The 2010s were an amazing time for MMA, with plenty of superstars to cheer on. Unlike many other sports, MMA fighters tend to start their careers later and only become great in their late 20s and early 30s. With more and more fighters appearing on the UFC roster every year, now is the time to watch out for rising stars. While the UFC, like all industries, has taken a hit with the COVID pandemic, it still has plans to hold fights later in the year, which is a great relief for many UFC fans.

If you’re wondering who to look out for in the coming year, we’ve taken a look at the current crop of the most exciting and newest UFC fighters who are about to make a big impact in 2022, in no particular order. Keep an eye on these fighters, because we’re sure they’re going to be something special.

#1 – Maycee Barber

• Record: 8-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC
• Weight class: Flyweight
• Age: 21

Maycee Barber came from the LFA and was featured on the Contender Series before her debut in the UFC. Since then, she’s shown her worth, winning her first three fights in her UFC career. She suffered her first loss at UFC 246 to Roxanne Modafferi by unanimous decision.

Barber’s goal is clear: to become the youngest ever UFC champion, and despite recent setbacks, we think has the skill and determination to reach her goals.

#2 – Mike Davis

• Record: 8-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC
• Weight class: Lightweight
• Age: 27

Mike Davis came into the UFC with an impressive 80% win rate, which he promptly lost in his first official UFC bout. He recovered quickly, though, and took out Tom Gilford at UFC on ESPN+ 19. With his impressive track record, strong ground game, and carefully honed boxing skills, Davis can quickly become a force in the UFC lightweight division.

#3 – Nasrat Haqparast

• Record: 11-3 MMA, 3-2 UFC
• Weight class: Lightweight
• Age: 24

Nasrat Haqparast came into the UFC with a strong 8-1 MMA record. Currently ranked as the 21st best lightweight MMA fighter (1), Haqparast has a lot to prove. He’s started training at Montreal’s famous Tristar gym, which is sure to hone his sharp boxing skills even further. He’s currently facing a one-loss streak but is taking time off to work on his weaknesses, and is sure to come back even stronger than before.

#4 – Magomed Ankalaev

• Record: 13-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC
• Weight class: Light heavyweight
• Age: 28

Dagestan seems to be the country producing some of the top UFC fighters in the 2020s. Despite a rocky start to his UFC career with a loss to Paul Craig at UFC Fight Night 127, Ankalaev has bounced back with style, winning his next four bouts with ease.

He beat Marcin Prachnio at UFC Fight Night 136, a fight that also earned him his first Performance of the Night. Apart from one decision, he’s finished off all his fights decisively and doesn’t look to be stopping any time soon.

#5 – Tatiana Suarez

• Record: 8-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC
• Weight class: Strawweight
• Age: 29

While most people have eyes on Zhang Weili, Tatiana Suarez has been quietly working her way up the UFC rankings, boasting a 13-fight win streak and an 8-0 professional fighting career. With her strong wrestling game and fearsome attitude, Suarez is one to watch.

She’s recently had some neck issues that have forced her out of the ring, but with enough time to recover, she’s coming for the strawweight title belt soon.

#6 – Ryan Spann

• Record: 18-5 MMA, 4-0 UFC
• Weight class: Light Heavyweight
• Age: 28

Many UFC fans think the light heavyweight division is one of the more boring divisions, but the recent rise of several stars may change all of that. One of the biggest names in the division at the moment is Ryan Spann, who’s well on his way to a title bout in the next few years.

His pre-UFC career may not be much to talk about, including a 15 second knockout during the Tuesday Night Contender Series in 2017, but he’s honed his skills since then, and it shows. If you’re ready to see the light heavyweight division become more interesting, Spann is a rising star to watch.

#7 – Zabit Magomedsharipov

• Record: 18-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC
• Weight class: Featherweight
• Age: 28

Featuring a distinctive haircut and even more distinctive striking style, Magomedsharipov has already made a name for himself in the UFC featherweight division. With an unbeaten 14-win streak, Magomedsharipov currently ranks as the 4th best MMA featherweight fighter.

We’re sure that, thanks to his win streak and his victories over Jeremy Stevens and Calvin Kattar, you can expect to see Magomedsharipov in a title fight sooner rather than later.

#8 – Islam Makhachev

• Record: 18-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC
• Weight class: Lightweight
• Age: 28

Not only does Islam Makhachev have the strong Dagestani ground game of his relatively famous training partner Khabib Nurmagomedov, but he also has a lightning-fast standing game that’s won him several of his UFC victories.

So far, all of Makhachev’s wins have been against unranked opponents, and we’re sure he’ll be raising the stakes in 2020.

#9 – Sean O’Malley

• Record: 11-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC
• Weight class: Bantamweight
• Age: 25

Sean O’Malley made his UFC debut with a recognizable style that was a joy to watch. After a long, 23-month hiatus between his second and third UFC bouts, he returned to the octagon with back-to-back finishes of Jose Alberto Quinones and Eddie Wineland.

A TKO loss to Marlon Vera would follow as a result of an unfortunate injury to his foot but even still, there is no doubt in our minds that the ‘Suga’ show will continue as advertised once he heals up (2).

#10 – Brianna van Buren

• Record: 9-3 MMA, 1-1 UFC
• Weight class: Strawweight
• Age: 26

Brianna van Buren has cut her chops in the Invicta FC, where she reigned as Strawweight champion before moving into the UFC. While she’s only had one official UFC match, her performance at the Invicta FC championships and in the Octagon has given her the groundwork she needs to succeed.

Her fight against Livia Renata Souza shows that she has the aggression and the skills to become a top contender in one of the most exciting divisions in the UFC. Sure, a loss to the veteran Tecia Torres exposed some shortcomings in her overall game but given her young age, time remains well and truly on her side.

#11 – Yair Rodriguez

• Record: 13-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC
• Weight class: Featherweight
• Age: 27

Yair Rodriguez’s 8-1 UFC record speaks for itself. At age 27, Rodriguez has already shown he’s got what it takes to make it to the top; all he needs is the opportunity to do so. With a versatile ground game and strong, striking game, Rodriguez has already taken out several notable competitors, including Chan Sung Jung, in 2018.

His recent win against Jeremy Stephens has put him one step closer to the title bout he so desperately desires, and it’s up to him to make it happen.

#12 – Cory Sandhagen

• Record: 12-2 MMA, 5-1 UFC
• Weight class: Bantamweight
• Age: 27

Cory Sandhagen has lived in a weird space in the bantamweight division for several years now, always flying under the radar despite several major wins and an undoubtedly elite skill-set.

However, even with a quick and unlucky submission defeat to Aljamain Sterling on his record, Sandhagen absorbed virtually no damage in that fight and remains one of the most versatile and creative fighters at 135lbs right now.

#13 – Marc Diakiese

• Record: 14-4 MMA, 5-4 UFC
• Weight class: Lightweight
• Age: 27

Coming in from the BAMMA, Marc Diakiese’s entrance into the UFC couldn’t have started better, with wins against Łukasz Sajewski, Frankie Perez, and Teemu Packalén. He then hit a snag while facing some of the best fighters in the lightweight division, which put a damper on his prospects.

Luckily, Diakiese picked himself up, with strong showings against Joe Duffy and Lando Vannata in 2019. We think that Diakiese has tons of potential and is an exciting prospect in 2020.

#14 – David Teymur

• Record: 8-2 MMA, 5-1 UFC
• Weight class: Lightweight
• Age: 31

While David Teymur may be on the older side of prospective fighters to watch, we think his strong Muay Thai base means that he’s developing a ground game that is only going to get better as time goes on.

While Teymur suffered a loss against Charles Oliviera in 2019, he’s had more than enough time to shore up his ground game and come back into the Octagon swinging for the fences.

#15 – Muslim Salikhov

• Record: 17-2 MMA, 4-1 UFC
• Weight class: Welterweight
• Age: 35

Despite a less than stellar start to his UFC career, Muslim Salikhov has tons of potential on display. After his first fight ended in a loss, he came back stronger than ever against Nordine Taleb, a performance that earned him the evening’s Performance of the Night.

Also known as the ‘King of Kung-Fu’, Salikhov blends a unique style of wushu sanda that catches his opponents off-guard. He’s been training up his ground game to bring it up to speed with his wushu, which is sure to produce results soon.

#16 – Mike Grundy

• Record: 12-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC
• Weight class: Featherweight
• Age: 33

It may feel a bit premature to get excited about someone who’s only had one fight in the UFC, but we think Mike Grundy is an important fighter to keep an eye on. He’s represented Great Britain at the Commonwealth Games, winning a bronze medal in 2014.

His record of MMA wins reads like a list from a submission manual, including three consecutive D’Arce chokes, several arm triangles, a keylock, and guillotine choke. His focus on his striking also paid off when he won his first win via punches in 2019. Despite some injuries and a recent defeat to Movsar Evloev, Mike Grundy promises to be an exciting addition to the UFC roster.

#17 – Makhmud Muradov

• Record: 24-6 MMA, 2-0 UFC
• Weight class: Middleweight
• Age: 30

Makhmud Muradov already had an established MMA career before moving into the UFC. His claim to fame is the fact that he’s the only MMA fighter ever signed to Floyd Merryweather’s TMT brand, so you know he’s got the punches to back up his words.

His UFC start has been impressive, taking out veterans Alessio di Chirico and Trevor Smith in stellar match-ups. With a team like TMT behind him, the future looks very bright for this 30-year old.

#18 – Jack Shore

• Record: 13-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC
• Weight class: Bantamweight
• Age: 25

With a 25 fight win streak across both his amateur and pro career, Jack Shore is the most exciting Welshman in the UFC since, well, ever. He also duly impressed fans during his first UFC bout with Nohelin Hernandez, controlling the entire fight until his third-round submission. We’re looking forward to seeing what Shore will do next in an already-crowded bantamweight division.

#19 – Dan Ige

• Record: 14-3 MMA, 4-2 UFC
• Weight class: Featherweight
• Age: 28

Like so many other rising stars, Dan Ige’s first performance in the Octagon wasn’t the greatest. But he’s managed to climb back and impress everyone with his skills, grit, and determination. His fight with Kevin Aguilar shows that he’s willing to fight until the bitter end, while his win over Edson Barboza shows that he’s got the skills to keep even the most ferocious opponent at bay.

Despite losing out to the immensely talented Calvin Kattar, Ige remains a hugely exciting prospect in the deeply-stacked 145lb division.

#20 – Bryce Mitchell

• Record: 13-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC
• Weight class: Featherweight
• Age: 25

Known mainly for his love of camo shorts, Bryce Mitchell doesn’t mess around in the Octagon. His 2020 win against Charles Rosa has cemented him in the minds of fans as one of the top featherweight contenders of 2020.

Mitchell is also the holder of the second finish by way of twister submission in UFC history (3).

#21 – Nathaniel Wood

• Record: 17-4 MMA, 4-1 UFC
• Weight class: Bantamweight
• Age: 26

After honing his chops in the British MMA scene, Nathaniel’ The Prospect’ Wood is more than ready to take on the UFC. His fights against Johnny Eduardo, Andre Ewell, and Jose Alberto Quinones show that his ground game is solid.

Even if his loss against John Dodson shows he’s still got some growing to do, a rebound victory against John Castaneda proved that he belongs at the top level.

#22 – Sodiq Yusuff

• Record: 11-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC
• Weight class: Featherweight
• Age: 27

With UFC wins under his belt, Yusuff is quickly making a name for himself in the packed UFC featherweight division. He’s on a six-fight win streak, and it will be interesting to see what can stop this guy.

#23 – Raoni Barcelos

• Record: 15-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC
• Weight class: Bantamweight
• Age: 35

Roani Barcelos is a multi-time BJJ and RFA champ and has the experience to make a huge splash in the UFC. He’s already had one Fight of the Night bonus and three finishes, which will certainly secure him some big-name fights in 2020.

#24 – Alonzo Menifield

• Record: 9-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC
• Weight class: Light heavyweight
• Age: 32

The light heavyweight division is about to have a huge influx of new talent, with Alonzo Menifield leading the way. Backed by the Fortis MMA team from Texas, 2020 may be the year when Menifield will make his mark.

#25 – Mark Madsen

• Record: 10-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC
• Weight class: Lightweight
• Age: 35

It’s not often that an Olympian graces the Octagon, but when they do, it’s something special (4). Olympic silver medalist Mark Madsen has shown that he can easily translate his wrestling skills into the MMA world, where he’s already won his first two fights. How much further can Mark go? Only time will tell, but we’re definitely along for the ride.

Who do you have your eye on this year in the world of MMA? With this packed line-up of up-and-comers, we’re keen to see as much of them in the Octagon as possible.

Be sure to check out more MMA content here.

FAQs

Who is the youngest UFC fighter?

The youngest UFC fighter currently on the roster is featherweight contender Chase Hooper – who turned 21 on September 13, 2020. Hooper, who fights out of Enumclaw, Washington, has posted a 1-1 record in the promotion thus far – winning his debut outing against Daniel Teymur before dropping a decision defeat to the veteran Alex Caceres.

Though certainly skilled inside the octagon, Chase is well known to fans for the memorable prank he played on Jorge Masvidal in the wake of UFC 239 – where Hooper pretended to be the son of Masvidal’s rival Ben Askren.

Who is the youngest female UFC fighter?

At present, the youngest female mixed martial artist on the UFC roster is the flyweight contender Maycee Barber at 22-years-old. Touted as one of the biggest prospects in the sport, Barber ran into some serious opposition in her last outing, losing badly to Roxanne Modaferi on the scorecards over three rounds at UFC 246.

On a night that was poised to be her breakout moment, an early injury disrupted her gameplan completely, allowing her opponent to steal the fight’s momentum away from there onwards. Now sidelined due to injuries, time well and truly remains on the side of this undoubtedly talented up-and-coming talent, making her one to watch for the future.

How old do you need to be to fight in MMA?

In order to be sanctioned to fight by any of the world’s reputable athletic commissions, you must be at least 18-years-old and pass all of the relevant health checks required to certify you as ‘able-bodied’.

Whether you intend on fighting at an amateur level or as a pro, you will not be allowed to make the walk to the cage if you are 17-years-old or under. With this being said, training to become a mixed martial artist is something you can begin as a child, with several gyms offering programmes tailored to junior members.

Find out who the elite of the elite within the sport of mixed martial arts are through our best MMA fighter list.

