The Bellator rankings feature some of the very best fighters in each major MMA division on the planet. However, which competitors get ranked and where is always a source of debate. Ringside Intel is here to further the subjective discourse with our rundown of the top fighters in Bellator MMA.
This space will be your one-stop shop for a rundown of the best athletes in the promotion’s most competitive divisions, from bantamweight to the pound-for-pound rankings. Scroll down and feast your eyes on the latest rankings.
Also Read: UFC rankings – Who are the 10 best fighters right now in the top UFC weight classes?
Bellator pound-for-pound rankings
For 13 years, Patricio Pitbull has been one of the best fighters in Bellator and remains the creme of the crop even now at 35. He is a former two-division champion who still holds the featherweight belt and has lost just once in 11 fights over the last five years. If he can make a successful cut to 135 pounds to beat champion Sergio Pettis, he is the Bellator GOAT until further notice.
| Rank | Fighter | Record |
| #1 | Patricio Pitbull | 35-5 |
| #2 | Vadim Nemkov | 16-2 |
| #3 | Yaroslav Nemkov | 27-0 |
| #4 | AJ McKee | 20-1 |
| #5 | Johnny Eblen | 13-0 |
| #6 | Ryan Bader | 31-7 |
| #7 | Sergio Pettis | 22-5 |
| #8 | Usman Nurmagomedov | 17-0 |
| #9 | Patchy Mix | 18-1 |
| #10 | Corey Anderson | 16-6 |
Bellator bantamweight rankings
While Sergio Pettis was not able to fulfill his goals in the UFC he has become an elite talent in Bellator. The former flyweight has been an impressive champion at 135 pounds in the No. 2 promotion in the world and if he can beat Patricio Pitbull in June, he has a case to be considered the best pound-for-pound fighter on the Bellator roster.
| Rank | Fighter | Record |
| #1 | Sergio Pettis | 22-5 |
| #2 | Patchy Mix | 18-1 |
| #3 | Raufeon Stots | 19-2 |
| #4 | Magomed Magomedov | 19-3 |
| #5 | Kyoji Horiguchi | 31-5 |
| #6 | Juan Archuleta | 28-4 |
| #7 | Danny Sabatello | 14-2 |
| #8 | Brett Johns | 19-3 |
| #9 | Leandro Higo | 21-6 |
| #10 | Enrique Barzola | 19-7-2 |
Does Dana White own Bellator?
No, UFC President Dana White does not own his competitor Bellator. Neither does he own the UFC, which is controlled by media company Endeavor. Bellator MMA is currently owned by media giant Viacom.
Bellator featherweight rankings
Patricio Freire is the greatest featherweight fighter in Bellator history and that has not changed for much of the decade. He still rules the roost now and it is unclear if anyone will be able to knock him off the throne anytime soon.
| Rank | Fighter | Record |
| #1 | Patricio Pitbull | 35-5 |
| #2 | Adam Borics | 18-2 |
| #3 | Jeremy Kennedy | 19-3 |
| #4 | AJ McKee | 20-1 |
| #5 | Mads Burnell | 17-5 |
| #6 | Aaron Pico | 11-4 |
| #7 | Pedro Carvalho | 13-7 |
| #8 | Justin Gonzales | 14-2 |
| #9 | Timur Khizriev | 12-0 |
| #10 | Lucas Brennan | 8-0 |
Bellator lightweight rankings
Usman Nurmagomedov has been a dominant force throughout his six-fight Bellator career and put a stamp on his spot atop the division mountain with back-to-back wins over division elites in Patricky Pitbull and Benson Henderson. He has not lost yet in his career, and it is going to be a serious challenge to hand the Russian his first defeat in a cage anytime soon.
| Rank | Fighter | Record |
| #1 | Usman Nurmagomedov | 17-0 |
| #2 | Alexander Shabily | 23-3 |
| #3 | Tofiq Musayev | 20-5 |
| #4 | Brent Primus | 12-3 |
| #5 | Patricky Pitbull | 24-11 |
| #6 | Sidney Outlaw | 16-5 |
| #7 | Islam Mamedov | 22-2-1 |
| #8 | Gadzhi Rabadanov | 19-4-1 |
| #9 | Mansour Barnaoui | 20-5 |
| #10 | Archie Colgan | 7-0 |
Bellator welterweight rankings
Like Nurmagomedov, no one has been able to beat ultra-talented welterweight king Yaroslav Amosov. Not even the Russian military. He has taken on all challenges at 170 pounds and continues to be the hardest puzzle to solve not just in the weight class, but the entire company.
| Rank | Fighter | Record |
| #1 | Yaroslav Amosov | 27-0 |
| #2 | Logan Storley | 14-2 |
| #3 | Michael Page | 21-2 |
| #4 | Jason Jackson | 16-4 |
| #5 | Goiti Yamauchi | 28-6 |
| #6 | Andrey Koreshkov | 26-4 |
| #7 | Neiman Gracie | 12-4 |
| #8 | Douglas Lima | 33-11 |
| #9 | Lorenz Larkin | 25-7 |
| #10 | Sabah Homasi | 17-11 |
Why is Bellator not as popular as UFC?
While Bellator is one of the best MMA promotions in the world it debuted over 20 years after the UFC (1997) and does not have the built-in fanbase, branding, or the financial might to compete with the fight game powerhouse that is the UFC. The UFC is the NFL while Bellator is the XFL and USFL.
Bellator middleweight rankings
Johnny Eblen has had a meteoric rise in Bellator MMA. He was a highly touted prospect out of the American Top Team and has lived up to every expectation thus far with definitive wins over the division’s best. If Fabian Edwards can’t beat him, Eblen will be holding on to this belt for a very long time.
| Rank | Fighter | Record |
| #1 | Johnny Eblen | 13-0 |
| #2 | Fabian Edwards | 12-2 |
| #3 | Gegard Mousasi | 49-9-2 |
| #4 | Anatoly Tokov | 31-3 |
| #5 | Dalton Rosa | 8-0 |
| #6 | Austin Vanderford | 11-2 |
| #7 | Aaron Jeffrey | 13-4 |
| #8 | Romero Cotton | 6-1 |
| #9 | Douglas Lima | 33-11 |
| #10 | Khalid Murtazaliev | 17-3 |
Bellator light heavyweight rankings
Until Corey Anderson came along, a case could be made that Vadim Nemkov was the best fighter in all of Bellator. However, despite the bump in the road the UFC veteran offered in 2022, he remains the best thing going at 205 pounds in the Bellator rankings. Next, he will be tested by another UFC veteran in wildman Yoel Romero.
| Rank | Fighter | Record |
| #1 | Vadim Nemkov | 16-2 |
| #2 | Corey Anderson | 16-6 |
| #3 | Phil Davis | 24-6 |
| #4 | Yoel Romero | 15-6 |
| #5 | Grant Neal | 8-1 |
| #6 | Alex Polizzi | 10-2 |
| #7 | Julius Anglickas | 10-4 |
| #8 | Luke Trainer | 7-1 |
| #9 | Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov | 20-7-1 |
| #10 | Karl Albrektsson | 13-5 |
Bellator heavyweight rankings
Ryan “Darth” Bader has gone from being an elite-level light heavyweight in the UFC and Bellator to one of the best heavyweights on the planet. Instead of being a goliath in a weight class of giants, the small reigning champion uses speed, explosiveness, and world-class wrestling to wrangle the best big men in the company. Next, he will face another former 205er and a man he beat previously in the red-hot Linton Vassell.
| Rank | Fighter | Record |
| #1 | Ryan Bader | 31-7 |
| #2 | Linton Vassell | 24-8 |
| #3 | Valentin Moldavsky | 11-3 |
| #4 | Steve Mowry | 10-0-1 |
| #5 | Daniel James | 15-6-1 |
| #6 | Tyrell Fortune | 13-3 |
| #7 | Marcelo Golm | 10-4 |
| #8 | Davion Franklin | 6-1 |
| #9 | Oleg Popov | 16-1 |
| #10 | Gokhan Saricam | 8-2 |
