MMA pound-for-pound rankings (Sept. 2026): Joshua Van soars after UFC 331, Arman Tsarukyan crashes top 10

He's just 24 years old, but Joshua Van has proven a quick study in the mixed martial arts. If you thought his first encounter with Alexandre Pantoja was a fluky way to win a title, at UFC 331 the young gun left no doubt. He schooled the former flyweight champion en route to a dominant unanimous decision, which raises his stock in the pound-for-pound rankings big time.

Also on a northbound trek on the men's side of the rankings is Arman Tsarukyan, whose first-round knockout of Mauricio Ruffy may have finally punched his ticket to a lightweight title shot. He makes his return to the Uncrowned pound-for-pound list.

On the women's side, is that Alexa Grasso making her move? And with Amanda Nunes back with a fight scheduled for UFC 334 , the former pound-for-pound queen reappears, as if by magic, on this sacred list.

The panel of Ben Fowlkes, Chuck Mindenhall, Shaheen Al-Shatti, Petesy Carroll, Drake Riggs, Eric Jackman and Conner Burks have ranked both the men's and women's pound-for-pound best, one through 10, using a weighted points system to determine the final rankings (being voted No. 1 equals 10 points, No. 2 equals nine points, down to No. 10 equaling one point).

Our only criterion for these monthly rankings is that a fighter has competed within at least a calendar year of the publication date or has at least had a fight booked within that window. If a fighter hasn't competed in a year and books a fight after that time, he or she is once again eligible to be voted back in. Fighters who retire are no longer eligible for the rankings.

Though most of the best fighters are currently in the UFC, these rankings are not UFC exclusive. We take into consideration all the major promotions, from PFL and RIZIN to ONE Championship and MVP.

Without further ado, here are Uncrowned's MMA pound-for-pound rankings for September 2026!

1. Islam Makhachev — UFC welterweight champion (Prev: 1)

There are three names awaiting in front of Islam Makhachev, each one a little more harrowing than the last. There's Carlos Prates, who looks like he'll be next for the welterweight champion. There's Michael Morales, a hulking phenom biding his time. And there's Shavkat Rakhmonov, who remains on the mend. Not an easy slate.

2. Petr Yan — UFC bantamweight champion (Prev: 4)

Getting the UFC 333 trilogy with Merab Dvalishvili in Abu Dhabi is a boon for Yan, who has turned in some of his best work there, beating the likes of Jose Aldo, Cory Sandhagen and, most importantly, Marcus McGhee in signaling he was back. There are those who may still think Merab beat himself back in December, and this is the chance to move those narratives into the "cold takes" pile.

3. Alexander Volkanovski — UFC featherweight champion (Prev: 3)

It's admirable that Volkanovski was the lone advocate for Movsar Evloev to get a crack at his belt, but then again that's the nature of one of the UFC's steadiest presences. Here's guessing Volk craves new blood as much as the next guy, and the champ is confident he can do what no featherweight has done before. That is, serve Evloev up a big fat L.

4. Joshua Van — UFC flyweight champion (Prev: 10)

Listen man, Van has heard your criticisms. He's seen the words "freak injury" all over the headlines, and he's heard the word "fluke" being used in regard to his title. What he did by beating Pantoja fair and square was mute those conversations. It's now Van standing alone, without asterisks, atop the flyweight division. The future is wide open for the UFC's young star.

5. Justin Gaethje — UFC lightweight champion (Prev: 6)

Gaethje was a kind of co-star for UFC 331, in large part because Ilia Topuria began firing shots at him on social media, and also because Arman Tsarukyan solidified his standing as a contender to Gaethje's title. What happens next is up to the UFC, but MMA's potential Fighter of the Year might want to cherish that accessory while he has it.

6. Merab Dvalishvili — Former UFC bantamweight champion (Prev: 7)

Longest. Ten. Months. Of. His. Life. Last September, Merab had already defended the bantamweight title twice and was into a camp for a fight with Cory Sandhagen. This year he's had to keep busy with RAF wrestling matches as he waits out Yan's timetable for a return. The good news is, October is almost here.

7. Ilia Topuria — Former UFC lightweight champion (Prev: 8)

It was perhaps an act of pure cunning to reintroduce himself into the land of the living by declaring he's back just as Arman Tsarukyan was trying to punch his ticket for a title shot. But it was also a masterstroke to claim that Gaethje had something on his gloves. You know why? Because it got under Gaethje's skin, that's why.

8. Sean Strickland — UFC middleweight champion (Prev: 9)

Strickland can't help himself. He gets antsy. During UFC 331, he was on his X feed doing Sean Strickland things. One of his posts read, "I love MMA but I want to box.. Prefer Zuffa but if they cant make that happen....." He said it just like that, with a five-dot ellipses at the end, and a two-dotter in the middle, and no apostrophes in sight. God bless him.

9. Tom Aspinall — UFC heavyweight champion (Prev: 5)

You feel for Aspinall at this point. In the prime of his career, he is now forced to: A) cough up the heavyweight title he waited so long to earn; B) worry about his vision returning to him in full; and C) watch the man who poked his eyes, Ciryl Gane, become the "undisputed" heavyweight champion of the world in the snap of a finger. It going to be a rough few months ahead for the pride of Salford.