Sources:

1. https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/fighters/48941-nasrat-haqparast
2. https://www.bjpenn.com/mma-news/ufc/sean-omalley-injury-update-x-ray-on-his-ankle-lower-leg-came-back-ok-no-fractures-but-mri-is-needed/
3. https://www.ufc.com/video/fight-night-dc-bryce-mitchell-pulls-2nd-twister-submission-ufc-history
4. https://www.olympianmma.com/

Brandon Ruiz

Hi, I’m Brandon, editor here at MMA-Today. Mixed Martial Arts has been my life long obsession as long as I can remember. I was introduced to Muay Thai at a young age, but ultimately fell in love with BJJ and grappling in my teenage years, and have never looked back. My goal with MMA today is to inspire people to train and enjoy mixed martial arts more every day.

The question of ‘who are the best boxers in MMA today?’ is not one that should be approached with the aim of finding out who would make the best transition to professional boxing. Instead, we’re looking at those MMA fighters who have found the most consistently effective use of the sweet science inside the octagon – adapting it to suit the numerous demands of a cage-fight.

With that in mind, we’ve spent hours upon hours deep in research, debate, and discussion in order to single out five of the finest practitioners to single out the very best boxers MMA has ever seen.

The 7 All-Time Best Boxers In MMA

Cody Garbrandt

Reach: 65″

Stance: Orthodox

Signature Punch: Counter hook

Standout Boxing Moment: His ducking counter of Raphael Assuncao to re-establish himself at 135lbs.

Cody Garbrandt may have enjoyed a mixed bag of success in the UFC in recent years, but even with his losses to TJ Dillashaw and Pedro Muhnoz in mind, he remains in possession of some of the best boxing skills in the game.

As far as MMA fighters go, Garbrandt may have the slickest head movement and hand speed of them all. A clinical striker that can always threaten his opponent with legitimate one-punch knockout power, time is still very much on his side given his age.

Though we may never see him put on a pair of boxing gloves and compete in the ring, there’s no doubt No Love would be favored to do quite well.

Related: Who are the best young fighters in MMA today?

Junior dos Santos

Reach: 77″

Stance: Orthodox

Signature Punch: Overhand Right

Standout Boxing Moment: Flattening Cain Velasquez within the opening minute to win the UFC heavyweight title back in 2011.

In his prime, there were few who could deny that JDS possessed perhaps the cleanest MMA boxing technique around. Every jab, straight, uppercut, and overhand was consistently thrown with perfect precision and efficiency.

While everyone remembers his knockouts of Cain Velasquez and Fabricio Werdum, drawn-out battles with the likes of Stipe Miocic and Mark Hunt displayed Junior’s timing and distance control to their fullest.

For us, it’s dos Santos’ ability to make reads, set traps, and lead the opposing fighter onto his best punches that stick out as his standout skills. It’s all well and good having power and crisp technique, but Junior dos Santos augments his toolbox with an excellent understanding of striking. An elite-talent in every sense of the word.

Israel Adesanya

Reach: 80″

Stance: Orthodox

Signature Punch: Jab

Standout Boxing Moment: Countering Robert Whittaker with a right-hook TKO to take home the UFC middleweight title.

Though a pure kickboxer at his core, Israel Adesanya is without a doubt one of the 10 best boxers in the sport of mixed martial arts right now – mixing perfect technique with a genius-level understanding of the intricacies of movement and pacing.

A master of several fighting arts, no matter which discipline it is that he decides to dip into, Adesanya combines fluid martial arts technique with devastating results. Now learning the arts of both wrestling and Brazilian jiu-jitsu at an astonishing rate, Israel is looking more and more like the complete package with each passing bout.

A world champion at middleweight, The Last Stylebender is at a point where he must be considered among the sport’s pound-for-pound best. And while his kicks are no doubt a bit part of his success, his prowess with his hands should not be underestimated.

Jorge Masvidal

Reach: 74″

Stance: Orthodox

Signature Punch: Short Left-Hook

Standout Boxing Moment: Stunning the home-crowd by viciously knocking Darren Till unconscious after a lengthy hiatus from the sport.

As well rounded as any fighter to ever lace up gloves, Jorge Masvidal’s boxing skills have been undeniably elite for years now. His ‘resurrection’, as he calls it, has indeed seen him adopt a more heavy-handed style, as a result of his growing suitability for the 170lb weight-class.

Undoubtedly one of the best boxers in MMA today, it’s his fluidity and shot selection that stands as Jorge’s greatest tools in both the martial arts and the boxing department. Lethal with short shots upon exiting the clinch, Masvidal boxes like a man who has seen and done it all.

A product of his experience and uncoachable killer instincts, Dan Lambert has slowly sculpted Gamebred into not just one of the best MMA boxers in the sport, but into one of the most well-rounded fighters alive (1).

Nick Diaz

Reach: 76″

Stance: Southpaw

Signature Punch: Lead Body-Hook

Standout Boxing Moment: Beating down and dominating the former champion BJ Penn on points through volume, pressure, and constant variation.

As the owner of perhaps the most distinctive style of MMA boxing on this list, the older of the two Diaz brothers, in many ways, owes his great boxing to his wide range of world-class training partners – including Andre Ward, Joe Schilling, and, of course, his brother Nate Diaz.

Playing the stamina game as few others can, Nick will gradually up his tempo and the power behind his punches as the fight goes on.

When his opponent is suitably fatigued, that’s when the combos begin flying. Mixing in devastating body punches as he grows in confidence, there’s an understated beauty to Diaz’s game in the striking range once he gets going. A great boxer for MMA by any measurement. (2)

Conor McGregor

Reach: 74″

Stance: Southpaw

Signature Punch: Left Straight

Standout Boxing Moment: Knocking out José Aldo with a picture-perfect counter left to earn the UFC featherweight title and the fastest championship finish in promotional history.

Conor McGregor is without a doubt one of the finest UFC boxers we’ve ever had the pleasure of watching. Though his MMA game is rounded out with a number of feints and flashy kicks, his primary concern is getting you within reach of that left-hand shot.

Stepping into the ring to fight the legendary Floyd Mayweather in 2017 saw the Irishman prove himself to be more than competent when left with just his hands to aid him.

Constant movement, feints, and misdirection is the name of the game with it comes to fights that Notorious ends up winning. As far as a straight striking matchup is concerned, when Conor’s gas-tank is full, he has been able to enjoy a huge level of success – finding his mark with that left hand on virtually all of his opponents.

Related: More about Conor McGregor here.

Anderson Silva

Reach: 77.5″

Stance: Southpaw

Signature Punch: Stepback Counter

Standout Boxing Moment: Making Forest Griffin punch air before shutting his lights out with a short, exceptionally-timed counter straight.

Though well-versed as both a muay thai fighter and Brazilian jiu-jitsu black-belt, Silva’s hands have been responsible for some of his best fight moments inside the octagon. Coupled with his masterful head movement and distance management, it’s the counters of The Spider that have caused many to call him the most lethal finisher in MMA history. (3)

The fighting style of Silva was so heavily predicated on the idea of not leading the dance that indeed, some of his title-defenses boiled down to hugely uneventful staring contests. But it was the fear of his masterful countering that caused that to be so.

Sure, his chin (and later his leg) eventually gave out, but for a list like this, it’s hard to look past the long-time UFC middleweight king.

Who Is The Best Boxer In MMA?

There isn’t ever going to be one single answer that will please people on both sides. Deciding upon the finest boxer within the sport of mixed martial arts will often come down to personal preference. Do you prefer the slick countering-skills of an Anderson Silva or a Conor McGregor? Or are you more attracted to the textbook techniques and fluidity displayed in fights by the likes of Nick Diaz or Junior dos Santos?

Though several regulars within the ‘boxers vs. MMA’ debate have often scoffed at the very notion that an MMA fighter could possess strong pugilistic skills, the seven fighters listed above do a good job at proving that the gap between the two sports has never been closer.

On that note, be sure to check out our comprehensive report on the earnings of fighters within professional boxing for a better idea of how things are, at present.

Honorable Mentions

Narrowing a list like this down to five names was an incredibly tough task. With that being the case, here are a number of excellent MMA boxers around the world who didn’t make the cut; Frankie Edgar, Max Holloway, Nate Diaz, Calvin Kattar, TJ Dillashaw, Jon Jones, Alistair Overeem, Eddie Alvarez, Georges St Pierre, Holly Holm, Sergei Kharitonov, Alexander Gustafsson, Amanda Nunes, Dominick Cruz.

If you’d like to brush up on your boxing skills without the hassle of setting up a hanging bag check out the best free standing boxing bags. They even fit well in living areas with minimal space like apartments.

FAQ’s

Do boxers do well in MMA?

Historically speaking, pro boxers in MMA haven’t enjoyed a lot of success without adequate preparation beforehand. The differences between the two sports have been made clear as day thanks to some standout instances of overly-confident boxers that did not fully respect the multi-faceted world they were entering.

Do boxers earn more than MMA fighters?

Given that MMA is still one of the world’s younger combat sports, boxing, on average, still stands as a more lucrative pathway towards financial stability. Mid-tier fighters in boxing generally do a lot better than any other fighting form, whereas, in MMA, chances are you’ll have to be among the best in the world to demand a salary that is comparative to a fighter at the pinnacle of boxing.

Who has the fastest hands in UFC?

Though certainly a topic worthy of deep debate and discussion, in terms of sheer speed and efficiency of movement, the former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt likely has the fastest hands in the UFC today. His clean technique has seen him score huge wins over the likes of Dominick Cruz, Raphael Assuncao, and Takeya Mizugaki, leaving his name right in the mix as far as the best boxer in UFC is concerned.

Sources

1. https://www.boxingdaily.com/boxing-news/exclusive-att-owner-dan-lambert-gives-masvidal-better-chance-against-canelo-than-mcgregor-against-mayweather/
2. https://lawrencekenshin.com/a-history-breakdown-for-nick-diaz-explains-boxing-for-mma/
3. https://bleacherreport.com/articles/1186325-anderson-silva-5-interesting-facts-about-the-ufc-champion

Brandon Ruiz

Hi, I’m Brandon, editor here at MMA-Today. Mixed Martial Arts has been my life long obsession as long as I can remember. I was introduced to Muay Thai at a young age, but ultimately fell in love with BJJ and grappling in my teenage years, and have never looked back. My goal with MMA today is to inspire people to train and enjoy mixed martial arts more every day.

One of the most important things a person can learn is to adequately defend themselves whenever they’re in a situation in which they are threatened with violence. To help you out, we’ve constructed this ‘how-to’ fighting guide in order to help instruct you on how to win in a fight.

Things To Know About A Street Fight

There are important things you need to know about a street fight if you ever find yourself in this unfortunate situation. 

• There are no rules
• It is rarely like it seems the movies
• Anything can (and likely will) happen
• Other people may get involved
• There is a chance that things could escalate

Once you know these important facts about a street fight, you’d better be prepared for the situation.

What Should You Not Do In A Fist-Fight?

While having a grasp on technique and strategy is important, some might say that understanding what not to do is an equally crucial component of how to fight. There are numerous things you should not do in a fight, several of which can be found below:

• Don’t throw the first punch
• Don’t use a weapon
• Don’t try fighting someone with a group

Probably the biggest mistake you can make is starting a fight by throwing the first punch. Some will tell you to be first, but that makes you the person who started the altercation – which means you may go to jail with an assault charge.

If you pick an object and try to hit your assailant with it, then you will likely end up with an ‘assault with a deadly weapon’ charge against you.

If you try to start something with someone who is with a group of people, chances are they will step in. In that case, you’ll quickly find yourself in a no-win situation.

How do you win a first fight?

The best way to prepare for a conflict is to routinely train in some type of martial art. Training in some type of combat form is a vital life skill everyone should learn – that way you’ll know how to respond when threatened with violence. The best way is to train in a quality MMA gym but if you can’t get to one doing a MMA workout routine at home can be a good start.

If you’re wondering how much it costs to train in martial arts, be sure to check out our guide to training costs.

Here are some martial arts that will serve you best on the streets.

• Boxing
• Kickboxing
• BJJ
• MMA
• Krav Maga

Boxing

Boxing is great for self-defense and for getting the upper hand in combat, but it does have flaws. Sure, you may be able to land a good punch, but boxing lacks any real grappling system.  In an altercation on the street, your opponent may grab you and if you specialize only in boxing, you will find yourself out of your depth quickly.

Kickboxing

Kickboxing is also an excellent discipline to learn, although, like boxing, it is still lacking in grappling. It’s certainly very effective to know if you remain standing, but again, your opponent might try to take you to the ground.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Brazilian jiu-jitsu can definitely help you win a conflict quickly and efficiently. With BJJ, you can cut the distance, get a hold of an opponent, and stop them from landing a punch – all while minimizing risk for yourself.

This martial art was also developed to help you fend off a bigger and stronger opponent. Once you have your assailant in a chokehold it doesn’t matter how physically strong they are or what their weight is.

BJJ is fantastic, but many gyms fail to properly teach you how to defend strikes – meaning you always run the risk of taking unnecessary damage.

MMA

Mixed martial arts or MMA is a fighting style that encompasses each and every aspect of combat and as a result, it is among the most suitable styles for efficient fighting – something that makes it easy for us to recommend joining an MMA gym.

No matter if an opponent takes the swing at you or grabs a body lock, you’ll be prepared. Even if they take you down by surprise, you know how to defend yourself on your back. If you train for a bad situation like this enough, you’ll be able to sweep them, take their back, and choke them.

Krav Maga

Krav maga is like MMA, meaning you learn to punch, kick, and grapple but instead, it focusses on real-life situations where your life is threatened. It was created for the Israeli military after WWII and was designed to take out an opponent by any means necessary.

With krav maga, you aren’t fighting an opponent, you’re fighting an enemy trying to kill you.

It isn’t just about winning, but also about saving your life.

By knowing krav maga you will always be prepared for the worst-case scenario.

Fighting Tips

Know Your Exits

Whenever you enter a place like a bar, look around, and always make yourself aware of where the exits are. This way you’ll always have a way to avoid a confrontation. If you’re being challenged by a group of potential assailants, the best thing you can do is run away. 

A person that tries to start fights in public is usually violent and untrained, making them even more dangerous because you don’t know what they’ll do. 

How Will They Try To Fight You?

Usually, people that want to do something like this will fight wild with emotion. They will look to try to end the conflict quickly. This is because they probably aren’t trained and only have the cardio for maybe a minute before they get tired.

One thing you can is they’ll attempt a wild swinging punch followed by trying to grab you while throwing rabid shots. These types of people always try to take your head off with the first punch.

Now that you know some things about your opponent here are some fighting tips. Doing these things will definitely help you win a street-fight every time.

Distance

Fight to control the distance immediately. Always try to make space and then take it when you’re ready. UFC fighters such as Conor McGregor and Israel Adesanya are masters of distance control.

Hands Up

Even before the fighting starts you should have your hands up. This is to protect your face and avoid anything that your opponent might try without warning. Keep your hands open and in front of you ready to react. You can’t let them land any strikes first or you’re instantly at a disadvantage.

Grapple

When you get into a fist-fight, the best thing you can do is grapple. When exchanging punches, you’re more likely to be hurt and the opponent could land a lucky shot. Also, you could injure your hand if you’re throwing punches.

Grappling cancels out their ability to hit you by grabbing a hold of their body and taking them down. On the ground, you can control them better and avoid getting hurt. Control and risk management are everything in a street fight.

There are many advantages to training in a martial art that includes grappling. Having the ability to take an attacker to the ground and control them is your best chance at winning – especially if they have no idea how to counter.

There are five places you should look to strike in a fight. Hitting them in these locations can immobilize them and end the altercation.

These five places include:

• Eyes
• Nose
• Throat
• Knees
• Groin

Eyes

If they can’t see, they can’t fight. This is why landing a precise, hard shot at their eye is a good idea. If you damage their eye or break their orbital with a closed or open hand it will end the fight nine times out of ten.

Nose

The same goes for their nose. If you’ve ever been hit in the nose, you know how much it can hurt. A good strike that will break their nose will give them severe pain and restrict their breathing.

Throat

Striking them in the throat will also restrict their breathing and stop a fight, but take care. Only hit them hard enough to immobilize them and with the fight. Hitting them hard enough or repeatedly could kill them.

Knees

If they can’t walk, then they can’t fight. Taking out their knees will immediately stop them from being able to fight. A front kick, sidekick to their knee will immobilize them, so you can get away.

Groin

There is no shame for going for the groin in a street fight. A hard strike to their groin will end the fight immediately – as they will likely be doubled over on the ground in severe pain.

Be smart and be ready

After reading all of these tips you should be better prepared and know how to win a street fight. Of course, your goal should always be to avoid a fight whenever possible, but sometimes it’s just not possible. With these tips, you can give yourself the best chance possible at avoiding serious harm if you do, in fact, end up in a confrontation.

Brandon Ruiz

Hi, I’m Brandon, editor here at MMA-Today. Mixed Martial Arts has been my life long obsession as long as I can remember. I was introduced to Muay Thai at a young age, but ultimately fell in love with BJJ and grappling in my teenage years, and have never looked back. My goal with MMA today is to inspire people to train and enjoy mixed martial arts more every day.

Have you ever wanted to train in mixed martial arts? You might not be able to get to a gym regularly like the professional fighters competing at the highest level but that doesn’t matter, you can achieve an adequate MMA workout from home. Thanks to the internet and the numerous free resources that now exist, finding MMA specific workouts and exercising like a pro-athlete has never been easier.

Training for MMA is a great way to achieve a solid workout, raise your heart rate, burn fat, and build your fighting skills – all of which lead to a healthier overall mindset day-to-day. You may need some equipment initially but that is also easy to acquire once you’re willing to make that initial investment.

The best MMA fighters typically train five or six days per week and usually do multiple sessions in one day. Of course, as professional athletes, these fighters are not inhibited in the same way as a beginner would be. If you want to train for MMA then a workout at home is a great way to start improving your fitness and stamina, which will assist you in the transition towards training full time – if that’s what you wish to achieve.

The work you do at home will include different types of martial arts so you can tailor your experience and train like your favourite MMA fighters. This guide should help you create a solid plan for an MMA workout routine which will get you in shape.

Variety is the spice of life and the freedom that comes from studying MMA at home allows you to test whatever waters you please, giving you a better idea of what works for you and what doesn’t. If you’re specifically loving drilling muay-thai techniques, you can choose to center your workouts around it. It’s a luxury that you likely won’t find when you enroll in a gym and one that stands as a major benefit planning your MMA exercise at home.

MMA Training at Home

To train in MMA at home, you’ll need to get some basic equipment in order to get the best from your MMA workout routine. While not everything listed is completely essential, here’s a list of training equipment worth getting to start you off on the right track:

• Training Mats
• Weights
• Boxing Bag / Heavy Bag / Thai Bag
• Gloves (Boxing/MMA/Thai)
• Shin Guards
• Striking Pads
• Grappling Dummy

You may be working on your own or you may have a partner – this will determine what equipment you need for your workouts. Grappling dummies are a great tool to replicate a body but can be expensive. And while nothing can beat the real thing, there are many solo drills that you can perform without a dummy or a training partner.

Mats allow you to train comfortably barefoot and also to protect your body from harsh impact if you are grappling. Getting mats for the home is highly recommended as it protects your floor when doing exercise from sweat and fluid.

There are many different types of gloves and all have different uses, if you are using a heavy bag then opt for a glove with more protection. If you are a novice to the world of kicks, then shin-pads are an absolute must in order to protect you from any injuries that may hinder your progress.

Learning MMA at Home

There has never been a better time to train MMA from home. In this age of instructional DVDs, YouTube videos, and online training platforms, you won’t be short of options. It all depends on how you learn. Some people may want to find a gym to learn at but others prefer to study and exercise in the comfort of their own home.

Esteemed fighters such as Jon Jones and Max Holloway have admitted to learning techniques by watching instructional videos on the internet – with the former crediting YouTube tutorials for some of the wilder moves that he leaned heavily on during his initial rise through the light-heavyweight ranks.

Some great online learning platforms that can help you plan your workouts include former UFC champion TJ Dillashaw’s ‘Get Fit to Fight’ program which involves MMA related fitness and techniques (1). Evolve MMA is the largest gym in Singapore and they boast multiple world champion instructors. Evolve have developed an online University that gives you access to training programs and a video library of techniques (2).

Related: How To Win In A Street Fight

There are also some great free resources on YouTube and other MMA websites that are invaluable in aiding your learning if you are entirely new to MMA training. If you do consider yourself a complete notice, then it may be worth looking at a technical introduction to MMA in 10 moves which can help you get your best foot forward in tackling some of the basics (3).

Training At Home Vs. Training In A Gym

So can it be done? Taking your training into your own hands is something that no doubt will appeal to a lot of people who see enrolling in an MMA gym as an inconvenience. And while there are certainly differences to be found in doing your workouts solo, as opposed to with a live body, you can still reap quite a lot of benefits from an MMA workout routine that takes place purely in your own home.

The question more or less boils down to how far you’re looking to go in your martial arts journey. Some aspects of training in a gym just cannot be replicated – things like sparring and drilling techniques with a partner. But even with that being the case, that’s not to say that you can’t reach a basic level through solo-drilling alone.

If you have the discipline necessary to keep yourself in check and the self-awareness to be critical, where necessary, training at home can be fruitful experience – one that can also serve as a platform that will perhaps allow you to eventually join a gym.

That being said, following a program that is run exclusively from home can be enough to give you a well-rounded and refined skill-set – meaning that you don’t necessarily need to look at home-training as a route towards an eventual transition to a gym.

There is no doubt though that MMA classes will help you progress at a much faster rate especially with an experienced coach and students who are eager to learn and train. As the saying goes ‘iron sharpens iron’.

Create an MMA Workout Plan

To get the best workout possible you will need to plan what your exercises will include. Approaching this with each week in mind will allow you to set a healthy foundation for yourself and your body while taking care to manage your overall workload and keep your drills and exercises as diverse as possible.

How do I get in shape for MMA?

You can be completely out of shape and begin working on your cardio through an MMA-centric workout. In fact, many gyms do everything in their power to make it clear to prospective members that being out of shape should be of no concern if you’re hoping to sign up. Training at home is no different. Start from wherever you are right now and work your way up towards a solid level of fitness.

The key components of a successful MMA workout routine will always include the following:

• Strength – an essential part of any athlete’s exercise, it builds power and reduces injuries.
• Striking – include boxing, muay thai, and taekwondo techniques to give yourself a varied workout.
• Grappling – if you have a partner to grapple with then excellent, if not, a grappling dummy is a great option for home.
• Cardio – getting your heart rate going is essential for an MMA workout routine. The better your cardio is the more enjoyable working out will be.

By working equally in all areas you will ensure you have a great all-round base of fitness to aid your performance. If you need to find any equipment there are some great online stores that can supply you with everything you need to lay a strong foundation beneath you.

Planning out our weekly regime ahead of time also introduces an element of healthy pressure that will aid you in holding yourself accountable for your progress week-by-week.

MMA Exercises at Home – Step By Step Guide

Let’s get started with your workout – we are going to split this into 2 different MMA workout routines. One workout will be MMA conditioning focused and the other will be technique focused. You may want to perform each workout on separate days or if you can then try them both on the same day.

Warm-Up

Essential for any MMA workout routine is a warm-up – we suggest that performing mobility exercise and light cardiovascular exercise is the best way to prepare yourself for a session.

1. Mobility Routine – this involves movement of all the major joints in the body and stretching in preparation. Spend as long as you need with this step until your body feels prepared for the next.
2. Shadowboxing – 3 rounds of 30 seconds of shadow boxing will serve to raise your heart rate ahead of the more intense exercises to be found in this guide.

Conditioning Workout

It is important that a conditioning workout realistically mimics actual MMA preparation in terms of the type of exercises selected and the amount of time that you will work for. Below there are 5 exercises that will make you work for 45 seconds and rest of 15 seconds before moving on to the next one. This helps to create short intense bursts of exercise that develop your cardio and power. The short rest time represents the moments in a fight where there may be a break in the fighting while you move around the ring. Perform this circuit as many times as you would like. We suggest 3 rounds, to begin with.

For each exercise, put in 45 seconds work, followed by 15 seconds rest. Repeat this cycle for 3-5 rounds.

After each full round of doing all the exercises make sure to have a 1-minute rest in between rounds.

• Squat Jumps
• Press Ups
• Heavy Bag
• Pull-Ups or Bicep Curls
• Burpees

This workout is designed to incorporate the full body and use of external weight and bodyweight to allow you to improve your power and overall fitness.

Technique Workout

This workout will be broken into 3 different sections which focus on different striking disciplines. Muay thai and boxing and a separate grappling workout.

For the striking element work on a heavy bag as it will stay rigid when you strike – something that can assist you in developing power. Mastering the basic techniques in both stances is a great way of exercising and also learning striking for MMA. Many fighters these days, such as Tony Ferguson, Jorge Masvidal, and Jon Jones can operate in both stances which makes them a more difficult and unpredictable opponent to face.

Here is an example of some boxing and kickboxing sequences to go through:

Boxing techniques – perform in 5-minute rounds focusing on controlled technique. Have a break in between rounds of 1 minute.

• 1-2 (Jab-Cross)
• 1-1-2 (Jab-Jab-Cross)
• 1-2-3 (Jab-Cross-Lead hook)
• 1-2-3-2 (Jab-Cross-Lead Hook-Cross)
• 1-2-5-2 (Jab-Cross-Lead Uppercut-Cross)
• 1-6-3-2 (Jab-Rear Uppercut-Lead hook-Cross)
• 2-3-2 (Cross-Lead Hook-Cross)

Kickboxing techniques – perform in 5-minute rounds focusing on controlled technique. Have a break in between rounds of 1 minute.

• Jab-Rear Leg Kick
• Cross-Lead Leg kick
• Jab-Rear Head kick
• Cross-Lead Head kick
• Jab-Overhand

Grappling techniques – solo drills or dummy drills are a great way to exercise and move like a grappler. There is a great free resource from John Danaher available to download and focuses entirely on solo drills (4). Follow these simple exercises to complete your grappling workout. Perform 10 repetitions of each, work in a circuit, and repeat 3-5 times.

• Sprawls
• Forward Rolls
• Backward Rolls
• Shrimps
• Bear Crawls
• Sit throughs
• Triangle setups

If you have any difficulty with the exercise then there are a lot of good resources and technique videos on youtube which can help you to master the basics of solo grappling exercise (5).

What exercises do MMA fighters do?

MMA fighters are among the very best conditioned athletes on the planet. Their training programs tend to mix sparring, technique drilling, and strength + conditioning workouts and for the most part, everything will be ramped up in its intensity during a fight-camp (which will generally last for about 8-10 weeks).

With a heavy emphasis on metabolic conditioning-based workouts, the goal for all fighters is to develop every type of functional strength imaginable – something that will allow them to deal with the multi-faceted demands of an MMA fight.

This guide can help you take your first steps towards an MMA workout routine at home. It could aid you in progressing your MMA experience towards starting joining a gym. Whatever you choose to do we hope this information allows you to improve your speed, endurance, core strength, and overall performance.

So with that being said, all that remains is for you to take the first step down this incredibly rewarding path, a path that could well prove to be a life-altering experience for you in the long-run. If planned and executed correctly, sticking to an MMA workout routine at home can be just as beneficial to you mentally as it is physically – leading to a happier and healthier vessel for this near-limitless supply of information.

Happy training!

Sources

1. https://www.tjdillashaw.com/
2. https://evolve-university.com/
3. https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2578948-mma-in-10-moves-a-technical-introduction
4. https://bjjfanatics.com/products/self-master-solo-bjj-training-drills-by-john-danaher
5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zboFYX9cxJE

Brandon Ruiz

Hi, I’m Brandon, editor here at MMA-Today. Mixed Martial Arts has been my life long obsession as long as I can remember. I was introduced to Muay Thai at a young age, but ultimately fell in love with BJJ and grappling in my teenage years, and have never looked back. My goal with MMA today is to inspire people to train and enjoy mixed martial arts more every day.

According to ‘IBIS World’ boxing promoters made up to $361.5 million in 2019 (1). If promoters made that much boxing money, it’s safe to assume boxers are also rolling in dough. In reality, it’s a mixed bag, with some boxers making millions, while others don’t even have enough to pay their bills.

How is that possible?

We’ll answer that by looking into how much boxers make and which type of boxers bring in the most money.

Boxing Salary (How Much Money Do Boxers Make as a Salary?)

If you break into professional boxing, the annual professional average boxers salary isn’t much better unless you are a big name. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median salary of professional boxers was $51,370 in 2017. More than half of professional fighters don’t earn that much per year, and 10% of them make under $19,220 annually (2).

So, who’s getting the millions?

Going by the books, only 1% of professional fighters ever earn over a million dollars per year. That means, even if you work hard and do everything you need to do, there are no guarantees you’ll ever earn a million dollars as a pro boxer.

How Much Do Boxers Get Paid Per Fight?

Boxers like Floyd Mayweather, who earn millions of dollars per fight, make up less than 1% of professional boxers. For most fighters, the amount received per fight is quite depressing.

How much do beginner fighters make?

According to Expert Boxing :

If you’re a nobody with tons of losses, you get just $500-1000 to lose…”

Johnny Nguyen (Expert Boxing)

Considering you can participate in only a few fights a year without destroying your body, that’s not enough to sustain an amateur boxer.

The average professional boxer is only a little bit better off. If you are lucky, you could earn between $500 and $2000 per fight for your first ten fights. Once you have a name and people see you as a pro, you can earn about $2000 to $2500 per fight.

For those who are extra lucky and get an invitation to partake in regional or national title matches, there could be a $10,000 to $50,000 check. The few who get a world title shot receive $150,000 or more. But understand that world title fights occur only once or twice a year, and only a handful of fighters get such opportunities.

Also, don’t forget many boxers personally pay for their trainers, health bills, licensing, food, and more. After taking such expenses out of the $2000 or $2500 the average pro boxer earns per fight, there isn’t much left.

Now that you have an answer to, “how much do pro boxers make?” let’s take a look at how pro boxers supplement their income.

Related: You can find more boxing content here.

What Other Ways Do Boxers Make Money?

Money Inc lists George Foreman as one of the two richest boxers of all time (3). Most of his wealth isn’t from boxing; instead, it’s from merchandise sales, specifically the George Foreman Grill.

Let’s take a look at this and other ways professional boxers earn a living.

Fighting

Big-name fighters compete about once or twice a year. Other professional boxers give as many as seven fights a year.

For each outing, a boxer gets a piece from the fight purse. The purse is money the promoter pools into a match, and both boxers get to split the purse. The boxer with the bigger name gets a bigger piece of the purse.

Fighters then have to pay taxes, training fees (10%), management fees (10% to 35%), and more out of their cut. After all the deductions, what’s left could be less than half of a boxer’s cut from the fight purse.

Product Endorsements

Endorsements or sponsorships are brands paying celebrities to advertise their products. It’s a marketing tactic that assumes consumers want the products they see their favorite athletes and celebrities using.

Merchandise Sales

An endorsement is when brands capitalize on a boxer’s fame to sell products. On the other hand, merchandising is boxers capitalizing on their own fame to sell their own products. A good example is the George Foreman grill, which we mentioned earlier.

Related posts:

• Best boxing gloves
• Best heavy bag gloves

The Highest Paid Boxers in History

Floyd Mayweather Jr.

In 2017, he got $275 million for fighting one of the best MMA boxers Conor McGregor and retired with a remarkable undefeated record of fifty wins to zero losses.

George Foreman

George Foreman’s reign as a U.S. professional boxer lasted from 1969 to 1977. In 1987, he made a comeback that lasted until 1997. His biggest successes as a boxer are winning an Olympic Gold Medal and getting the World heavyweight champion twice.

These days Foreman is no doubt more focused on his email address than the action inside the ring. He’s dabbled in everything from writing and acting to advertising. And let’s not forget the world-famous George Foreman Grill. His net worth currently sits at an estimated $300 million.

Oscar De La Hoya

Oscar De La Hoya is a skillful boxer who impressed in the ring until his retirement in 2009. Of the 45 professional fights he ever fought, he won 39. He also won several accolades, such as a gold medal in the Olympics lightweight division. He’s now a boxing promoter with a net worth of $200 million.

Manny Pacquiao

Pacquiao is one of the few boxers to come out of the Philippines and take the world by storm. He became a pro boxer at the young age of 16 and went on to win 57 of his 65 fights. Thirty-eight of those fights were K.O.s.

Other significant accomplishments of Pacquiao: the belts he won across seven different weight classes. Now, Manny Pacquiao’s net worth stands at over $190 million.

Are Any Boxers Currently Making As Much Money?

In 2019, Canelo Álvarez earned an estimated $100 million after his huge clash with Gennady Golovkin while Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder earned $70 million and $35 million, respectively. Note that these boxers are still in their prime, and we expect them to keep boxing for several more years.

Highest-Paid Boxing Matches

According to Fox Business, here are the highest-paid boxing matches ever (4).

Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor

The Mayweather vs. McGregor clash was an amazing contest between a professional boxer and a professional mixed martial artist. The match took place on August 26, 2017, and Mayweather emerged with a $275 million check. Even though he lost, McGregor walked away after doing MMA fighters around the globe proud and, of course, with a sizeable $85 million check in his pocket.

There were around 4.3 million pay-per-view (PPV) buys for the fight, making it one of the most valuable PPV fights in history.

Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao

On May 2, 2015, two of the decade’s greatest fighters faced off to see who would win the Welterweight Unification Championship. The matchup was billed as the “Fight of the Century,” and Mayweather got a massive $250 million check. Pacquiao’s $150 million check was smaller but still significant.

It also set a PPV record with 4.6 million buys.

Floyd Mayweather vs. Saul “Canelo” Alvarez

On September 14, 2013, Mayweather proved himself to be the superior fighter by retaining his undefeated title and ending Alvarez’s undefeated streak. Even though Alvarez lost, he got a $12 million check, while Mayweather walked away with $80 million.

Floyd Mayweather vs. Oscar de la Hoya

With four of the fights on this list having Mayweather’s name on it, and him winning all four, it’s clear why he is the richest boxer ever. On May 5, 2007, he beat De la Hoya to win the WBC Super Welterweight World Championship.

Even though he lost, De la Hoya got the bigger check of $52 million, while Mayweather received $25 million.

Evander Holyfield vs. Mike Tyson II

The Holyfield vs. Tyson rematch of 1997 is one of the most memorable showdowns ever, not because of the skill or cunning of the fighters, but because of Tyson biting off a piece of Holyfield’s ear in the third round.

Even though the bout came to an abrupt and unsatisfying end, it still generated a revenue of $180,000,000 from PPV and other avenues.

Final Thoughts

Before you decide to be a professional boxer, remember it’s a brutal sport on the body, and the chances of making it big are limited. Nevertheless, if you have the talent and make the sacrifices, you could be the next big money surprise.

After all, that’s exactly what happened to Andy Ruiz when he TKO’d Anthony Joshua on June 1, 2019.

References:

1. https://www.ibisworld.com/united-states/market-research-reports/boxing-promoters-industry/
2. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/entertainment-and-sports/athletes-and-sports-competitors.htm#tab-5
3. https://moneyinc.com/george-foreman-net-worth/
4. https://www.foxbusiness.com/sports/highest-grossing-boxing-matches-mayweather-mcgregor

Brandon Ruiz

Hi, I’m Brandon, editor here at MMA-Today. Mixed Martial Arts has been my life long obsession as long as I can remember. I was introduced to Muay Thai at a young age, but ultimately fell in love with BJJ and grappling in my teenage years, and have never looked back. My goal with MMA today is to inspire people to train and enjoy mixed martial arts more every day.

Many Americans didn’t know about martial arts until the arrival of Kung Fu movies in the 1950s. Now, martial arts is so widespread, over 18 million Americans have attended at least one training session – with huge numbers attending several times a week (1).

Of those 18 million people, only a small percentage stick with the practice until they get a black belt. Why? Because getting a black belt isn’t easy. It takes years of pain, dedication, and hard work, and not many people are willing to sacrifice that much to master a skill.

In martial arts, practitioners receive a different belt color as they progress with their training. Each color represents a unique proficiency level, and a black belt means mastering the martial art’s basic techniques.

For example, in Taekwondo, students start at a white belt before progressing to yellow, green, blue, red, and, finally, black.

Using belt colors to represent proficiency wasn’t a thing until the father of Judo, Jigoro Kano, introduced it in the 1880s (2). Soon after, other forms of martial arts began using belt colors to rank the proficiency of their students.

Do All Martial Arts Give Black Belts?

Only martial arts that come from the Far East use the belt system. That includes Karate, Taekwondo, Judo, Jiu-Jitsu, Aikido, Kung fu, Tai chi, and some others.

Also, each of these martial arts uses belt colors in different ways. We’ve already seen Taekwondo’s order of belt colors before achieving a black belt. For some Judo schools, it’s white, yellow, orange, green, blue, brown, and black.

For some Karate schools, it’s white, yellow, green, orange, red, blue, purple, and brown belt before black (3).

Compared to other martial arts, Judo and Taekwondo are a bit stricter with their use of the belt system. That’s because the belt is a big part of their history and tradition. So, if you intend to practice either martial art at a serious school, don’t expect to rise in the ranks unless you are consistently dedicated and disciplined.

While getting a black belt signifies mastery of martial arts techniques, it doesn’t mean you are done with your training. You have to keep training to hone and fine-tune your skills. As you hone those skills after years of training, you can earn a higher degree of black belt.

With all of this in mind, let’s take a look at some of the most popular martial arts and how to earn a black belt within each of them.

How Long Does It Take To Get A Black-Belt In Karate?

Karate is a Japanese martial art that was born in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It has various attack and defense styles but generally involves using kick, punch, knee, and elbow techniques. Karate’s more advanced forms include knife-hands, palm-heel strikes, and other open hand techniques.

Karate didn’t begin using Jigoro Kano’s belt system until 1924. To advance from one belt color to the next, a karate student must pass specific tests.

The promotional test typically involves performing techniques before a panel of examiners. Depending on the school and the belt you are trying to achieve, examiners may rate your performance according to your stance, balance, coordination, speed, and power.

If you attend classes twice a week, it’s possible to achieve a black belt within five years. Alternatively, you could attend classes more frequently and earn a basic black belt in three years.

How Long Does It Take To Get A Black Belt In Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu?

When it comes to useful forms of self-defense, BJJ is regarded as one of the most effective. Practitioners learn how to defend and take down enemies with grappling moves, ground fighting, and submission holds.

The technique is over 100 years old and evolved from Judo. Many MMA fighters add it to their repertoire because of its effectiveness for resisting attacks from more powerful opponents. That said, we have to point out BJJ is not easy or quick to learn – making earning a black belt in it quite difficult. There is an advantage of starting young!

BJJ’s belt ranking system is very similar to Judo’s – Practitioners start at a white belt and get a different belt color as their practical skills improve. But unlike Judo, the time between each belt progression is long, and proving you are worthy of a higher rank is one of the hardest in the martial art world.

In other martial arts, to achieve a higher belt, you simply need to master specific skills and showcase your mastery through a demonstration. In Brazilian jiu-jitsu, you have to master skills and impress your instructor with your ability to use those skills. In most cases, this involves participating in real contact sparring with other students and practitioners.

If your instructor doesn’t feel you are worthy of a higher belt, you can’t rise in the ranks. Thus, it can take up to two to five years to earn a blue belt and 10 years of training to earn a black belt. But according to Ryron Gracie, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu master, in a perfect world, “advancement to a black belt should take seven years.” (4) Nonetheless, some gifted students have done it in five years.

Also, you can’t get a BJJ black belt unless you are 18 years or older.

What’s interesting about BJJ is the significance of a black-belt in comparison to some of the other martial arts listed here. Where in some martial arts, earning your black-belt is not enough to warrant the title of ‘expert’, in BJJ, due to the strict emphasis on sparring and the work/time it takes to reach it, a black-belt is a title that is given a lot more importance.

How Long Does It Take To Earn A Black-Belt In Muay Thai?

The direct translation of Muay Thai is Thai boxing. It is one of the national martial arts of Thailand that involves using clinching and stand-up striking techniques. It is most popular for its use of all eight limbs (elbows, fists, knees, and shins) for defense and attack.

Muay-thai stands among the most physically demanding martial arts out there – given the uniquely diverse and deadly set of weapons its practitioners are able to employ.

Of course, your own experience can be tailored to your needs, giving you the freedom to place whatever level of emphasis you’d like on the most rigorous aspects of training such as sparring.

With six months of dedicated training, you can become proficient enough to use Muay Thai in combat. To become a Kru (instructor), you’ll need about five to seven years of training.

As we stated, it’s mostly martial arts from the Far East that use the belt system. As such, Muay Thai doesn’t use belts to indicate a practitioner’s proficiency. But some people use color-coded armbands (prajits) to intimidate their opponents or for good luck.

How Long Does It Take To Get A Black-Belt In Taekwondo?

Taekwondo is a Korean martial art that didn’t start until the 1940s. It is effective for combat and uses various jumping and spinning attacks, including head kicks.

Modern Taekwondo has many styles, and its various associations use different belt ranking systems. Before 1959, Taekwondo schools (kwans) were not standardized, and each kwan had a unique approach to training students.

Taekwondo students start at the junior rank color belts, consisting of white (the lowest) to red (the highest). Depending on the school, the most senior belt for this category may be brown. From there, you can enter the territory of a black belt, which consists of nine degrees (dan). The higher the degree black belt, the higher your mastery of Taekwondo. (5)

The promotional test for rising to a higher belt varies between Taekwondo schools. In most cases, a school will simply ask students to showcase practical executions of Taekwondo techniques.

According to the International Taekwondo Association (ITA), “a student who attends class at least three days every week, with each class being at least one and one-half hours in length” can become a first-degree black belt or first Dan (Il Dan) black belt in as little as three years (6).

Taekwondo Black-Belt Degrees

The first black belt you get after mastering all the basic Taekwondo techniques is the 1st Dan or 1st Degree Black Belt. If you keep practicing, you can achieve higher black belts in the following order:

• 2nd Degree Black Belt – Dedicated practitioners can get this belt after a year of practicing as a first Dan Black Belt holder.
• 3rd Degree Black Belt – After two years of practicing as a 2nd-degree black belt, you can achieve this belt. Practitioners with this belt can open their own dojo to train and advance students.
• 4th Degree Black Belt – You can get this after practicing as a 3rd-degree black belt for three years.
• 5th Degree Black Belt – Achieving this means you’ve become a Master and have, in some way, improved Taekwondo. You can achieve it after practicing as a 4th-degree black belt for four years.
• 6th Degree Black Belt – It takes 5 years of practicing as a 5th Dan Master.
• 7th Degree Black Belt – It takes six years of practicing as a 6th Dan Master.
• 8th Degree Black Belt – Achieving this means you’ve risen from Master to Grand Master status. It takes seven years of practicing as a 7th Dan Master.
• 9th Degree Black Belt – A higher level of Grand Master status that you can achieve after practicing for eight years as an 8th degree black-belt Grand Master.

How Long Does It Take To Get A Black-Belt In Aikido?

Aikido is a Japanese martial art that teaches practitioners self-defense, as well as philosophy and religious beliefs. Also, unlike other martial arts that focus on doing maximum damage to opponents, Aikido focuses on self-defense without hurting an opponent.

Where fighting styles such as krav maga are indeed self-defense-oriented in their nature, they focus on techniques that are intended to cause major harm to your assailant. Aikido, within the same parameters, is intended as a means of incapacitating your foe while maintaining a level of control that allows you to avoid doing them serious bodily harm.

Practitioners accomplish this by redirecting an attacker’s momentum or using joint locks to disarm opponents. With a major emphasis on leverage and balance, Aikido also uses various throws to take down opponents.

For a martial art like Aikido, it’s easier and quicker for people to get a black belt if you already have belts from other fighting styles. In that scenario, you can get a black belt in as little as two years.

How Long Does It Take To Get A Black-Belt In Judo?

Judo is a Japanese martial art that uses grappling and ground fighting. After taking down an opponent, Judokas (judo practitioners) typically end the fight with joint locks or chokes.

Getting a Judo black belt is tough, but those people who fully commit to learning the art can get a first-degree black belt in three to six years. But note that in Judo, getting a black belt isn’t just about dedication, but also innate talent. It’s why some people work hard, and, yet, can’t get a black belt until after 10 years.

How Long Does It Take To Get A Black-Belt In Krav Maga?

Krav maga is a popular fighting system developed by the Israeli military using a number of different aspects of some of the world’s most widely-used martial arts.

Known for its tremendous efficiency in the pursuit of incapacitating an opponent, krav maga places a very noticeable emphasis on real-world scenarios and as a result, it is seen by many as one of the most effective martial arts around.

On average, a new practitioner should expect to train for around two or three years to reach a level of proficiency that would be considered ‘black belt level’ but depending on the school, sometimes the usage of actual belts can vary.

What is the Easiest Black Belt to Get?

For many people, earning belts isn’t about self-defense or mastering the art. It’s simply about bragging rights. If you are one of such people and are wondering, “What is the easiest black belt to get?” you could just buy one.

How? Several unscrupulous schools award belts and certificates as long as you are willing to pay.

But if what you are looking for is how to become a proficient master within the shortest amount of time, we recommend joining a school that follows a strict curriculum. It also helps if you choose a form of martial arts you find enjoyable.

There are top-notch Taekwondo, Judo, Karate, and other martial arts schools that offer such opportunities. All you have to do is attend classes often and commit fully to learning the techniques. It takes significant effort, but with dedication, you can be the proud owner of a well-earned black belt within a couple of years.

It’s important to remember that when it comes to the pursuit of any type of martial arts training, like anything in life, it is the journey that matters most. And while sure, the idea of having a black-belt is certainly appealing, a healthy attitude towards learning and training will allow you to reap the benefits to a greater extent than a colored belt ever could.

FAQs

How long does it take to earn a black belt in mixed martial arts?

Depending on the martial art you choose, earning a black-belt could take anywhere between three and ten years. A lot of factors come into play when you’re moving through the various belt-ranks, ranging from natural athleticism and aptitude to the frequency of your training sessions. Though there’s no one correct answer that works for everyone, once you begin your journey towards black-belt status, you should be able to better gauge how long the road ahead of you is. MMA, however, doesn’t involve a belt system – making it more of an amalgamation of different styles than anything else. The best fighters at the highest level are highly skilled in several different martial arts.

How much does it cost to get a black-belt?

Aside from the cost of a membership to the gym, school, or tutor that you select, some martial arts gyms do require a monetary fee in order to take the test to secure your black-belt. Though most schools are reasonable with this fee, one must be wary in order to avoid the extortionately high rates that are often sprung on budding martial artists as they edge towards black-belt level. Doing your research ahead of time is incredibly important. Know who you’re dealing with before committing to a gym or tutor and no matter which route you end up taking, be prepared to work hard in the pursuit of your ultimate goal.

Can you get a black-belt online?

While the option of training solo has never been easier, you can’t substitute those hours spent on the mat with a live opponent. Though techniques can be drilled and worked on from the comfort of your own home, the entire experience of learning and mastering a martial art requires you to physically situate yourself in a gym alongside athletes who can teach you hands-on. Sure, there are sites out there who claim to offer online courses, but as a general rule of thumb, be wary of these and understand that legitimate schools of martial arts require your physical presence.

Sources

1. https://www.glofox.com/blog/martial-arts-business-statistics/
2. http://www.judoinfo.com/obi.htm
3. https://www.tutorialspoint.com/karate/karate_belt_colours_meaning.htm
4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhYQcRfhLCw&t=22m10s
5. http://www.edmontondragons.com/belt-ranking-system
6. http://www.itatkd.com/tkdmintime.html

Brandon Ruiz

Hi, I’m Brandon, editor here at MMA-Today. Mixed Martial Arts has been my life long obsession as long as I can remember. I was introduced to Muay Thai at a young age, but ultimately fell in love with BJJ and grappling in my teenage years, and have never looked back. My goal with MMA today is to inspire people to train and enjoy mixed martial arts more every day.

The answer to the question of ‘how much do UFC fighters get paid’ is actually more complicated than it would initially appear. While the highest-paid fighters make impressive salaries, up-and-coming fighters can still struggle to pay their bills.

Unlike other sports organizations like the NBA or MLB, the UFC doesn’t have big agents that target rookie fighters. UFC fighters also don’t have a union or fighters’ association to leverage any collective bargaining power.

The lack of bargaining power means that many rookie fighters don’t have any help in financial negotiations, which means overall lower salaries. Many fighters tough it out, hoping to make it big, but with gym fees, travel, and training costs, their expenses can quickly outweigh their winnings.

Unfortunately, most of the money in UFC is at the top of the food chain, with very slim pickings for fighters at the bottom, with around 37% making less than the average American household yearly income (1).

So how much does a UFC fighter make? We’ll attempt to answer that question below.

How Do UFC Fighters Earn Money?

UFC fighters don’t just make money from fighting. Popular fighters have many other avenues to get paid, including sponsorships and endorsements. These can greatly affect an athlete’s income throughout the year. Unfortunately, only the best of the best can rely on endorsements to make extra money.

Related: How to become a UFC Fighter

It’s important to note that most athletic commissions don’t report a UFC fighter’s pay. While we can make educated estimates based on reports by the UFC and athletes themselves, these may not always be 100% accurate.

According to a poll looking at fighter salaries from 2012 – 2015, around a third of all fighters’ incomes came from non-disclosed discretionary pay, side agreements, or pay-per-view points (2). Almost every fighter received a performance bonus of some sort, and these bonuses are often under $10,000 for preliminary fighters. In comparison, fighters on the main card received between $0 and $50,000, with a mean average of $4,600.

Base Salary

Most fighters get a large portion of their money from a salary paid by the UFC. This salary often gets paid out fight-by-fight, and is open to negotiation, depending on the fighter’s performance. Rookie fighters often make significantly less than their more famous counterparts.

For instance, Nate Diaz only received $20,000 for his fight against Michael Johnson, which was before his spectacular win over McGregor (3). Once he’d shown his chops and became popular, he was able to up his base salary to $250,000 for his fight with Pettis.

According to reported salaries, around 36% of fighters, 214 in real numbers, earned six-figure salaries in 2019, up from 33% in 2018. However, the bottom 37% of fighters made less than the American household income of $45,000 per year. This shows the huge disparity of earning potential for UFC fighters.

The 18 men and women that had UFC championship belts in 2019 earned just under a million dollars ($974,028 to be exact) in salaries, before counting any other bonuses, endorsements and sponsorships.

Win bonuses can make up a huge portion of a fighter’s yearly income. The UFC negotiates these win bonuses on a case-by-case basis and mainly targets large payouts for lower-ranked fighters. UFC fighters payouts from win bonuses range between double the base salary to nothing, depending on the fighter.

Using our previous example of Nate Diaz, he received a double win bonus for his fight with Johnson and ended up taking home $40,000. However, once he got more popular, his win bonus dropped away. In the Pettis fight, he didn’t have any win bonuses in his contract whatsoever.

Sponsorships

In 2015, the UFC signed a contract with Reebok, making it the exclusive sponsor for UFC fighters. This contract prevents fighters from signing up with any other companies; they can only have Reebok sponsorship.

This controversial decision resulted in many UFC fighters receiving tiny sponsorships per fight, ranging from $3,500 to $40,000. The UFC decides the amounts based on the number of fights the athlete had in the UFC.

How Much Do UFC Fighters Make Per Fight?

The answer to the question of ‘how much do UFC fighters get paid’ is actually more complicated than it would initially appear. While the highest-paid fighters make impressive salaries, up-and-coming fighters can still struggle to pay their bills.

Unlike other sports organizations like the NBA or MLB, the UFC doesn’t have big agents that target rookie fighters. UFC fighters also don’t have a union or fighters’ association to leverage any collective bargaining power.

The lack of bargaining power means that many rookie fighters don’t have any help in financial negotiations, which means overall lower salaries. Many fighters tough it out, hoping to make it big, but with gym fees, travel, and training costs, their expenses can quickly outweigh their winnings.

What this means is that how much a UFC fighter makes in a year, or per fight, depends a lot on how many fights they’ve had, how popular they are, and how many fights they win. That’s not even counting sponsorships or endorsements, which can make fighters huge amounts of money.

Unfortunately, most of the money in UFC is at the top of the food chain, with very slim pickings for fighters at the bottom, with around 37% making less than the average American household yearly income (1).

How Do UFC Fighters Earn Money?

UFC fighters don’t just make money from fighting. Popular fighters have many other avenues to get paid, including sponsorships and endorsements. These can greatly affect an athlete’s income throughout the year. Unfortunately, only the best of the best can rely on endorsements to make extra money.

It’s important to note that most athletic commissions don’t report a UFC fighter’s pay. While we can make educated estimates based on reports by the UFC and athletes themselves, these may not always be 100% accurate.

According to a poll looking at fighter salaries from 2012 – 2015, around a third of all fighters’ incomes came from non-disclosed discretionary pay, side agreements, or pay-per-view points (2). Almost every fighter received a performance bonus of some sort, and these bonuses are often under $10,000 for preliminary fighters. In comparison, fighters on the main card received between $0 and $50,000, with a mean average of $4,600.

Base Salary

Most fighters get a large portion of their money from a salary paid by the UFC. This salary often gets paid out per fight, and is open to negotiation, depending on the fighter’s performance. The majority of fighters often make significantly less than their more famous counterparts.

For instance, Nate Diaz only received $20,000 for his fight against Michael Johnson, which was before his spectacular win over McGregor (3). Once he’d shown his chops and became popular, he was able to up his base salary to $250,000 for his fight with Pettis.

According to reported salaries, around 36% of fighters, 214 in real numbers, earned six-figure salaries in 2019, up from 33% in 2018. However, the bottom 37% of fighters made less than the American household income of $45,000 per year. This shows the huge disparity of earning potential for UFC fighters.

The 18 men and women that held UFC championship belts in 2019 earned just under a million dollars ($974,028 to be exact) in salaries, before counting any other bonuses or endorsements and sponsorships.

Win bonuses can make up a huge portion of a fighter’s yearly income. The UFC negotiates these win bonuses on a case-by-case basis and mainly targets large payouts for lower-ranked fighters. UFC fighters payouts from win bonuses range between double the base salary to nothing, depending on the fighter.

Using our previous example of Nate Diaz, he received a double win bonus for his fight with Johnson and ended up taking home $40,000. However, once he got more popular, his win bonus dropped away. In the Pettis fight, he didn’t have any win bonuses in his contract whatsoever.

Sponsorships

Sponsorships are one of the main ways athletes make money, with many companies competing to land top athletes. If you’re a fighter with the UFC, however, you have to make do with a forced Reebok sponsorship instead.

In 2015, the UFC signed a contract with Reebok, making it the exclusive sponsor for UFC fighters. This contract prevents fighters from signing up with any other companies; they can only have Reebok as their sponsor.

This controversial decision resulted in many UFC fighters receiving tiny sponsorships per fight, ranging from $3,500 to $40,000. The UFC decides the amounts based on the number of fights the athlete had in the UFC.

Fight Night Bonuses

Besides win bonuses, the UFC also has official and undisclosed bonuses. The official bonuses are the ‘fight of the night’ bonus and the ‘performance of the night’. Both fighters from the fight of the night earn the $50,000 bonus, with another two fighters each winning performance of the night bonus. One person can sometimes win two bonuses for a total of $100,000 on top of their salary.

The second type of bonus is the ‘backroom bonus’, which is an open secret in the UFC (4). Unfortunately, since these figures don’t get disclosed, there’s no way to know how much fighters can earn from these unofficial performance bonuses.

Finally, some of the most popular mixed martial arts fighters also get offered pay-per-view (PPV) points per headlining appearance. These points translate into a portion of the pay-per-view earnings of a fight going to the relevant fighter.

These fighters can make a significant income, especially as the popularity of the UFC continues to grow, and more people tune in to watch the fights.

Endorsements

Endorsements are similar to sponsorships, but take place outside the sphere of the regular UFC fighters pay scale. Some of the best-known UFC endorsements include McGregor and Burger King, as well as Brian Ortega and Modelo.

Endorsements are a great way for companies to bring their brand to the attention of UFC fans. Endorsements benefit both the fighters and the company, but typically only apply to the most popular UFC fighters.

The Highest Paid UFC Fighters in 2019

When it comes to reported salaries and performance bonuses, 2019 was a year of plenty for Khabib Nurmagomedov. He reportedly earned just over $6 million throughout the year, according to the MMA Manifesto. He massively outpaced everyone else in the pack, with second place Alistair Overeem only earning $1.7 million in the same year.

Total earnings in 2019 according to salary and bonus reports:

The picture changes a bit when you look at total earnings throughout a career. McGregor still holds the top spot, and Nurmagomedov still has a way to go to catch up to the overall highest-paid UFC fighter.

Below are other high paid UFC fighter and their assumed earnings, but if you’re interested in learning about the GOAT based on skills, check out this list of the best MMA fighters here.

Conor McGregor

As of 2020, McGregor is still the only UFC fighter to break eight-digit earnings in the UFC. His estimated total earnings of $15.2 million are in large part due to his last five fights, which all paid seven-digit salaries.

His last four fights earned him just over $3 million each, earning him a cool $12 million in just four years. His potential rematch against Nurmagomedov promises to be his most profitable fight yet. Check out Conor Mcgregor’s full fighter profile here.

Alistair Overeem

Alistair Overeem may not command the same type of salary as McGregor, but his consistency and dedication have paid off. His debut against Brock Lesnar earned him just under $400,000, and he’s had 16 more fights since then.

His last six fights have earned him more than half of his total UFC career salary. At the moment, Overeem receives around $800,000 – well above the average UFC fighters salaries.

Khabib Nurmagomedov

Khabib Nurmagomedov has been a UFC staple since 2012, where he made his debut against Kamal Shalorus. He’s been a regular contender ever since, as the current UFC Lightweight Champion. His earnings started to take off in 2019, where his last two fights earned him just over $6 million, bringing his total to $8.3 million at the beginning of 2020.

