Fight Matrix

Fight Matrix Program – UFC 184 (02-28-2015)

Posted on February 24, 2015 by Jason

Women Bantamweight Championship (135)
[#1/#1DD/#1P4P] Ronda Rousey (10-0-0, -1038) vs. [#4/#6DD/#8P4P] Cat Zingano (9-0-0, +601)
Ronda Rousey is the All-Time #1 ranked Women’s fighter.

Last 3 Fights: Ronda Rousey (3-0-0)
2014-07-05: W vs. [#2BW/#5P4P] Alexis Davis (16-6-0) via KO (Punches) in 0:16 of round 1
2014-02-22: W vs. [#7BW] Sara McMann (8-2-0) via TKO (Knee to the Body) in 1:06 of round 1
2013-12-28: W vs. [#3BW/#5DD/#7P4P] Miesha Tate (16-5-0) via Submission (Armbar) in 0:58 of round 3

Last 3 Fights: Cat Zingano (3-0-0)
2014-09-27: W vs. [#19BW] Amanda Nunes (9-4-0) via TKO (Elbows and Punches) in 1:21 of round 3
2013-04-13: W vs. [#3BW/#5DD/#7P4P] Miesha Tate (16-5-0) via TKO (Knees and Elbow) in 2:55 of round 3
2012-10-06: W vs. [#13BW] Raquel Pennington (5-4-0) via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) in 3:32 of round 2

Days Since Last Pro Fight: Ronda Rousey 238, Cat Zingano 154
Previous Match-up Record: No previous match-ups.
Wins Against Common Opposition: Ronda Rousey leads 2-1
.

Women Bantamweight (135)
[#13] Raquel Pennington (5-4-0, +577) vs. [#14] Holly Holm (7-0-0, -926)

Last 3 Fights: Raquel Pennington (2-1-0)
2014-12-06: W vs. [#37BW] Ashlee Evans-Smith (3-1-0) via Technical Submission (Bulldog Choke) in 4:59 of round 1
2014-03-15: L vs. [#16BW] Jessica Andrade (12-4-0) via SD (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
2013-11-30: W vs. [#6FLY] Roxanne Modafferi (17-11-0) via UD (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Last 3 Fights: Holly Holm (3-0-0)
2014-04-04: W vs. [#8FLY] Juliana Werner (8-4-0) via TKO (Head Kick and Punches) in 1:50 of round 5
2013-12-06: W vs. [#99FLY] Angela Hayes (6-8-0) via UD (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
2013-10-11: W vs. [NA] Nikki Knudsen (2-2-0) via TKO (Kick to the Body and Knees) in 1:18 of round 2

Days Since Last Pro Fight: Raquel Pennington 84, Holly Holm 330
Previous Match-up Record: No previous match-ups.
Wins Against Common Opposition: No common opposition or both are winless against common opposition.
.

Welterweight (170)
[#19] Jake Ellenberger (29-9-0, -211) vs. [*] Josh Koscheck (17-8-0, +170)
Jake Ellenberger is the All-Time #19 ranked Welterweight fighter.
Josh Koscheck is the All-Time #13 ranked Welterweight fighter.

Last 3 Fights: Jake Ellenberger (0-3-0)
2014-11-15: L vs. [#11MW] Kelvin Gastelum (10-1-0) via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) in 4:46 of round 1
2014-05-24: L vs. [#1WW/#7DD/#8P4P] Robbie Lawler (25-10-0) via TKO (Knee and Punches) in 3:06 of round 3
2013-07-27: L vs. [#2WW/#10DD/#10P4P] Rory MacDonald (18-2-0) via UD (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)

Last 3 Fights: Josh Koscheck (0-3-0)
2013-11-16: L vs. [#4WW] Tyron Woodley (15-3-0) via KO (Punches) in 4:38 of round 1
2013-02-23: L vs. [#1WW/#7DD/#8P4P] Robbie Lawler (25-10-0) via TKO (Punches) in 3:57 of round 1
2012-05-05: L vs. [#3WW] Johny Hendricks (16-3-0) via SD (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Days Since Last Pro Fight: Jake Ellenberger 105, Josh Koscheck 469
Previous Match-up Record: No previous match-ups.
Wins Against Common Opposition: Even: Both have 1 win(s) against common opposition.
.
Keep Reading

Current MMA Rankings Updated (02-22-2015)

Posted on February 22, 2015 by Jason

Featured Upcoming Bouts (Outside of UFC)

Thursday, December 31st 2026: Rizin FF Super Rizin 6: Shiwasu no Owarinagoya Gekokujo Matsuri

