MMA rankings: Robbie Lawler set to face rising Carlos Condit next

Heavyweight

1. Fabricio Werdum

2. Cain Velasquez

3. Junior Dos Santos

4. Stipe Miocic

5. Andrei Arlovski

6. Travis Browne

7. Ben Rothwell

8. Josh Barnett

9. Alistair Overeem

10. Mark Hunt

In the biggest heavyweight bout of the month, Frank Mir scored a first round knockout of Todd Duffee in an exciting San Diego main event. It was the second straight quick knockout for Mir, who will likely get a high profile opponent next time out.

Light Heavyweight

1. Jon Jones

2. Daniel Cormier

3. Anthony Johnson

4. Alexander Gustafsson

5. Rashad Evans

6. Ryan Bader

7. Phil Davis

8. Glover Teixeira

9. Ovince St. Preux

10. Liam McGeary

UFC 192 in October will be headlined by a UFC light heavyweight title contest pitting champion Daniel Cormier against challenger Alexander Gustafsson. It remains difficult for Cormier and Gustafsson to get their full due with Jon Jones still lingering in the background. Liam McGeary will get the biggest fight of his life for Bellator in September when he defends his Bellator light heavyweight title against MMA legend Tito Ortiz.

Middleweight

1. Chris Weidman

2. Luke Rockhold

3. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza

4. Yoel Romero

5. Anderson Silva

6. Lyoto Machida

7. Vitor Belfort

8. Gegard Mousasi

9. Tim Kennedy

10. Michael Bisping

Yoel Romero brought the violence yet again, knocking out Lyoto Machida with vicious elbows in the third round of their fight. With six straight UFC wins (five via knockout), Romero is in the top mix of middleweight contenders with Luke Rockhold and Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza. It’s as dangerous a top of the division as there is in the sport. Michael Bisping picked up a close and much needed win via decision over surging Thales Leites to keep alive his dream of a middleweight title shot.

Welterweight

1. Robbie Lawler

2. Johny Hendricks

3. Rory MacDonald

4. Tyron Woodley

5. Ben Askren

6. Carlos Condit

7. Hector Lombard

8. Demian Maia

9. Dong Hyun Kim

10. Matt Brown

In an all-time classic, Robbie Lawler successfully defended his UFC welterweight title with a fifth round stoppage of Rory MacDonald at UFC 189. Both men fought through great adversity until finally MacDonald could take no more punishment. Next up for Lawler? Carlos Condit. Johny Hendricks and Tyron Woodley had more impressive resumes overall, but Condit is a great style matchup and is a fresh opponent in a division full of rematches. A number of welterweights turned in great performances this month. Matt Brown’s submission of Tim Means, Gunner Nelson’s submission of Brandon Thatch and Stephen Thompson’s knockout of Jake Ellenberger top the list.

Lightweight

1. Rafael Dos Anjos

2. Khabib Nurmagomedov

3. Anthony Pettis

4. Donald Cerrone

5. Ben Henderson

6. Eddie Alvarez

7. Gilbert Melendez

8. Tony Ferguson

9. Will Brooks

10. Michael Johnson

Putting together rankings in the lightweight division remains a near impossible task. Just this month, the likes of Jim Miller, Edson Barboza and Evan Dunham scored impressive wins over tough opponents and remain on the outside looking in. Tony Ferguson was the biggest winner of the month, dominating Josh Thomson and showcasing an extremely dangerous skill set.

Featherweight

1. Jose Aldo

2. Conor McGregor

3. Frankie Edgar

4. Chad Mendes

5. Patricio “Pitbull” Freire

6. Max Holloway

7. Cub Swanson

8. Ricardo Lamas

9. Charles Oliveira

10. Daniel Straus

Conor McGregor backed up all his talk with the biggest win of his career, scoring a second round TKO victory over top contender Chad Mendes to win the UFC interim featherweight title. This sets up a huge money showdown with full champion Jose Aldo to unite the titles later this year or early next year. Dennis Bermudez falls from the top 10 after a knockout loss to Jeremy Stephens in what was one of the best fights of the year.

Bantamweight

1. T.J. Dillashaw

2. Dominick Cruz

3. Renan Barao

4. Urijah Faber

5. Raphael Assuncao

6. Michael McDonald

7. Bibiano Fernandes

8. Thomas Almeida

9. Aljamain Sterling

10. Marlon Moraes

T.J. Dillashaw destroyed Renan Barao so decisively in 2014 that few had much doubt as to who was the better fighter. However, the bantamweight division remains weak and thin, so there was no better option than to make a rematch. Dillashaw showed once again that Barao is no match for him, picking him apart until a merciful fourth round stoppage. Barao, a very good fighter, was nowhere near as good as his once lofty reputation built against primarily average competition (Urijah Faber and Michael McDonald being notable exceptions). Dillashaw’s upcoming opposition remains unclear, but the fight with the most intrigue is definitely the oft injured but superbly talented Dominick Cruz. Thomas Almeida could also be a future opponent, and he picked up his most noteworthy win yet with a comeback knockout over Brad Pickett.

Women’s Bantamweight

1. Ronda Rousey

2. Miesha Tate

3. Cat Zingano

4. Alexis Davis

5. Sara McMann

6. Jessica Eye

7. Sarah Kaufman

8. Bethe Correia

9. Amanda Nunes

10. Holly Holm

Miesha Tate earned herself a rematch with Ronda Rousey, their third fight, by defeating Jessica Eye on Fox. Tate vs. Rousey is female MMA’s top rivalry, but Rousey won the first two fights via submission and will be heavily favored in the third. Technically, Rousey first has to get through Bethe Correia, but most consider that contest a complete mismatch. Holly Holm won her second UFC fight, defeating Marion Reneau via unanimous decision.

Flyweight

1. Demetrious Johnson

2. Joseph Benavidez

3. John Dodson

4. Jussier Formiga

5. John Moraga

Women’s Strawweight

1. Joanna Jedrzejczyk

2. Claudia Gadelha

3. Jessica Aguilar

4. Carla Esparza

5. Jessica Penne

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