His controversial post-fight brawl with McGregor’s team at UFC 229 led to a fine of $500,000, which barely put a dent in his earnings for the fight.

His controversial post-fight brawl with McGregor’s team at UFC 229 led to a fine of $500,000, which barely put a dent in his earnings for the fight. As Nurmagomedov continues to be popular with the crowds and the hint of a McGregor rematch on the cards, 2020 looks like a promising year for this rising star.

Anderson Silva

Anderson Silva may be near the end of his career, but he should be very proud of his $8.1 million earnings. He started earning six-figure paychecks from his fourth fight onwards and peaked at $820,000 against Brunson at UFC 208.

Michael Bisping

Michael Bisping fought 29 UFC fights, earning him a total of $7.1 million. He only started making six-figure salaries after his ninth fight, where Dan Henderson knocked him out. Bisping went on to secure the Middleweight Title and made his biggest payday at UFC 217 against Georges St-Pierre.

GSP

Georges St-Pierre has had a long and storied history with the UFC, starting as a young fighter in 2004. He’s held numerous titles and earned $2,580,000 in his comeback fight against Bisping. He ended his career soon after, netting $7 million in total during his career at the UFC.

Jon Jones

Despite being the fighter with the most title-fight UFC victories (including wins over the likes of Daniel Cormier, Alexander Gustafsson, Lyoto Machida, and Rampage Jackson), Jon Jones tends to earn less than more popular fighters like Nurmagomedov and McGregor. He’s earned $7 million to date, with plenty of fights still left in the tank. Jones tends to get between $580,000 and $590,000 every fight, and at 32 years old, his earning potential is huge.

Mark Hunt

Mark Hunt got on the UFC radar after his exciting fight with Brock Lesnar at UFC 200. Since then, he’s had five fights, each earning him over $700,000 per fight. He’s starting to command higher salaries, with his latest fight against Lewis netting him $810,000, bringing his total earnings to $6.3 million to date.

Donald Cerrone

Donald Cerrone has fought 34 times in the UFC and has signed a contract for at least six more fights in the future. The fight that contributed almost a third of his total earnings was at UFC 246, against McGregor. He lost within 40 seconds but earned $2,200,000 for the privilege.

Junior dos Santos

Junior dos Santos is a consistent fighter, which is reflected in his steady salary. Out of 21 fights, 16 have paid out a six-figure amount, earning him just under $6 million to date. His biggest pay-out came against Stipe Miocic at UFC 211, where he earned $830,000.

The Highest Paid Fights in UFC

Unsurprisingly, McGregor features prominently in some of the highest-paid fights in UFC history, including:

• McGregor vs. Diaz UFC 202: McGregor took home $3,090,000 after the fight, Diaz took home $2,070,000
• McGregor vs. Alvarez UFC 205: McGregor took home $3,090,000, Alvarez took home $1 million
• McGregor vs. Nurmagomedov UFC 229: McGregor took home $3 million, Nurmagomedov took $2 million before the ensuing fines.
• McGregor vs. Cerrone UFC 246: McGregor took home $3 million, Cerrone took home $200,000
• McGregor vs. Diaz UFC 202: McGregor took home $3,090,000 after the fight, Diaz took home $2,070,000
• McGregor vs. Alvarez UFC 205: McGregor took home $3,090,000, Alvarez took home $1 million
• McGregor vs. Nurmagomedov UFC 229: McGregor took home $3 million, Nurmagomedov took $2 million before the ensuing fines.
• McGregor vs. Cerrone UFC 246: McGregor took home $3 million, Cerrone took home $200,000

Other high-paying fights include:

• Rousey vs. Nunes UFC 207: Rousey took home $3 million, Nunes got $100,000
• Lesnar vs. Hunt UFC 200: Lesnar took home $2.5 million, the highest-ever purse at the time, while Hunt took home $700,000.

Other high-paying fights include:

• Rousey vs. Nunes UFC 207: Rousey took home $3 million, Nunes got $100,000
• Lesnar vs. Hunt UFC 200: Lesnar took home $2.5 million, the highest-ever purse at the time, while Hunt took home $700,000.

Final Whistle

While it would be nice to have a solid answer to the question, ‘how much do UFC fighters make?’, the answer is a lot more complicated than you’d think. While several prominent fighters have made millions in UFC salaries alone, several factors complicate things even further.

Like many other athletes, UFC fighters make much of their money outside of their official UFC salary. The bigger the name, the bigger the endorsement deals, and the more likely they’ll get sky-high salaries per fight. There are also performance bonuses, pay-per-view earnings, and off-book payments that muddy the water even further.

According to the MMA Manifesto, the average UFC fighter made $146,673 in 2019, with 37% making six-figure incomes from salary and bonus pay-outs alone (5).

However, over a third of UFC fighters don’t even make the American national average in terms of income. Travel fees, training costs, and staff payments can quickly eat into any post-fight earnings.

While it’s unreasonable to expect every fighter to earn McGregor levels of money, the UFC is still far behind other sports leagues when it comes to ensuring fair compensation for all their athletes, regardless of experience and ranking.

Sources

1. https://thesportsdaily.com/2019/12/30/2019-ufc-fighter-salaries-complete-list-fox11/
2. https://www.bloodyelbow.com/2016/9/29/13040024/ufc-fighter-pay-union-association
3. https://www.sportscasting.com/a-breakdown-of-how-ufc-fighters-get-paid/
4. https://www.reddit.com/r/MMA/comments/9wnt9u/israel_adesanya_and_dan_hooker_discuss_ufc/
5. https://thesportsdaily.com/2019/12/30/2019-ufc-fighter-salaries-complete-list-fox11/

Brandon Ruiz

Hi, I’m Brandon, editor here at MMA-Today. Mixed Martial Arts has been my life long obsession as long as I can remember. I was introduced to Muay Thai at a young age, but ultimately fell in love with BJJ and grappling in my teenage years, and have never looked back. My goal with MMA today is to inspire people to train and enjoy mixed martial arts more every day.

Looking to get your best foot forward and dive into a new obsession with martial arts? Brazilian jiu-jitsu is fast-becoming the go-to martial art for those who are looking to find a fun, versatile, and rewarding experience to slot into their weekly lives.

BJJ is all about the journey and with that in mind, through this guide, we’re going to take you through some the greatest jiu-jitsu academies on the planet. Though BJJ can be learned in most cities these days, if you are truly serious about making progress within the sport, learning from the elite of the elite at a top-class jiu-jitsu academy is a perfect combination.

Pricings will, of course, vary based on your requirements and the level of training you pursue, but all in all, a good idea of what you should expect week-by-week can be achieved through some quick research.

To make things easier for you in your pursuit of the best BJJ training available, we’ve compiled this guide in order to truly give you an idea of what to expect when you’re attempting to take that first step and learn BJJ.

Related: Everything You Need To Know About Khabib Nurmagomedov

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Gyms Near Me

Chances are that if you’re living in a major city, you are within close proximity to a number of martial arts gyms – leaving you one quick Google search away from getting some grasp of what your options are.

The real question a lot of you will have is ‘are there any elite level schools of Brazilian jiu-jitsu near me – training that is overseen by reputable instructors and world champion coaches that can offer insight into this diverse and ever-evolving sport? In short, chances are that you’ll be within range of a fantastic place to learn BJJ – especially if you’re living in places like the United States, Brazil, or Canada.

If you are hoping to take a dive into the world of BJJ, keeping a BJJ training journal can be an excellent way to maintain a healthy pressure on yourself week-to-week.

Despite the sport originating in Brazil, it has quickly expanded to fill every corner of the earth! With that out of the way, we hope you enjoy our detailed guide to the best jiu-jitsu schools (1).

Best BJJ Schools in America

Renzo Gracie Academy, New York

Located in the heart of New York City, this esteemed academy offers training in muay thai, wrestling, and BJJ for all levels. Named after its famous Brazilian founder, Renzo Gracie (grandson of Gracie jiu-jitsu founder Carlos), it was created with a special emphasis set around mixed martial arts training. The academy has now evolved into one of the best places on planet earth for no-gi jiu-jitsu with a large part of its success being owed to coach John Danaher.

His innovative and advanced teaching has created a reputation for exciting and effective jiu-jitsu. With a heavy emphasis placed on leg-locking systems, Danaher’s talents have been enlisted by everyone from world champion jiu-jitsu artists to legendary UFC champions such as Georges St-Pierre. Simply put, training here is a must for any no-gi enthusiast.

The school is home to world-renowned BJJ competitors such as Gordon Ryan and Garry Tonon along with a very talented professional team known as the Danaher Death Squad (2). The academy is not only known for its no-gi training but also its gi classes led by several members of the Gracie family such as Robson, Neiman, Rolles & Igor. The facilities and location helping in making this the perfect environment to learn self-defense or make a move towards the competitive circuit – if that’s what you are hoping to do.

ATOS Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, San Diego

Andre Galvao is one of the greatest grapplers in BJJ history with multiple world titles to his name in gi and no-gi. His reputation for being a top-level competitor has helped him to grow a successful school in California, a school that has once again been recently expanded.

Training at ATOS is as high level as it you could ever hope for with many great names such as Keenan Cornelius, JT Torres, and Kaynan Duarte standing as some of the major grappling names that were given their black belts by Galvao. ATOS is famed for its intense training camps leading into major events, which aren’t for the faint-hearted.

Within their ranks are current top-tier talents such as the Brazilian fighters, Ronaldo Junior and Lucas Barbosa, and the American Josh Hinger – who also coaches at the academy. ATOS’ pedigree as a top team in jiu-jitsu is shown by their dominance in team standings and especially at IBJJF worlds where they have multiple titles to their name. By the looks of things, their progress does not appear to be slowing so expect to see their name in and around the top levels for the foreseeable future.

Marcelo Garcia Jiu-Jitsu, New York

A short walk from the Renzo Gracie Academy in Manhattan, you are going to find another top tier academy with a world-renowned reputation. Marcelo Garcia’s academy has been on most BJJ bucket lists for years now, simply down to Marcelo’s own success on the mats and his submission heavy style. Marcelo has top competitors at the academy like Matheus Diniz who won his division at the 2019 ADCC.

Training is offered for all levels in gi and no-gi with renowned coaches such as Paul Schreiner and previously Bernardo Faria. Marcelo also had one of the first online training subscription services, which to this day remains one of the best for its depth of technical content. Anyone who knows anything about BJJ will tell you exactly how skilled and revered a practitioner Garcia has been over the years and as you would expect, his gym does a good job at living up to that lofty reputation.

AOJ, Costa Mesa

California is a hotbed for BJJ training and home to possibly one of the coolest gyms on the planet. Its distinctive white mats and bespoke artwork are recognisable to most jiu-jitsu practitioners. The head instructors are two of the greatest competitors in history, the Mendes brothers, Rafa and Gui. Each man has both won multiple world titles and after a glittering career, are now retired from competition after winning nearly every honour possible.

Their gym has a dedicated kids program and as you would expect, the level of the younger fighters who are breaking through speaks volumes when you watch their readily-available highlight videos. The AOJ kids squad is widely regarded as the best team in youth BJJ, with them regularly topping the team podium at events (3). The adult squad is now beginning to look impressive with a typically Mendes brother style of jiu-jitsu being shown.

Fighters such as Tainan Dalpra are starting to look unstoppable in a similar way to a prime Rafa Mendes during his heyday in the sport. Tainan recently won the 2020 Gi Europeans at brown-belt with an impressive run in which he was rarely troubled and most dominant. AOJ also has a youth program which is similar to a scholarship for talented athletes with the potential to develop into world champions.

What is the best BJJ school?

The best schools are ATOS Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in San Diego, AOJ in Costa Mesa, Marcelo Garcia Jiu-Jitsu in New York and Renzo Gracie Academy in New York. There are some absolute killers currently coming from these schools.

Best BJJ Gym in Australia

Absolute MMA St Kilda, Melbourne

Lachlan Giles is the head instructor of this martial arts academy in Australia. As the name suggests, the academy offers all aspects of training in muay thai, wrestling, BJJ, and mixed martial arts. There are three different locations to choose from in Australia, however, St Kilda is the gym of Lachlan. In the 2019 ADCC Lachlan showed to be one of the best leg lockers in the game. After losing out in his division he went on to submit three giants in the absolute division – with each all via heel hook to claim a bronze medal (4). The gym’s YouTube channel is regularly updated with technique videos that are free to view and are often filmed in class. These videos can give you a taste of the level of instruction and quality of jiu-jitsu training you will receive. Lachlan is known for his innovative style both in the gi and no-gi and now has a crop of talented athletes creeping through to into the regional competition scene.

Best Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Schools in Europe

Frontline Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Oslo

Scandinavia is a hotbed of grappling talent with numerous great places to train in Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Norway. The head instructor of the academy is Brazilian, Eduardo ‘Teta’ Rios – who is a 4th-degree BJJ black belt under the famed Ricardo Liborio. ‘Teta’ is a six-time European champion, ADCC veteran, and has competed at Polaris among other major competitions. His history of high-level competition has filtered through into his students and they now boast a large competition squad that seemed destined to begin regularly winning tournaments within Europe. Standout fighters from the gym include black belt Sebastian Broche and brown belt Tarik Hopstock – known for his foot locks and self-named ‘Tarikoplata’ submission (5). It would be difficult to look past this gym as being one of the best training environments in Europe.

Related: The Best BJJ Concepts & Techniques.

East Coast Jiu-Jitsu Academy, Dublin

Irelands has a thriving jiu-jitsu scene and thanks in part to one of its largest BJJ academies – which has been growing for years. Head instructor Darragh O’Conaill was given the chance as a purple belt to lead his gym back in 2010 when his coach retired through injury. He soon affiliated with Ribeiro Jiu-Jitsu and took regular training trips to San Diego to earn his black belt and further his jiu-jitsu skills. Darragh received his black belt in 2015 and of all of his accomplishments, his biggest win to date was the 2018 European No Gi champion. He regularly competes to this day alongside the members of his growing academy – with everyone from kids & teens through to adults and a talented female squad led by the surging Welsh grappler Ffion Daves. The strong competition-focused training has seen the academy win multiple Irish championships and the first IBJJF Dublin open team title in 2019. Their dominance is clear and they were recognised on the world scene as a key gym when Flo Grappling visited for the 2018 worlds camp (6). Their team of competitors has been developed by Darragh and is seeing their first wave of black belts come through to compete on the European scene. East Coast now has Irish affiliate gyms and in England, and all things considered, they are a true martial art success story.