[#1 W105] Natalia Kuziutina

[#4 W105] Saori Oshima

Last Fight Date: 9/10/2026 [Rizin Fighting Federation]
Last Opponent: [#18 W105] Rena Kubota
Last 5: W W W W W

Last Fight Date: 7/18/2026 [Rizin Fighting Federation]
Last Opponent: [#13 W105] Ye Ji Lee
Last 5: L W L W W

Sunday, December 13th 2026: Deep - 135 Impact

[#3 SW] Sukai China

[#4 SW] Jo Arai

Last Fight Date: 5/04/2026 [DEEP]
Last Opponent: [#6 SW] Sora Sugiyama
Last 5: W W W W W

Last Fight Date: 9/13/2026 [DEEP]
Last Opponent: [#23 SW] Daichi Kitakata
Last 5: L L W L W

Sunday, December 13th 2026: Deep Tokyo Impact 2026 6th Round

[#6 SW] Sora Sugiyama

[#10 SW] Goal Makino

Last Fight Date: 9/20/2026 [DEEP]
Last Opponent: [NR] Musashi Musashi
Last 5: W W W L W

Last Fight Date: 9/06/2026 [DEEP]
Last Opponent: [#42 SW] Toshiya Takashima
Last 5: W W W W W

Featured Fighters

[#18 W125]	Lucia Szabova	[#1 WW]	Islam Makhachev
[#18 LW]	Renato Carneiro	[#1 FW]	Alexander Volkanovski
[#13 LW]	Tom Nolan	[#26 WW]	Jacobe Smith
[#102 W125]	Tainara Lisboa	[#1 LW]	Justin Gaethje
[#2 LW]	Ilia Topuria	[#8 HW]	Josh Hokit

Bang for Your Buck: UFC Fight Night 61

Posted on February 19, 2015 by Oleg

So you thought last week’s Fight Night 60 was a weak card? Coming up this Sunday live from Brazil, is another abomination of an UFC card, also known as Fight Night 61: Bigfoot vs Mir. I really don’t remember what the original line-up for this event was supposed to look like before the injuries got throught with it… and I can’t even be bothered to look it up. Whatever it was, the final line-up only has two fights that I am even remotely interested in.

Main Event: [#6 HW] Antonio Silva vs [#55 HW] Frank Mir

Worth: $5

Why: This fight is kind of like a horrific car crash. You know you should just keep driving and keep your eyes on the road, but you can’t help rubber-necking to catch a glimpse of the carnage. Mir is a shot fighter, who hasn’t fought in over a year and hasn’t won a fight in 3 years. Not only did he lose his last four fights, he presented zero threat to any of those opponents. There was a point in time when I would have been excited to see Frank getting his face bashed in, but at this point I am more concerned about his health. Mir’s pre-fight statements that his future in the sport depends not on whether he wins or loses this fight but rather on his overall performance does not inspire any confidence either – it’s as if he is already resigned to lose. His opponent ‘Bigfoot’ Silva has been hot-or-cold through most of his career, and may also be a bit chinny; but while Mir has decent KO power, his robotic striking is unlikely to present a serious threat to Silva. Frank’s only hope to finish up his career on a win is if Bigfoot decides to test his grappling mettle and takes the fight it to the ground. More likely, this will end with fifth consecutive loss and forced retirement for Mir.

Keep Reading

Fight Matrix Program: UFC Fight Night – Bigfoot vs. Mir (02-22-2015)

Posted on February 17, 2015 by Jason

Heavyweight (265)
[#6] Antonio Silva (18-6-1, -216) vs. [#55] Frank Mir (16-9-0, +167)
Antonio Silva is the All-Time #20 ranked Heavyweight fighter.
Frank Mir is the All-Time #11 ranked Heavyweight fighter.

Last 3 Fights: Antonio Silva (0-2-1)
2014-09-13: L vs. [#3HW+] Andrei Arlovski (23-10-0) via KO (Punches) in 2:59 of round 1
2013-12-07: D vs. [#5HW+] Mark Hunt (10-9-1) via Draw (Majority) in 5:00 of round 5
2013-05-25: L vs. [*] Cain Velasquez (13-1-0) via TKO (Punches) in 1:21 of round 1

Last 3 Fights: Frank Mir (0-3-0)
2014-02-01: L vs. [#8HW+] Alistair Overeem (38-14-0) via UD (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
2013-08-31: L vs. [#11HW+] Josh Barnett (33-7-0) via TKO (Knee) in 1:56 of round 1
2013-04-20: L vs. [#3LHW] Daniel Cormier (15-1-0) via UD (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Days Since Last Pro Fight: Antonio Silva 162, Frank Mir 386
Previous Match-up Record: No previous match-ups.
Wins Against Common Opposition: Antonio Silva leads 1-0
.

