Tuesday, March 19, 2024
spot_img

Bellator MMA Fighter Rankings: Phil Davis holds steady at light heavyweight after Bellator 266 win

phil-davis.jpg
Bellator MMA

After suffering a loss in the opening round of the Bellator Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix, former champion Phil Davis needed a win at Bellator 266 to remain a player in the division. Davis got the job done at Bellator 266, picking up a big win over Yoel Romero in the night’s main event.

Davis and Romero fought at a relatively slow pace on the feet before Davis used his wrestling attack to take over the fight. Davis’ wrestling was especially impressive considering the former NCAA champion was outwrestling a former Olympic silver medalist. In the end, Davis took the win via a split decision in a fight that was far clearer than the cards indicated.

With the win, Davis remained in the No. 3 spot of the Bellator MMA Fighter Rankings at light heavyweight. Romero remains unranked with the fight marking his debut in the promotion.

Below are the top-10 pound-for-pound rankings for both the men and women. The full top-10 rankings for each division within the promotion can be found here. The rankings are voted on by 17 members of the media.

Can’t get enough boxing and MMA? Get the latest in the world of combat sports from two of the best in the business. Subscribe to Morning Kombat with Luke Thomas and Brian Campbell for the best analysis and in-depth news.

Editor’s note: CBS Sports insider Brian Campbell is a member of the 17-person voting panel. Bellator and CBS Sports are both owned by ViacomCBS.

Bellator Rankings (Sept. 21)

Men’s pound-for-pound

1. AJ McKee

18-0

2. Patricio Pitbull

32-5

3. Vadim Nemkov

12-2

4. Gegard Mousasi

47-7-2

5. Ryan Bader

27-6

6. Yaroslav Amosov

26-0

7. Sergio Pettis

21-5

8. Douglas Lima

32-9

9. Corey Anderson

15-5

10. Juan Archuleta

25-3

Women’s pound-for-pound

1. Cris Cyborg

23-2

2. Juliana Velasquez

11-0

3. Ilima-Lei Macfarlane

11-1

4. Julia Budd

15-3

5. Liz Carmouche

15-7

6. Denise Kielholtz

13-8 6-3

7. Arlene Blencowe

14-8

8. Cat Zingano

12-4

9. Kana Watanabe

10-0-1

10. Leslie Smith

12-8-1

Other notable results

  • Welterweight: Neiman Gracie remains No. 4 in the division after scoring an impressive knockout of Mark Lemminger in the night’s co-main event.
  • Women’s flyweight: After losing a 129.2-pound catchweight fight against DeAnna Bennett, Alejandra Lara dropped two spots to No. 7. Bennett, who was previously unranked after losing her promotional debut, moves to No. 8

Related articles

Share article

Latest articles

Newsletter

Subscribe to stay updated.