Hopefully, this guide has proven useful to you in your quest to answer the question ‘are there gyms that teach BJJ near me?’. Overall, diving into the world of Brazilian jiu-jitsu can be one of the most rewarding experiences any person can have so we hope that you can find the perfect fit for you and begin down this long and exciting path.

Happy training!

Sources

1. https://www.graciemag.com/en/the-saga-of-jiu-jitsu/
2. https://bjjfanatics.com/blogs/news/the-rise-of-the-danaher-death-squad
3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWAz8FcFkL8
4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Okd0uy0ghEw
5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUkb5zpNv44
6. https://p-upload.facebook.com/FloGrappling/videos/2364224626924601/?hc_ref=ARTY_B0OOtma5-bJ5PzbjtSYy2ZMpZa0uBNr1BNWqjM_1Pnv7hm7NPhULUUO18TKv2k

Brandon Ruiz

Hi, I’m Brandon, editor here at MMA-Today. Mixed Martial Arts has been my life long obsession as long as I can remember. I was introduced to Muay Thai at a young age, but ultimately fell in love with BJJ and grappling in my teenage years, and have never looked back. My goal with MMA today is to inspire people to train and enjoy mixed martial arts more every day.

Who is the best MMA fighter of all time? Well, how long is a piece of string? a popular question, but not as simple as throwing out a name. Everyone has their favorites for the MMA G.O.A.T (Greatest Of All Time) – read our list to see if you agree with our picks for the the most successful MMA fighters of the 21st century.

The Anatomy of an MMA G.O.A.T

It would be foolish to look at UFC fighter career earnings in determining who the greatest fighters are. Earnings have no relation to their skills; but are more a sign of their entertainment value. Therefore, we’ll look at some other indicators.

To make the subjective relatively objective, we’re going to break down our rankings into the following criteria:

Why You Don’t like Them

Let’s just get this one out of the way. We MMA fans are a fickle bunch, and we all have our prejudices against certain fighters.  So while this particular measure does not affect their ranking, we think it’s important to address that little bit of bias that may affect our judgement.  Remember, we’re talking about them as an MMA fighter, not your favorite lunch lady.

Domination

It’s one thing to get to the top of professional MMA, it’s another thing to stay there, and look unbeatable the whole time. We look at both their wins, defences, and the manner in which they won. Ranked on a scale of 1-10.

Quality of Competition

There are some arguments to be made that certain divisions and eras of professional MMA faced different levels of competition, which is completely fair. We rank the toughness of their opposition on a scale of 1-10.

Impact on the Sport

MMA has not always been a favorite conversation at PTA meetings. It was long thought of to be underground and barbaric. Which is cool.

But some fighters had such a huge effect on the sport of MMA, that they not only electrified the fan base, but the mainstream public at large. Take that Karen, it’s a real sport.

Their impact on the sport is judged on a scale of 1-10. Their overall ranking will be the total of those scores out of a possible 30.  We went over the rules, we want a clean fight, touch gloves if you want to. Or not.

Bonus Wildcard: Khabib Nurmagomedov – ‘The Eagle’

• Name: Khabib Nurmagomedov, Хабиб Нурмагомедов
• Weight Class: Lightweight 
• Height: 5’10” (178cm) | Reach: 70.0″ (178cm)
• Age: 30 | Date of Birth: 1988.09.20
• Pro MMA Record: 28-0-0 (Win-Loss-Draw)
• Current Streak: 28 Wins
• Last Fight: September 07, 2019 in UFC
• Team: American Kickboxing Academy
• Born: Makhachkala, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
• Fighting out of: San Jose, California

Disclaimer: Hey, we’re not saying he’s actually the number six GOAT just yet. But he does have a real case to be a wildcard entry on this list. Have a look for yourself and let us know what you think. 

Why You Don’t like Him: “He jumped the cage to smesh some guys, and he wears a funny hat that I don’t understand”

Domination (10/10)

Look, he’s never lost a fight.  28 mixed martial arts fights, in which he has only lost one round to Conor McGregor (trigger warning, he isn’t on this list). And we know it’s hard to just plonk him on the GOAT list given that he’s only defended his belt twice, but the dominant nature of his wins cannot be argued with.

In fact, it’s probably this criteria alone that gets Khabib Nurmagomedov this mention.  He just straight up tells you he’ll break your arm if you don’t give him your lunch money, and so then you just give him your lunch money.

“He would have been like 95 kilos [209lbs] – like light-heavyweight size – and he was wrestling Luke Rockhold and just out-muscling him, just holding him down.” (1)

– UFC Lightweight, Dan Hooker.

If an angry pitbull and an anaconda had a Dagestani baby, that’s Khabib. 

Quality of Competition 5/10

Okay, okay, he falls back a bit here.  His four wins to the belt were Darrell Horcher, Michael Johnson, Edson Barboza, and Al Iaquinta. Great fighters, sure, but not exactly titans of the sport. And yes, he did of course demolish McGregor and Poirer, so there is that.

The fight everyone wants to see is the fabled but cursed Tony Ferguson matchup – once we see that, we’ll have a much better idea of his consistent ability over high level competition.  After that, he would be at the very least, lightweight GOAT.

Impact on the Sport 5/10

His fighting style is somehow both exciting and predictable, so your opinion on him depends on the kind of MMA fan you are.  On the one hand, he’s ruthlessly efficient, and on the other hand you know exactly what he’ll do.  And when he’s not leaping out of cages to pummel Dillon Danis, he’s cool, calm, and doesn’t talk trash — and that doesn’t really play too well with a western audience.

It should be noted of course he has a huge Muslim following, and his UFC 242 victory was viewed 26 million times in Russia (1). That sort of global reach can’t be ignored.

“My best background is, like, smash opponents. I all the time go forward. I all the time try to take down somebody. Make him give up. This is my style, you know. This is what I do all my life.”

– Khabib Nurmagomedov

Total GOAT Score 20/30

5. Fedor Emelianenko – ‘The Last Emperor’

• Name: Фёдор Влади́мирович Емелья́ненко
• Weight Class: Heavyweight
• Height: 6’0″ (183cm) | Reach: 74.5″ (189cm)
• Age: 42 | Date of Birth: 1976.09.28
• Pro MMA Record: 38-6-0, 1 NC (Win-Loss-Draw)
• Current Streak: 1 Loss
• Last Fight: January 26, 2019 in Bellator
• Team: Alexander Nevsky (Stary Oskol)
• Born: Rubizhne, Luhansk, Ukrainian SSR
• Fighting out of: Stary Oskol, Belgorod, Russia

Why You Don’t like Him – “He looks like my Janitor’s Dad, and I never saw him fight in his prime.”

Domination (9/10)

The man with the 27 fight win streak in the heavyweight division. Fedor Emelianenko was the titan of mixed martial arts for a very, very long time. He steamrolled the world’s best during the wild west era of MMA, and did it all with the calmness of an opium dazed zen monk. There really isn’t much more to say about the legend that was Fedor’s prime. 

Quality of Competition (6/10)

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic, and Andrei Arlovski are all notable victims of The Last Emperor. But much of his reign was spent in Pride when top heavyweight competition were fighting over in the UFC. Not to mention, Pride was pretty well known for not letting a can crushing get in the way of a good spanking.

Impact on the Sport (6/10)

Pride never dies, as they say, and Fedor deserves to be up there with Kazushi Sakuraba and Royce Gracie as one of the OGs of MMA.  The only thing holding him back here, is his lack of competition in the UFC. His long reign of calm destruction will keep him in the MMA history books of legendary fighters for a long time to come.

“A strong person will not be nervous and not express aggression towards his opponent… he will face the fight calm and balanced.”

– Fedor Emelianenko

Total GOAT Score (21/30)

4. Anderson Silva – ‘The Spider’

• Name: Anderson da Silva
• Weight Class: Middleweight, Light Heavyweight
• Height: 6’2″ (188cm) | Reach: 77.5″ (195cm)
• Age: 44 | Date of Birth: 1975.04.14
• Pro MMA Record: 34-10-0, 1 NC (Win-Loss-Draw)
• Current Streak: 2 Losses
• Last Fight: May 11, 2019 in UFC
• Team: Team Nogueira
• Born: São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
• Fighting out of: Curitiba, Parana, Brazil

Why You Don’t like Him – “He toyed with my favorite fighters like a kitten plays with yarn.” 

Domination (7/10)

Yes, he’s lost six out of his last seven. That definitely affects things. It would be alot higher if not for his latest fights.  But there was a time that Anderson Silva looked simply untouchable. For 16 fights in a row (the longest in UFC history), he saw the puzzle, solved the puzzle, and then scattered the pieces across the octagon. You can read his full fighter profile here.

His iconic and stunningly casual knockout of Ultimate Fighter winner Forrest Griffin is required viewing for all fans of the Matrix. 

Quality of Competition (8/10)

Rich Franklin, Dan Henderson, Chael Sonnen, and even TRT Vitor Belfort all fell into the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt’s web. Each fight he had during his reign was against a legit contender. Each time we thought, maybe this is the time Anderson loses. For 16 fights in a row, we were wrong.

Impact on the Sport (7/10)

Anyone who saw Anderson walk into the Octagon for the first time was most likely wondering how this relatively average looking man would get out of there alive, let alone win. And then you saw his reading of the game, which in a word, was flawless.

“And in my opinion, he’s the greatest mixed martial artist ever. Ever, period.”

– Dana White, UFC President

During his prime, it was hard to argue he wasn’t the best fighter in MMA history, or at least UFC history.  It really was a sight to behold, and his genuine mystery no doubt bought a lot of new fans to the sport of mixed martial arts.

“I don’t think I’m better than anyone; I just like to prove to myself that things I imagine can be done.”

– Anderson Silva

Total GOAT Score (22/30)

3. Daniel Cormier – ‘DC’

• Name: Daniel Cormier
• Weight Class: Light Heavyweight/Heavyweight
• Height: 5’11” (181cm) | Reach: 72.5″ (184cm)
• Age: 40 | Date of Birth: 1979.03.20
• Pro MMA Record: 22-2-0, 1 NC (Win-Loss-Draw)
• Current Streak: 1 Loss
• Last Fight: August 17, 2019 in UFC
• Team: American Kickboxing Academy
• Born: Lafayette, Louisiana, United States

Why You Don’t like Him – “He cried once. Loser!” 

Domination (8/10)

Pretty, pretty good. Losing only to Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic, DC has been both Light Heavyweight and Heavyweight Division UFC Champion. Coming from an elite wrestling background, DC missed out on his dream of Olympic gold, so moved to MMA at the ripe age of 30. From there he just grinded people into mince, with constant pressure and unrivalled wrestling. 

He even picked up some very nice dirty boxing along the way, which the likes of Stipe can tell you works rather effectively. The fact that his dreams of Olympic glory were crushed, only to come back to be a two division UFC champ, tells you all you need to know about DC’s competitive spirit.

Related: how much do professional boxers make?

Quality of Competition (8/10)

Josh Barnett, Frank Mir, Roy Nelson, as well as a juicy Bigfoot Silva all fell into DC’s meat grinder. And that was before he even went down to Light Heavyweight. He beat a prime Alexander Gustafsson once, and a supremely scary Anthony Johnson, twice.  And of course one loss and one no contest to Jon Jones rounded off the competition. 

Cormier had a hard road, starting MMA late in life, but his competitive nature took him to the top.

Impact on the Sport (7/10)

People slept on DC for a long time, despite him milling through two divisions to take both the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship, and the UFC Heavyweight Championship. He was even vilified as fans tended to side with Jon Jones during their ugly rivalry. But as time went on (along with more camera time for commentary duties), fans picked up on DC’s attitude and sincerity, and began to warm to him.

“Daniel Cormier is a great fighter, a great champion and a great person. He does anything you ask of him. He’s an amazing ambassador for our sport.”

– Dana White, UFC President.

Whether he returns for the Miocic trilogy or not, his legacy will continue with his contributions as Head Wrestling Coach at Gilroy High School, as well as in the commentary box.

“If I would have won that Olympic gold medal, I would have gotten a job somewhere coaching at a university, and I would be totally content with my life.”

– Daniel Cormier

Total GOAT Score (23/30)

2. Jon Jones – ‘Bones’

• Name: Jonathan Dwight Jones
• Weight Class: Light Heavyweight
• Height: 6’4″ (194cm) | Reach: 84.5″ (215cm)
• Age: 32 | Date of Birth: 1987.07.19
• Pro MMA Record: 26-1-0, 1 NC (Win-Loss-Draw)
• Current Streak: 17 Wins
• Team: Jackson Wink MMA
• Born: Rochester, New York, United States
• Fighting out of: Albuquerque, New Mexico

Why You Don’t like Him – “Enjoys walks on the beach, and hitting pregnant women with his car.”  

Domination (9/10)

With the exception of Khabib Nurmagomedov, noone on this list has dominated their division quite like Jon Bones Jones. The only loss he has wasn’t even a loss, as he was disqualified for the loony rule of downwards elbows against Matt Hamill.

Since then he has been on a devastating fight win streak. His keys to victory are his massive reach (equal only to 7 footer Stefan Struve)(2), and a huge arsenal of tools. Wrestling, striking, clinching, even Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, he has it all in spades. And Heavens to Betsy, if he gets his elbows on you, it’s cheese grating time.

Quality of Competition (7/10)

In a word, bananas. Jon Jones has all but cleaned out his division, with his most bitter enemy being his own demons. Famously beating Daniel Cormier after a weekend bender of cocaine and other goodies, he’s managed to dominate while seemingly only giving fighting part of his attention.

The only thing bringing him down here could be the relatively shallow division of Light Heavyweight.

Impact on the Sport (8/10)

Well, he’s a crowd puller. But he’s also constantly getting into serious trouble outside of the octagon. So put it this way. Dana White says Jone’s antics are unforgivable. But then he gets a slap on the wrist and he’s headlining for another UFC title ASAP. 

It’s undeniable that people want to see him fight, and he always puts on a show. But he doesn’t exactly give MMA a great name. In saying that, Bones has a lot of tread left on the tires, he may even go up to challenge for the UFC heavyweight championship, and will likely become THE GOAT in due time.

“I’m here to fight; I’m not here to protect whether you think I’m a good person or not. I’ve given up on that.”

– Jon Jones

Total GOAT Score (24/30)

Check out Jones’s full fighter profile here.

