Sherdog’s Top 10: Greatest Flyweights

Welcome again folks, this time to Sherdog's list of the ten greatest male flyweights ever. This list was compiled based on a weighted poll of 12 Sherdog contributors, and I will note where my own views deviated considerably from the consensus. Personally though, the appeal of any such list isn't the exact order or who was included or excluded, but the actual discussion of each entry. Anyone can come up with a list with no further commentary and it's no more “right” than another. However, the best such lists have entertaining and informative explanations, which is the goal I hope to accomplish.

A word about criteria: My main measure for this list was greatness for one’s era and how long that era lasted. I believe the majority of other contributors used a similar rubric. Ranking historical fighters based on who would beat whom doesn’t make sense, since the division as a whole keeps improving and evolving. Nevertheless, fighters from earlier eras may be penalized for competitive their division was or was not. There were fewer decent fighters in the 90s when compared to even the 00s, let alone today.

By way of honorable mention, our men’s flyweight poll featured a number of current and former greats who received at least one vote, but not quite enough to crack the Top 10. In descending order, they are: John Dodson, Kyoji Horiguchi, Askar Askarov, Alexandre Pantoja and Ali Bagautinov.

Continue Reading » Number 10

10. Yasuhiro Urushitani

I'll be completely honest here. I had never even heard of Urushitani before I saw other contributors put him on their lists, and now that I've looked over his record and seen a few of his fights, I'm confused about his inclusion. He was a very good fighter of course, as any flyweight who attains success is, possessing excellent striking for his time, especially his kicks, and solid grappling, including strong takedown defense and ability to get back up. Yet I don't believe he was especially impressive, even back then, and was never close to the best. From 2004 to 2012, he had his best run, going 11-1-4, but his competition was little to write home about. It was decent, but nothing more. He beat John Dodson by decision—but it was Dodson's second professional fight. He dropped a decision to Yuki Shojo before winning a rematch. Urushitani finally made his way to the UFC in 2012, where he was demolished by Joseph Benavidez and then lost a one-sided decision against John Lineker. To be fair though, he was 35 and 36 for those fights respectively, well past a flyweight's prime. And to be fair, my own pick for 10th was Askar Askarov, who doesn't exactly scream “greatness” at present either.

Continue Reading » Number 9

9. Ian McCall

McCall was a talented fighter who never quite reached his potential and retired a day before his 34th birthday. Yet, in a very young weight class lacking many champions, the fact that McCall was one half of the UFC’s first-ever flyweight bout and fought Demetrious Johnson to a draw—which should have been sent to an overtime round and would have been, if not for a horrible gaffe by the Australian commission in charge of the event—goes a long way. Honestly, the match could have gone either way, and it's the shining triumph of McCall's career. It wasn't the only one, though. After losing to the greatest bantamweight ever, Dominick Cruz, McCall dropped down to flyweight and had considerable success, handing Jussier Formiga, whom we will see later on this list, his first defeat, and then doing the same to Dustin Ortiz, before submitting Darrell Montague. McCall would lose the rematch to Johnson and was then defeated by Joseph Benavidez, another legendary flyweight we will discuss later. McCall would recover with nice wins over Iliarde Santos and Brad Pickett, before losses to John Lineker, Manel Kape and Kyoji Horiguchi to end his career. McCall consistently fought the very best, and for a while, was winning more than he lost against them.

Continue Reading » Number 8

8. Shinichi Kojima

Much like with the 10th entry, Yasuhiro Urushitani, I was unfamiliar with Kojima before the voting was finalized and am now scratching my head about why he was included. And unlike with 10th place, far better inclusions were certainly available, such as John Dodson and Kyoji Horiguchi. Kojima was a Shooto legend with outstanding wrestling, especially for the mid-2000s in Japan. Unfortunately, that was almost all he had. “BJ” tangled twice with Urushitani, both fights ending in draws, and thrice with Mamoru Yamaguchi, whom we will discuss later, garnering two wins and a draw. However, as soon as Kojima faced better competition that could stifle his wrestling attack, he lost. In back-to-back fights, he lost by decision to Eduardo Dantas, who was only 2-1 at the time, and was then submitted by So Tazawa. Considering that Dantas wasn't even close to his prime and would be unlikely to make an all-time top 30 bantamweight list, that's saying a lot. And Kojima was hardly past his prime either, being 28 for those bouts. He came back with his second win over Yamaguchi before losing to a young Jussier Formiga, which is forgivable, and then to 5-4 journeyman Nam Jin Jo, which isn't. Yeah, I don't get it, either.

Continue Reading » Number 7

7. Jussier Formiga

We now return to a genuinely great fighter who absolutely deserves to be on the list, even higher than seventh, in my opinion. Formiga is one of the greatest mixed martial artists never to be the champion of a major organization, though he is surpassed in that regard by someone later on this list. Formiga had phenomenal grappling, both wrestling and BJJ, and developed very good striking, though not quite on the level as some of those he tangled with later in his career. Formiga began his career 9-0 and was already beating excellent foes, including decision triumphs over Shinichi Kojima, who is one spot behind him, and a young Alexandre Pantoja. Then, he was defeated by Ian McCall, hardly a shameful loss. Formiga recovered with five straight wins, beginning with an easy decision over Mamoru Yamaguchi, who somehow ended up ahead of Formiga on this list. More on this in the next entry.

Formiga finally joined the UFC in 2012 and was knocked out in his debut by John Dodson, who absolutely should have been on this list. Formiga came back to beat Chris Cariaso but was then knocked out by another flyweight legend in Joseph Benavidez. Formiga would then embark on his best stretch, going 8-2 against superlative opposition, choking out Scott Jorgenson and defeating Zach Makovsky, Wilson Reis, Dustin Ortiz, Yuta Sasaki and Ben Nguyen. Formiga's last two wins are the most impressive, being decisions over future Bellator bantamweight champion Sergio Pettis and future UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo, the latter's first loss. His only two losses during that time were a split decision against Henry Cejudo, which admittedly was a very clear win for the Olympic gold medalist, and a competitive decision loss to Ray Borg. Alas, the streak of success ended the way it began, being knocked out by Benavidez. Formiga would lose his next two, the first to yet another fighter we will see on the list, Brandon Moreno, before being finished with leg kicks in the first round by Alex Perez, signaling that at 35 years old and with countless wars on his odometer, Formiga was past his prime. Still, he's had a truly great career.

Continue Reading » Number 6

6. Mamoru Yamaguchi

Unlike previous entries Urushitani and Kojima, I had actually heard of and even watched Yamaguchi's fights prior to making this list. I also think his inclusion here at sixth is utterly laughable. Perhaps if one is exceedingly generous, one could argue for 10th, but sixth, especially ahead of a fighter who was around in Shooto at that time, Jussier Formiga, and beat him head-to-head? Yamaguchi was an excellent striker with decent grappling chops, though his 0-1-2 record against Kojima betrays a weakness against especially good, if one-dimensional wrestlers. He is also 1-1 against fellow striker Urushitani, defeating him in 2003 but losing the rematch in 2007. Admittedly, Yamaguchi was awesome at defeating lesser Shooto foes. Trouble is, they were all fairly weak. Among his best wins are choking out a young Frank Baca and a decision over Yuki Shojo. Not exactly the accomplishments one associates with anyone on these divisional top 10 lists, let alone someone in sixth place.

Once Yamaguchi fought better opposition he was exposed, beginning with a one-sided loss to a very young Formiga who, again, is inexplicably behind him on this list. Yamaguchi was 34 years old for this fight, so while possibly slightly past his prime, not excessively so, and Formiga wasn't close to his best for this encounter, either. Hey, I love Japanese MMA too and used to follow the bantamweight and heavier weight classes throughout the 2000s, but let's be honest about the skill level of some of these guys.

Continue Reading » Number 5

5. Joseph Benavidez

Benavidez is very likely the greatest fighter never to be the champion of a major organization, and I ranked him even higher, at fourth. A superlative grappler with outstanding wrestling and BJJ, he also developed fantastic striking, based around his aggressive boxing, charging forward with a series of huge power punches. He also had excellent cardio and intelligence, winning numerous battles against other greats, but never quite being able to overcome some of the greatest legends MMA has ever seen. Benavidez began his career as a very undersized bantamweight, but had success even there, starting 10-0, including decisions over Danny Martinez and Jeff Curran. He then faced Dominick Cruz, Sherdog's greatest bantamweight ever, and lost. Undeterred, he knocked out celebrated bantamweight grappler Rani Yahya in a little over 90 seconds and submitted Sherdog's all-time No. 6 bantamweight, Miguel Torres, in two rounds. That got him a rematch with Cruz for the title, though in what sadly become a habit, Benavidez came up short, losing a split decision that should have been unanimous. Benavidez continued fighting at bantamweight, going 3-0, including a decision over Eddie Wineland and a submission of Wagnney Fabiano, before dropping to 125 pounds and knocking out Yasuhiro Urushitani, the No. 10 entry on this list.

Benavidez fought Demetrious Johnson for the inaugural UFC flyweight championship and came closer to winning a title than he ever had before or would again, but still lost by split decision. Benavidez promptly rattled off three more wins, two against members of this list, a decision against Ian McCall and knockout of Jussier Formiga, and challenged Demetrious Johnson again. Unfortunately, the second attempt went far worse, as the reigning champion knocked out Benavidez in less than half a round, the first time he had been stopped. Once again, Benavidez was undeterred and went right back to winning. He would go an amazing 9-1 from 2014 to 2019 against superlative competition. This included a submission over Tim Elliott, two decisions over Dustin Ortiz, judges' verdicts over John Moraga, Ali Bagautinov, Zack Makovsky, another knockout of Jussier Formiga, a brutal first-round stoppage of Alex Perez and a split decision over Henry Cejudo that honestly could have gone to either man or even been a draw. The lone setback was a split decision loss to future Bellator bantamweight champion Sergio Pettis. Benavidez had once more gotten a title shot and was the favorite against Deiveson Figueiredo, who had recently lost to Jussier Formiga. Alas, the Brazilian scored a devastating knockout against Benavidez. However, since Figueiredo had missed weight, Benavidez got another chance, an unpredecented fifth title shot. Unfortunately, at almost 36 years old, Benavidez was well past his prime, and Figueiredo defeated him with ease, choking him out at the end of the first stanza. After dropping a decision to Askar Askarov, my personal choice for the No. 10 slot, Benavidez retired, closing a legendary career that never attained gold.

Continue Reading » Number 4

4. Brandon Moreno

Moreno comes in fourth on this list, an impressive accomplishment, but also the lowest placement of any UFC flyweight champion—I ranked him third. A fantastic grappler who possesses the best, most technical boxing MMA has ever seen, coupled with limitless cardio, heart and a titanium chin, he is a brutal opponent for anyone to face. Beginning his career at only 17 years old, Moreno suffered three early losses before ripping off 11 straight wins, including a domination of Ryan Benoit that was bizarrely scored a split decision, and submissions of top grapplers Louis Smolka and Dustin Ortiz. Moreno would run into trouble when he stepped up in competition, though, dropping decisions to elite contenders Sergio Pettis, whom we have seen triumphing over many fighters on this list, and Alexandre Pantoja. Inexplicably demoted to Legacy Fighting Alliance, Moreno obliterated Olympic wrestler Maikel Perez, stopping him in the fourth round, then returned to the UFC.

His first fight after returning was an odd one, as virtually everyone and their mother had Moreno beating Askar Askarov, yet it was ruled a draw. After that he scored three big wins, clearly defeating Kai Kara-France, Jussier Formiga, and stopping Brandon Royval at the end of the first round. This got him a title shot against the unstoppable destroyer Deiveson Figueiredo. In one of the greatest fights in MMA history, the big underdog Moreno withstood a hellacious barrage in the early rounds to take over late, with the fight declared a draw. Moreno would not be denied in the rematch though, choking out Figueiredo, himself a fantastic grappler, and garnering the crown. Alas, the Brazilian was not defeated for good and in their third straight fight, he improved his cardio and regained his throne, edging out Moreno 48-47 across all three scorecards. Moreno recovered with a spectacular knockout of Kai Kara-France in their rematch and is now scheduled to fight Figueiredo for a fourth time, an unprecedented occurrence in the UFC, let alone within a mere 25-month span. Needless to say, with Moreno only about to turn 29 this December and a huge fight on the horizon, he has plenty of opportunity to move up this list in the near future.

Continue Reading » Number 3

3. Henry Cejudo

Cejudo has had an interesting career. Many consider, with considerable justification, that he is one of the greatest fighters ever at any weight, yet it's tricky to rank him at either 125 or 135 pounds. As noted in his bantamweight entry, he was an Olympic gold medalist in wrestling with some of the greatest cardio in the sport's history and eventually developed outstanding, dynamic striking as well. Yet, his high placement on this list is largely based on a single fight. After going undefeated at bantamweight, Cejudo joined the flyweight ranks in 2015 and went 3-0 that year, defeating Chris Cariaso, Chico Camus and Jussier Formiga by decision, the last of which was very clear and should not have been a split. Cejudo then challenged Demetrious Johnson for the throne, and not only did he lose for the first time, but he was knocked out in half a round. He would then lose a second fight in a row to the previous entry on this list, Joseph Benavidez, which, as we noted, is a fight that could have gone either man's way or even been a draw thanks to a point deduction. Since that fight, Cejudo has yet to lose again, going 6-0 before his self-declared retirement. Each win was significant; he knocked out Wilson Reis, earned a decision over the outstanding Sergio Pettis and then had the fight which really made his legend. In a rematch with Johnson, Cejudo showed his tremendous growth as a martial artist since their first encounter and fought on completely even terms with perhaps the greatest fighter ever. Watching it live, I had it at two rounds apiece going into the final round and frankly couldn't decide who won that stanza. Neither could most MMA media or fans, with everyone either having it 48-47 Johnson or 48-47 Cejudo. Regardless, Cejudo won, and that split decision is responsible for him being third on this list, as he had finally dethroned the seemingly unbeatable “Mighty Mouse,” even if the triumph was far from clear. I ranked him fifth, behind Benavidez and Moreno. Cejudo would have only one more fight at flyweight, shocking the reigning UFC bantamweight champ T.J. Dillashaw with a 32-second knockout at 125 pounds. It's hard to rank that win. On the one hand, Dillashaw is an all-time great legend. On the other hand, he is 0-1 at flyweight and was obviously badly depleted from the weight cut. Regardless, after becoming a two-division champ, Cejudo retired, having left a large mark on the sport.

Continue Reading » Number 2

2. Deiveson Figueiredo

The current UFC flyweight king comes in second on the all-time list. From the standpoint of pure skills, Figueiredo may be the best fighter MMA has seen yet. His wrestling and BJJ are phenomenal and world-class. His striking is exceptional and he possesses monstrous power for the flyweight division. In particular, he has a unique and deadly style of keeping his hands very low, luring opponents in before unleashing huge power punches from unorthodox angles. The only weaknesses that have prevented Figueiredo from stomping every man he has ever faced have been shaky cardio, especially in the championship rounds, and occasional poor tactical decision-making, though there is good reason to believe he has fixed both these flaws. Figueiredo began his career a perfect 15-0, including knockouts of previously undefeated fighters in Daniel Araujo and Joseph Morales and folding up former title challenger John Moraga with a body punch. However, it should be noted that his split decision over Jarred Brooks could have easily gone the other way. Figueiredo then suffered his first defeat against the great Jussier Formiga via decision, which we have detailed before, largely the result of being over-aggressive.

Figueiredo recovered and approached fights in a smarter manner, scoring a dominant win over Alexandre Pantoja and easily submitting Tim Elliott in a round. He then fought Joseph Benavidez for the vacant flyweight throne, and despite scoring a spectacular knockout in Round 2, didn't win the championship since he had failed to make weight. He won their rematch in even more dominant fashion, submitting Benavidez in the first round. After obliterating and choking out challenger Alex Perez in under two minutes in his first title defense, Figueiredo was expected to reign for a long time, but along came Brandon Moreno, not only a supremely talented, but also an endlessly tough opponent who never stopped trying to win and was able to expose Figueiredo's questionable cardio. After dominating the early rounds, the Brazilian flagged in the later ones, and their first fight was scored a draw. This was only exacerbated in their rematch, where Figueiredo was submitted in Round 3. Many thought this was the end for Figueiredo as champion, as he was 33 years old and Moreno 27. However, he defied expectations by finally defeating Moreno in their rubber match, taking a close decision and showing much improved cardio and energy management. With Figueiredo turning 35 in a month and a big fourth match with Moreno looming, his placement on this list can go down, but is very unlikely to go up, thanks to the man who resides at the top spot.

Continue Reading » Number 1

1. Demetrious Johnson

Yet another unanimous selection by the Sherdog panel. Johnson is in my opinion the second greatest pound-for-pound fighter of all time, even ahead of such luminaries as Georges St. Pierre, Fedor Emelianenko and Anderson Silva. His career began and looks to end at bantamweight, where despite being ridiculously undersized, Johnson has still had plenty of success, coming in as the 10th greatest fighter at that weight according to our poll. Yet between the two ends of his career, Johnson established a run of dominance and greatness at flyweight that may not be matched for decades. Johnson was a nearly perfect fighter in every way, and unlike current champion Deiveson Figueiredo, that perfection especially included his cardio, the greatest in the sport's history, and his fight IQ and mental preparation, certainly among the very best as well. Johnson consistently made great decisions throughout a fight, even very deep into the final stanza. Additionally, he had phenomenal grappling, an outstanding mix of wrestling and BJJ, and excellent striking, especially his kicks, as well as his tireless and technical movement. After an initial draw that we've discussed against Ian McCall, Johnson went 13-0 at flyweight from 2012 until 2018, including an incredible, UFC-record 11 straight title defenses. Moreover, very few of these fights were remotely close.

Johnson’s victories include decisively beating McCall in the rematch, winning a tight decision over Joseph Benavidez for the first UFC flyweight crown despite being a significant underdog, brutally knocking out Benavidez in the first round in their rematch, beating the very dangerous and skilled John Dodson twice, achieving late fifth-round submissions over John Moraga, Ray Borg and Kyoji Horiguchi, the last a second before fight ended, earlier submissions over Wilson Reis and Chris Cariaso, five round beatings of Ali Bagautinov and Tim Elliott and a quick knockout of Henry Cejudo in their first encounter. Despite Johnson likely being slightly past his prime for the Cejudo rematch and his great opponent turning in the fight of his life, it's still an open question who actually won, so evenly matched were the duo. Afterwards, Johnson joined One Championship and won a title in its 135-pound division. Regardless, he has established an incredible standard at flyweight, and if anyone beats it, they will very likely be considered the greatest fighter of all time at any weight.