after video. It just had this aura about it where the underdogs would rise tonight. Everybody was backing the underdog.”

Poirier may have to live with the disappointment that he never became an undisputed champion but Jouban doesn’t buy that really affects his legacy with his fellow fighters or fans.

If anything, Jouban believes Poirier should be welcomed at the champion’s table because he walked an arduous road unlike so many past UFC fighters who just so happened to win a belt.

“I’m not thinking of anyone in particular but I’m saying, we’ve obviously had a lot of champions and there’s a percentage of those champions that beat lesser competition than Dustin has faced many times without even getting a title shot,” Jouban said. “The belt doesn’t always put you in a prestigious category. It should be honored and respected but the guys that Dustin has been fighting are straight killers, his entire career. I think he has a seat at that table. I think he’s earned it.

“Your favorite fighter’s favorite fighter: Dustin Poirier. When all the best guys in the world love to watch you, it tells you something.”

Listen to new episodes of The Fighter vs. The Writer every Tuesday with audio only versions of the podcast available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and iHeartRadio

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Former UFC bantamweight title challenger Marlon Moraes has been sworn in as a Davie (FL) Police officer.

The Police department announced the news of Moraes completing his law enforcement certification and being sworn into the department on social media.

Moraes’ new career comes nearly a year to the date of his last MMA fight when he retired from the sport following a KO loss to Gabriel Braga at PFL 4.

Marlon Moraes isn’t the only former MMA fighter to be a Police officer as Jimmie Rivera is a cop in New Jersey while former UFC heavyweight Chris Daukaus was also a former Police officer in Philadelphia.

Marlon Moraes’ MMA Career

Marlon Moraes finished his career with a record of 23-13-1 but ended his career on a seven-fight losing streak.

Moraes was the inaugural WSOF bantamweight champion and had fought for the vacant UFC bantamweight title in 2019 against Henry Cejudo when he lost by TKO.

Following his knockout loss to Braga on June 8, 2023, he announced his retirement from MMA, as he was able to end his career.

“I started here with World Series of Fighting, and when I announced my retirement, I was in the UFC,” Moraes said (via MMAFighting). “I wasn’t home. Now, I’m home. I wish I had better performances here, but I gave all my heart. I trained hard. I can look myself in the mirror everyday and be proud of myself. I’ve been kickboxing, MMA, since I was 9. I’m 35. 26 years, I gave all my life for this. I gave my heart for the sport. Thank you god. God gave me all I have. I can’t be sad today. I’m happy. I have a beautiful wife, two kids.”

In his MMA career, Moraes holds notable wins over Jose Aldo, Aljamain Sterling, Jimmie Rivera, Raphael Assuncao, and John Dodson among others. Moraes had gone 5-6 in the UFC.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts