Middleweight rankings.
The top 30 middleweights by the First Light Rating, a skill score built from in-cage performance and results, with each one’s First Light Index: fame against what that skill predicts. Khamzat Chimaev leads at 2,098.
Movement since 25 Aug 2026 · Updated · All divisions
Middleweight
| Rank | Fighter | FLRFirst Light Ratingmeasure of true skill | FLIFirst Light Indexfame compared to skill |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Khamzat Chimaev | 2,098 | +0.60▲ +0.18 |
| 2 | Dricus Du Plessis | 2,081 | +0.16▲ +0.02 |
| 3 | Johnny Eblen | 2,070 | −0.51▲ +0.05 |
| 4 | Brendan Allen | 2,057 | −0.10▲ +0.02 |
| 5 | Magomedrasul Gasanov 3 | 2,052 | −0.52▼ −0.03 |
| 6 | Kamaru Usman 1 | 2,048 | +0.53▲ +0.02 |
| 7 | Sean Strickland | 2,039 | +0.68— |
| 8 | Reinier de Ridder 2 | 2,033 | +0.07▲ +0.03 |
| 9 | Israel Adesanya 3 | 2,031 | +0.84 |
| 10 | Robert Whittaker | 2,021 | +0.40— |
| 11 | Krzysztof Jotko 4 | 2,017 | −0.37▼ −0.05 |
| 12 | Ikram Aliskerov 1 | 2,013 | −0.06— |
| 13 | Costello Van Steenis 4 | 2,011 | −0.63Last 16 days: −0.63 → −0.63 |
| 14 | Sharabutdin Magomedov | 2,007 | +0.25— |
| 15 | Gregory Rodrigues 1 | 2,006 | −0.02— |
| 16 | Caio Borralho 1 | 2,001 | +0.21▼ −0.07 |
| 17 | Anthony Hernandez 1 | 1,996 | +0.18— |
| 18 | Abus Magomedov 1 | 1,990 | +0.05— |
| 19 | Anvarbek Daniyalbekov 13 | 1,989 | — |
| 20 | Fabian Edwards 7 | 1,987 | −0.27▲ +0.07 |
| 21 | Pawel Pawlak | 1,982 | −0.47— |
| 22 | Christian Leroy Duncan 16 | 1,976 | −0.22▼ −0.15 |
| 23 | Paulo Costa | 1,971 | +0.51— |
| 24 | Bo Nickal 5 | 1,970 | +0.56▼ −0.05 |
| 25 | Impa Kasanganay 5 | 1,969 | −0.37▲ +0.04 |
| 26 | Roberto Soldic 8 | 1,964 | +0.24 |
| 27 | Piotr Kuberski 1 | 1,961 | −0.61▼ −0.02 |
| 28 | Aaron Jeffery 6 | 1,960 | — |
| 29 | Nassourdine Imavov 2 | 1,954 | +0.51▼ −0.04 |
| 30 | Ruslan Shamilov 5 | 1,953 | — |
Where the UFC panel disagrees.
- Nassourdine ImavovFLR 29th · panel 3rd26 lower here
- Christian Leroy DuncanFLR 22nd · panel 10th12 lower here
- Caio BorralhoFLR 16th · panel 5th11 lower here
- Bo NickalFLR 24th · panel 14th10 lower here
- Anthony HernandezFLR 17th · panel 8th9 lower here
Better than their audience knows.
- Costello Van SteenisFLR 13th−0.63
- Piotr KuberskiFLR 27th−0.61
- Magomedrasul GasanovFLR 5th−0.52
Bigger names than their skill predicts.
- Israel AdesanyaFLR 9th+0.84
- Sean StricklandFLR 7th+0.68
- Khamzat ChimaevFLR 1st+0.60
Data Credit: First Light Observatory.
How the FLR and FLI are measured · Download every division (CSV) · First Light may hold interests in athletes covered by the Index.