Lightweight (155)
[#9] Edson Barboza (15-2-0) vs. [#13] Michael Johnson (15-8-0)

Last 3 Fights: Edson Barboza (2-1-0)
2014-11-22: W vs. [#16LW] Bobby Green (23-6-0) via UD (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
2014-07-16: W vs. [#46LW] Evan Dunham (15-6-0) via TKO (Kick to the Body and Punches) in 3:06 of round 1
2014-04-19: L vs. [#2LW/#9DD/#9P4P] Donald Cerrone (27-6-0) via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) in 3:15 of round 1

Last 3 Fights: Michael Johnson (3-0-0)
2014-03-08: W vs. [#29LW] Melvin Guillard (32-14-2) via UD (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
2013-12-28: W vs. [#21LW] Gleison Tibau (32-10-0) via KO (Punches) in 1:32 of round 2
2013-08-17: W vs. [#27LW] Joe Lauzon (24-10-0) via UD (30-25, 30-27, 30-27)

Days Since Last Pro Fight: Edson Barboza 92, Michael Johnson 351
Previous Match-up Record: No previous match-ups.
Wins Against Common Opposition: Even: Both have 1 win(s) against common opposition.
.

Welterweight (170)
[#117] William Macario (7-2-0) vs. [#271] Matt Dwyer (7-2-0)

Last 3 Fights: William Macario (1-2-0)
2014-10-25: L vs. [#26WW] Neil Magny (14-3-0) via TKO (Punches) in 2:40 of round 3
2013-12-28: W vs. [#218WW] Bobby Voelker (25-12-0) via UD (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
2013-06-08: L vs. [#45LW] Leonardo Santos (13-3-1) via Submission (Arm Triangle Choke) in 4:43 of round 2

Last 3 Fights: Matt Dwyer (2-1-0)
2014-10-04: L vs. [#30WW] Albert Tumenov (15-2-0) via KO (Head Kick and Punches) in 1:03 of round 1
2014-05-23: W vs. [#312MW] DaMarques Johnson (16-14-0) via TKO (Punches) in 3:39 of round 2
2014-01-18: W vs. [#617MW] Shonie Carter (51-30-7) via TKO (Retirement) in 5:00 of round 3

Days Since Last Pro Fight: William Macario 120, Matt Dwyer 141
Previous Match-up Record: No previous match-ups.
Wins Against Common Opposition: No common opposition or both are winless against common opposition.
.
Keep Reading

All-Time Rankings: The Black Holes at #3 – Part 2: Middleweights

Posted on February 16, 2015 by Jason

Middleweight

1 – Anderson Silva (23-5-0, 11*, 26)

2 – Chris Weidman (12-0-0, 3*, 6)

I know what you’re thinking… it is not a sure thing and perhaps way too premature to put Weidman at #2. Our All-Time Rankings suggest otherwise and even if you disagree, Weidman is the only fighter in the vicinity with a claim that is on the ascent.

Our #3 and #4 are tied. Nate Marquardt (25-8-2, 0*, 3) saw early and lengthy success, while Rich Franklin (6-3-0, 3*, 4) saw larger success later but spent much, much less time there. Dan Henderson (7-5-0, 1*, 2) is another popular choice, but he’s on a similar wavelength as Franklin. Some great performances, but not a lengthy tenure. Like Franklin, Henderson couldn’t quite decide on a division.

Fight Matrix #3 (tie) – Nate Marquardt, Rich Franklin

[poll id=”21″]

Record/Status Legend

(W-L, A*, B)

W-L = Division Record
A = Major Title/Tourney Wins in Division
B = Quarterly #1 Rankings in Division

Current MMA Rankings Updated (02-15-2015)

Posted on February 15, 2015 by Jason

Bang for Your Buck: UFC Fight Night 60

Posted on February 12, 2015 by Oleg

After a fairly strong start of 2015, UFC has hit another slog. Though the first two Pay-Per-View events of the year were entertaining and brought strong ratings, the aftermath of the fights was overshadowed by the high-profile drug test failures in the main events of UFC 182 and 183. Meanwhile the “injury bug” has been taking some PED’s of it’s own, and pretty much decimated the next 3 upcoming cards, leaving us without much to look forward to in the month of February. Sure, there is a fight card every weekend for the rest of the month, but all three cards leave a lot to be desired. Let’s start with the upcoming UFC Fight Night 60: Henderson vs Thatch, broadcast on Fox Sports 1 and UFC Fight Pass.

Main Event: [#4 LW] Ben Henderson vs [NR] Brandon Thatch

Worth: $10

Why: Sometimes there is a bit of silver lining in all the line-up changes due to injuries, and we actually end up with a more interesting fight as a result. I believe this is the case here. Originally, Brandon Thatch was supposed to face Stephen Thompson on this card, as the co-main event to Matt Brown vs Tarec Saffiedine. After Saffiedine withdrew from the fight with an injury, Thompson vs Thatch was promoted to main event – until Thompson also dropped off the card. Fortunately, Ben Henderson was looking to make a quick turn-around and rebound from his two loss streak, and offered to move up to welterweight on short notice.

I find this fight to be slightly more interesting than either of the previously scheduled main events for this card, mainly because it’s a very unpredictable match-up of styles instead of striker-vs-striker. There are many other questions to be answered here: how will Henderson look as a welterweight, and how will he deal with the size disadvantage? Will Thatch be affected by the long layoff? Is he ready to take on an elite wrestler in his first five-round bout? I’m looking forward to finding out the answers on Saturday.

Keep Reading

Fight Matrix Program: UFC Fight Night: Henderson/Thatch (02-14-2015)

Posted on February 11, 2015 by Jason

Welterweight (170)
[#4LW] Ben Henderson (21-5-0) vs. [*] Brandon Thatch (11-1-0)
Ben Henderson is the All-Time #23 ranked Absolute fighter.

Last 3 Fights: Ben Henderson (1-2-0)
2015-01-18: L vs. [#2LW/#9DD/#9P4P] Donald Cerrone (27-6-0) via UD (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
2014-08-23: L vs. [#3LW] Rafael dos Anjos (23-7-0) via KO (Punch) in 2:31 of round 1
2014-06-07: W vs. [#25LW] Rustam Khabilov (17-2-0) via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) in 1:16 of round 4

Last 3 Fights: Brandon Thatch (3-0-0)
2013-11-09: W vs. [#143WW] Paulo Thiago (15-8-0) via KO (Knee to the Body) in 2:10 of round 1
2013-08-28: W vs. [#270LW] Justin Edwards (8-4-0) via TKO (Knees and Punches) in 1:23 of round 1
2013-03-22: W vs. [#198WW] Mike Rhodes (5-4-0) via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) in 2:22 of round 1

Days Since Last Pro Fight: Ben Henderson 27, Brandon Thatch 462
Previous Match-up Record: No previous match-ups.
Wins Against Common Opposition: No common opposition or both are winless against common opposition.
.

Featherweight (145)
[#15] Max Holloway (11-3-0) vs. [#29] Cole Miller (21-8-0)

Last 3 Fights: Max Holloway (3-0-0)
2014-10-04: W vs. [#66FW] Akira Corassani (12-6-0) via KO (Punches) in 3:11 of round 1
2014-08-23: W vs. [#37FW] Clay Collard (14-5-0) via TKO (Punches) in 3:47 of round 3
2014-04-26: W vs. [#55FW] Andre Fili (14-2-0) via Submission (Guillotine Choke) in 3:39 of round 3

Last 3 Fights: Cole Miller (2-1-0)
2014-01-15: W vs. [#49FW] Sam Sicilia (14-5-0) via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) in 1:54 of round 2
2013-10-26: W vs. [#229FW] Andy Ogle (9-6-0) via UD (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
2013-08-17: L vs. [#10BW] Manny Gamburyan (14-8-0) via UD (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Days Since Last Pro Fight: Max Holloway 133, Cole Miller 395
Previous Match-up Record: No previous match-ups.
Wins Against Common Opposition: Even: Both have 1 win(s) against common opposition.
.

Welterweight (170)
[#28] Neil Magny (13-3-0) vs. [#103] Kiichi Kunimoto (18-5-2)

Last 3 Fights: Neil Magny (3-0-0)
2014-10-25: W vs. [#117WW] William Macario (7-2-0) via TKO (Punches) in 2:40 of round 3
2014-08-23: W vs. [#99WW] Alex Garcia (12-2-0) via UD (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
2014-06-28: W vs. [#291WW] Rodrigo Goiana de Lima (8-2-1) via KO (Punches) in 2:32 of round 2

Last 3 Fights: Kiichi Kunimoto (3-0-0)
2014-09-20: W vs. [#316WW] Richard Walsh (8-2-0) via SD (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
2014-06-14: W vs. [#93MW] Daniel Sarafian (9-5-0) via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) in 2:52 of round 1
2014-01-04: W vs. [#529WW] Luiz Jorge Dutra Jr. (11-3-1) via DQ (Elbows to Back of Head) in 2:57 of round 1

Days Since Last Pro Fight: Neil Magny 112, Kiichi Kunimoto 147
Previous Match-up Record: No previous match-ups.
Wins Against Common Opposition: No common opposition or both are winless against common opposition.
.
Keep Reading

All-Time Rankings: The Black Holes at #3 – Part 1: Heavyweights

Posted on February 9, 2015 by Jason

A short time ago, Sherdog put an article out debating the Top Lightweights of All-Time and today, put another article out debating the same for Welterweights.

Granted, this is an interesting debate now that we’re getting close to two decades where weight classes actually started being acknowledged, but in plenty of divisions, the top fighter is obvious. Furthermore, in many and perhaps more cases, the top 2 is obvious even if the 1-2 order is arguable. In my opinion, the #3 position is completely up for grabs in every division. In a sport where rankings mean so much, it seems unusual for this rift so close to the top. Certainly, arguments like this have to start somewhere, but #3 is where the questions start to arise.

Heavyweight

#1 – Fedor Emelianenko (34-4, 5*, 29)

#2 – Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (34-9-1, 3*, 8)

Here at #3, we’ve got several possibilities. Certainly, Cain Velasquez (13-1, 4*, 8) is a great choice, but his constant inactivity may yield to another current top fighter, Junior dos Santos (17-3, 2*, 7). Though Velasquez has the 2-1 lead in their series, dos Santos remains a little more active and somehow, Velasquez has fought only two different fighters in his past five fights. This kind of repetition isn’t great for a career retrospective.

If you want to go back in time, you’ve got Josh Barnett (33-7, 1*, 0) and Randy Couture (13-7, 7*, 0) who are also reasonable choices.

Fight Matrix #3 – Cain Velasquez

[poll id=”20″]

(X-Y, A*, B)

X-Y = Division Record
A = Major Title/Tourney Wins in Division
B = Quarterly #1 Rankings in Division

The Weight Missing Fiasco

Posted on February 9, 2015 by Ked Becker

Apart from the huge deal surrounding the failed drug tests, there’s another, much smaller issue in UFC 183, the weight missing by two of the fighters, and quite big names at that, Kelvin Gastelum and John Lineker.

For a long time I’ve wondered why fighters are fighting at a lower weight than the one that they walk around with, and how did it come to be.

The answer to the first question, of course, is that everybody has better chances when fighting smaller guys, and so, everybody tries to pass as small as they can themselves. The reason they can do this is because they have 24 hours before the fight starts to rehydrate and recuperate from the weakened state they are in at the time of the weigh ins.

I don’t know why fighters are weighed in more than 24 hours before the fight, though. I guess that in the beginning (of Boxing) it had something to do with the option of finding a replacement for the fighter or for canceling the show before the crowd got there. But nowadays neither of these is the case. Fights are still made even if one or both fighters do miss weight.

So why is it still going on? Is it a health issue? These days, fighters lose so much weight for fights that their body is very weak at the time of the weigh ins. If they would try to fight at this weakened state it would probably prove to be very dangerous for them. Looking at it this way, it might make sense not to let them fight right after a weigh in, when they are particularly weak.

But I don’t believe that this is right way of looking at it. Fighters lose all this weight and fight at weight classes smaller than their regular weight because they know they have those 24 hours to recuperate. The situation now is the dangerous one, since fighters are dehydrating themselves to extreme levels, sometimes to the point where their bodies just shut down. We see it time and time again, and there is no reason to think we’ll ever stop seeing that. Fighters will always try to fight in as small a weight class as possible and will always continue to hurt themselves in the process of trying to make that weight, counting on the 24 hour period after the weigh in for recuperation.

If, on the other hand, weigh ins would be held minutes (yes, minutes) before a fight, so fighters would have no time to recuperate from a weight loss, fighters would know that they can’t fight at a weight class lighter than their natural weight since if they do they will be weak during the fight, which is the most important time to be as strong as possible. fighters would, then, try to keep the weight pretty even, at the weight they would fight in, throughout the entire training camp because they wouldn’t want to need to lose almost any weight right before the fight which would make them weak.

This way fighters would fight at a weight much closer to their walk-around weight and there would, practically, be no health dangers surrounding the weight cut, and, of course much less weight misses.