10. Arman Tsurukyan — UFC lightweight contender (Prev: NR)

He mingles with influencers, flies around on private jets and here's guessing he has a caviar spoon in his silverware drawers at home. But the thing he has made undeniable is that he's the No. 1 contender at lightweight . Mauricio Ruffy is an imposing human being, and Arman flattened him with the kind of elbows that even Justin Gaethje felt in his temples.

(Others receiving votes: Carlos Ulberg, Alexandre Pantoja, Ciryl Gane, Alex Pereira, Max Holloway, Khamzat Chimaev)

1. Valentina Shevchenko — Former UFC flyweight champion (Prev: 1)

It's a bummer that the pound-for-pound best had to vacate her title so that others could get a shot at the belt. But here's guessing Valentina will weigh heavily over the festivities at UFC 332 in Salt Lake, given that Natalia Silva and Wang Cong are, effectively, fighting for a stolen accessory. Until one of them beats Shevchenko, there will be mumblings as to the legitimacy of the feat.

2. Kayla Harrison — UFC bantamweight champion (Prev: 2)

Well, Kayla has a date and location on the books, which is Nov. 14 at UFC 334, at 4 Pennsylvania Plaza (Madison Square Garden). Dana White is already chirping about her fight with Amanda Nunes being the "greatest women's MMA fight of all time," and that's not hyperbole. Harrison's credentials stack up against Nunes' so high that they become part of the New York skyline.

3. Zhang Weili — Former UFC strawweight champion (Prev: 3)

At age 37, Zhang's out living her best life right now, just soaking up the spoils of being ex-champion, modeling, and generally having fun. For fight fans, this might be a little curious. Will she come back and fight Mackenzie Dern, to try to win back the strawweight title she vacated? Or will she stick around at flyweight? Or will she … do none of the above?

4. Cris Cyborg — PFL featherweight champion (Prev: 4)

Cyborg got tested a little bit by Ketlen Vieira in what was billed as most certainly/probably/maybe her last MMA fight. Yet before she could even make it to the exits, there she was sitting alongside her old pal Scott Coker, a celebrated "Cyborg whisperer," for the launch of the new Ki MMA . Will she return? Per the Magic 8 Ball: "All Signs Say Yes."

5. Dakota Ditcheva — PFL flyweight contender (Prev: 5)

Ditcheva beat Denise Kielholtz, yet when we say she did so handily it's an unfortunate pun. Ditcheva says she not only rebroke her hand in the fight, but that she broke her hands , plural, which is about devastating of a blow as she's taken in her career. How long it takes her to fully mend remains to be seen, but it's been a rough couple of years since she was Uncrowned's surprise 2024 Fighter of the Year.

6. Natalia Silva — UFC flyweight contender (Prev: 6)

Maybe it was anticlimactic, but it's not Silva's fault that she's being thrust into a main event at UFC 331. Silva has done nothing but win over the past few years, and she would've gladly punched Shevchenko's face if that was the one made to appear in front of her in Salt Lake. As it happens, it'll be Wang Cong's face she punches, and we'll tell you this — Silva doesn't discriminate.

7. Mackenzie Dern — UFC strawweight champion (Prev: 7)

All is quiet for Dern in the aftermath of her first title defense against Gillian Robertson. There are some names coming up the rungs at strawweight who might kick up a commotion — such as Fatima Kline and Denise Gomes — but Dern's more immediate concern might be Zhang, should the former champ decide she wants her belt back. Good news for Dern is she has final say.

8. Amanda Nunes — UFC bantamweight contender (Prev: NR)

It wasn't all that long ago that Nunes was the women's pound-for-pound queen — and really, she's a win away from reclaiming that spot. That fight with Kayla Harrison is perhaps the biggest of Nunes' career since Cyborg in terms of straight legacy, because who else is out there for her? To beat Harrison would be the cherry on top for the women's GOAT.

9. Seika Izawa — Former RIZIN super atomweight champion (Prev: 9)

She vacated the RIZIN super atomweight title in April after learning of her pregnancy, so it's going to be a minute before we see the Japanese sensation again. Not to be a UFC snob, but it would be fun to see her compete there as a strawweight upon her return. Also, if you haven't done so, check out Drake Riggs' feature on the Japanese sensation!

10. Alexa Grasso — UFC flyweight contender (Prev: NR)

She left Maycee Barber looking dead on the canvas a few months back, which was an impressive thing to do in itself, but to double-down and dominate Manon Fiorot? OK, Alexa, you have our attention. Grasso will be in consideration for "Comeback Fighter of the Year" in a few months, if for no other reason than she looks to be on a warpath to take back all that is hers, and she'll destroy entire cities if she has to.

(Others receiving votes: Tatiana Suarez, Manon Fiorot, Erin Blanchfield, Fatima Kline, Virna Jandiroba, Liz Carmouche)