1. Georges St. Pierre “Rush”

• Name: George St. Pierre
• Weight Class: Welterweight/Middleweight
• Height: 5’11” (180cm) | Reach: 76.0″ (193cm)
• Age: 38 | Date of Birth: 1981.05.19
• Pro MMA Record: 26-2-0 (Win-Loss-Draw)
• Current Streak: 13 Wins
• Last Fight: November 04, 2017 in UFC
• Team: Tristar Gym
• Born: St. Isidore, Quebec, Canada
• Fighting out of: Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Why You Don’t like Him – “He’s prettier than me, and anyway, he’s just a wrestle humper.” 

Domination (9/10)

GSP was at the top of the welterweight mountain for six years as UFC champion. He defended the belt nine times. And he didn’t leave the sport because his skills were declining — he left on top, on his terms.

And then four years later, just to remove any of your silly doubts, GSP went up to middleweight and choked the belt off Michael Bisping, to get a UFC title in a second division. His style was dynamic but efficient, and was arguably one of the first to really put the science into the sport, with the help of his long-time coach Firas Zahabi.

The only (bad) argument you can make is that he was boring – relying too much on wrestling and winning decisions. But when you’ve cleaned out an entire division of elite fighters, I don’t think you can hate him for fighting smart.  He did exactly what he needed to do to win, and he won a lot.

Quality of Competition (9/10)

He only lost to two people. Matt Serra, for which he avenged. And Matt Hughes, who he finished in the second rounds of each of the two rematches. It’s worth noting Matt Hughes himself was very nearly on this list himself. 

Other than that, he cleaned out a division of muderer’s row. BJ Penn, Jon Fitch, Dan Hardy, Carlos Condit, and Johny Hendricks among them. I know we kind of see those fighters in a different light these days, but back then, they were straight up killers.

Impact on the Sport (9/10)

Back in the mid-2000s, when Affliction gear was somehow considered fashionable, and the average MMA fighter looked like Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz. Bad haircuts, worse behaviour, and unforgivable tattoos were a reflection of the “JUST BLEED” culture of the sport at the time.

And then you had this GSP guy starting to smash everyone. But he was polite, well spoken, and even gracious — he showed that you could pummel someone’s face into a bowl of spaghetti, but be humble and soft spoken afterwards. 

The most vicious he ever got with his trash talk was his infamous “I am not impressed by your performance”(3) line to Matt Hughes. Easy GSP, you might hurt a guy’s feelings.

He was a true gentleman of the sport and did a great deal to change the perception of MMA in the wider public. In terms of creating a mainstream face for MMA, he was invaluable to the sport.

“It’s not the most powerful animal that survives. It’s the most efficient.”

– Georges St. Pierre

Total GOAT Score (27/30)

And there you have it – the greatest MMA fighters of all time. Agree or disagree? Just want to leave an abusive comment? Go ahead – leave a comment below. For more MMA guides, visit our mixed martial arts hub here.

Related, fighter profiles:

• Conor Mcgregor – one of the highest paid UFC fighters
• Steven Struve – the tallest MMA fighter of all time
• John Gotti III – grandson of infamous, mob boss John Gotti
• Lyoto Machida – the ‘Dragon’

You can be sure all of the GOAT’s mentioned did their time to earn a black belt. Keep training and who knows, maybe you will too?

References:

1. (2019, September 9). Khabib’s UFC 242 victory viewed 26 million times in Russia as homeland stardom hits new heights – RT. Retrieved from https://www.rt.com/sport/468405-ufc-242-khabib-tv-views-instagram-fame-russia/
2. Homistek, H. (2012, August 1). Jon Jones: Is the Champion’s Reach an Unfair Advantage? – Bleacher Report. Retrieved from https://bleacherreport.com/articles/1304257-jon-jones-is-the-champions-reach-an-unfair-advantage
3. Murphy, D. (2017). Georges St-Pierre had the most polite response ever to Michael Bisping’s latest call-out – SportsJoe. Retrieved from https://www.sportsjoe.ie/mma/georges-st-pierre-had-the-most-polite-response-ever-to-michael-bispings-most-recent-call-out-100659

Brandon Ruiz

Hi, I’m Brandon, editor here at MMA-Today. Mixed Martial Arts has been my life long obsession as long as I can remember. I was introduced to Muay Thai at a young age, but ultimately fell in love with BJJ and grappling in my teenage years, and have never looked back. My goal with MMA today is to inspire people to train and enjoy mixed martial arts more every day.

Only two fighters get in the cage to battle in a fight, and as a result, mixed-martial-arts is often referred to as an individual sport. But, any serious fan or martial artist knows the sport’s top fighters typically come from the best MMA gyms and fight teams.

In other words, there’s a reason the phrase “iron sharpens iron” gets mentioned so often during MMA broadcasts. 

In order to become a great UFC fighter, you need to learn from knowledgeable and experienced coaches and train with world class MMA fighters. It’s not a coincidence legendary fighters like Georges St-Pierre, Jon Jones, Daniel Cormier and Khabib Nurmagomedov, among others, all train at some of the best MMA gyms on the planet. Many fighters have picked up their lives and travelled vast distances, even to a new country or continent, so they can train with a talented and famous fight team. 

So, whether you’re an aspiring or professional fighter, or a casual martial artist looking for elite, MMA classes, here are five of the best MMA gyms in the world that should be on your bucket list for training.

Best MMA Gyms in the USA

American Kickboxing Academy: best MMA school in California?

Any discussion regarding the top MMA gyms will inevitably include mention of the American Kickboxing Academy (AKA), which is located in San Jose, California. After all, AKA has produced several UFC champions and the pro-team has a reputation for intense, hard sparring and winning fights in multiple devisions. That said, the team is also known for having a family like bond. As a result, the bucket list trip for MMA training should unquestionably include AKA. 

AKA offers classes in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, no-gi jiu-jitsu, boxing, kickboxing and Muay Thai for beginners, casual martial artists as well as professional fighters. The facility is 27,000 square feet and features boxing rings, a hybrid cage room, over 50 heavy bags and extensive strength and conditioning equipment.

• Current or former notable MMA fighters: Daniel Cormier, Jon Fitch, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Luke Rockhold, Josh Thomson, Cain Velasquez.
• Coaches: Javier Mendez, Ron Keslar and Derek Yuen among others.

In an interview with BJ Penn.com (1), Mendez had this to say, while discussing how massive and successful AKA has become:

“A lot of it is luck. A lot of it is by design and DeWayne Zinkin and ‘Crazy’ Bob Cook bringing me top level wrestlers,”

Javier Mendez

American Top Team: best MMA gym in the world?

Another of the top MMA gyms in the United States and the world is American Top Team (ATT), which was founded by Dan Lambert. The team is so accomplished and famous that in addition to its home gym in Coconut Creek Florida, ATT has facilities in Atlanta, Indianapolis, Portland and Orlando, among many other cities. 

Over the years, ATT in Florida has been the base camp for world champions in various organizations, including the UFC, and the team continues to draw fighters from all over the world. As a result, many observers have argued the ATT roster is the deepest of any gym on the planet. 

ATT provides training in boxing, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, kickboxing, Thai boxing, submission grappling as well as MMA classes, and like AKA, there are sessions open to the general public. The Coconut Creek gym is a massive, 40,000 square feet facility that features extensive matted flooring, hybrid cage rooms, a cage as well as strength and conditioning equipment.

• Current or former notable MMA fighters: Amanda Nunes, Kyoji Horiguchi, Colby Covington, Jorge Masvidal, Tyron Woodley, Andre Arlovski, Joanna Jędrzejczyk, Dustin Poirier, Yoel Romero, Glover Teixeira, Gleison Tibau, Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal, and Robbie Lawler, among many others.
• Coaches: Mike Brown, Steve Mocco, Din Thomas, and Conan Silveira among others.

When Lambert spoke with Fighter Interviews (2), the ATT founder said the following, while talking about the awe-inspiring success of the gym.

“Just because you’re an accomplished amateur wrestler or a great MMA fighter, it doesn’t mean you can run a team. There’re so many different issues that come up…American Top Team certainly have a leg up on that because we’ve been doing it for so long. It takes time to learn your craft.”

Dan Lambert

Jackson – Wink MMA: another of the world’s best MMA camps

American Top Team attracts fighters from all over the world, but so does the renowned Jackson – Wink MMA gym in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Case in point, stars and legends like Georges St-Pierre and Alistair Overeem left their countries of Canada and the Netherlands respectively, to train at the famous facility. Like AKA and ATT, Jackson – Wink MMA has helped produce multiple world champions, and remains one of the sport’s powerhouse gyms.

Jackson – Wink MMA is a massive, state of the art facility with vast stretches of matted flooring, cages for training and sparring, heavy bags as well as a dorm for out of town fighters to live in. The gym offers classes in grappling, striking, wrestling, MMA training, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for amateur and pro-fighters, as well as the general public.

• Current or former notable MMA fighters: Jon Jones, Rashad Evans, Carlos Condit, Andrei Arlovski, Georges St-Pierre, Alistair Overeem, Holly Holm, Diego Sanchez, Donald Cerrone, and Cub Swanson, among many others.
• Coaches: Greg Jackson, Mike Winkeljohn, Brandon Gibson, Izzy Martinez among others

While talking about the immense success of the Albuquerque gym, Winkeljohn told BJ Penn.com (3) this:

“When Greg and I first started it we didn’t think the sport would blow up. We had Diego Sanchez on the first Ultimate Fighter show and then it blew up… Now we have people coming here from around the world who are flying here for training because we have trained everyone in Albuquerque.”

Mike Winkeljohn

Top MMA gyms outside the USA

Tristar: Canada’s most famous gym

Any bucket list that includes training camps around the world, should unquestionably include Montreal, Quebec’s Tristar gym. While the facility became best known through the accomplishments of the Canadian superstar St-Pierre, Tristar has created numerous elite fighters and has attracted world class competitors from all over the globe. During the gym’s tenure, Tristar head coach Firas Zahabi has established himself as one of the leading minds in the game.

The renowned facility is 13,500 square feet and features a boxing ring, an official, UFC sized Octagon, and a 20 foot boxing ring. Since the gym attracts fighters from all over the world, Tristar also has dorms for competitors to live in. The famous facility offers classes for the public as well as professionals in Thai boxing, Karate, boxing, kickboxing, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu with both gi and no-gi.

• Current or former notable MMA fighters: Georges St-Pierre, Rory MacDonald, David Loiseau, Denis Kang, Joe Duffy, Olivier Aubin – Mercier, Kenny Florian, Aiemann Zahabi, John Makdessi and more.
• Coaches: Firas Zahabi, Lentz-Edouard Lundy, Conrad Pla and more.

In an interview with the Montreal Gazzette (4), former UFC contender and Bellator champ MacDonald talks about the role of Zahabi’s committment and dedication in the gym’s success

“He’s a hard worker…always in the gym showing the guys what to do. And when he’s out of the gym, he’s studying, he’s learning. He’s one of a kind. It’s very hard to find a guy that dedicated and that talented at every single aspect of mixed martial arts.”

Rory MacDonald

Nova Uniao: Brazil’s greatest MMA team?

Any serious MMA fan or martial artist is well aware of the world renowned, Nova Uniao gym, which is located in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The facility deserves to be on any training bucket list because of the world class fighters it’s produced, via the legendary coaching of Andre Pederneiras. But, also because of its proximity to the city’s awe-inspiring beaches.

Nova Uniao has forged a reputation for providing excellent training in MMA, kickboxing as well as takedown defense. In addition, since Pederneiras is a Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under the legendary Carlson Gracie, and co-founder Wendell Alexander is also a decorated grappler, the team’s jiu-jitsu program is world-renowned. The Nova Uniao facility features a hexagon cage, extensive jiu-jitsu mats for rolling, as well as apartments for visiting, out-of-town fighters.

That’s one way to earn an amazing black belt.

• Current or former notable fighters: Jose Aldo, Renan Barao, Eduardo Dantas, Hacran Dias, Johnny Eduardo, Claudia Gadelha, Marlon Sandro, Kenny Florian Thales Leites, Jussier “Formiga” and others.
• Coaches: Andre Pederneiras, Wendell Alexander, Leonardo Santos

In an article the aforementioned Florian wrote for Fox Sports (5) about Nova Uniao, the former UFC contender had this to say about the highly regarded gym:

“They have produced countless champions, legends and winning coaches in BJJ. They are a close-knit team comprised of various schools all over Brazil and abroad. Andre Pederneiras and his co-founder Wendel Alexander have found great success serving as generals of what is now a global army of competitors.”

Kenny Florian

If you are going to be training at any of these top gyms you’ll need to bring your best MMA gear including your gym bag with MMA gloves and mouth guard. If you don’t have access to a gym near you to train at you can always d an MMA workout routine at home.

Honorable mentions

The gyms listed above should be on any bucket training list, but if you’re looking to add to that list and expand your traveling itinerary, here are some other world class facilities to consider.

• Alliance MMA  – San Diego, California 
  • Notable fighters: Dominick Cruz, Jeremy Stephens, Wilson Reis
• Allstars Training Center – Stockholm, Sweden
  • Notable fighters: Alexander Gustafsson, David Teymor, Ilir Latifi
• AMC Pankration – Kirkland, Washington
  • Notable fighters: Demetrious Johnson, Bibiano Fernandes, Tim Boetsch
• Elevation Fight Team – Denver, Colorado
  • Notable fighters: Alistair Overeem, Curtis Blaydes, Neil Magny
• Hard Knocks 365 – Fort Lauderdale, Florida
  • Notable fighters: Kamaru Usman, Michael Johnson, Volkan Oezdemir
• Kings MMA – Huntington Beach, California
  • Notable fighters: Fabricio Werdum, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Lyoto Machida
• Longo – Weidman MMA, Garden City, New York

Notable fighters: Chris Weidman, Aljamain Sterling, Al Iaquinta

• MMA Factory Paris – Paris France
  • Notable fighters: Francis Ngannou, Christian M’Pumbu, Ion Cutelaba
• Straight Blast Gym – Dublin, Ireland
  • Notable fighters: Conor McGregor, Artem Lobov, Gunnar Nelson
• Team Alpha Male – Sacramento California
  • Notable fighters: Urijah Faber, Cody Garbrandt, Andre Fili
• Team Nogueira – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
  • Notable fighters: Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Patricio Freire, Patricky Freire
• The MMA Lab – Phoenix, Arizona
  • Notable fighters: Benson Henderson, Jared Cannonier, Johnny Case
• Tiger Muay Thai – Phuket, Thailand
  • Notable fighters: Dan Hooker, Valentina Shevchenko, Zubaira Tukhugov
• Roufusport – Milwaukee, Wisconsin
  • Notable fighters: Tyron Woodley, Anthony Pettis, Sergio Pettis
• Xtreme Couture – Las Vegas, Nevada
  • Notable fighters: Uriah Hall, Kevin Lee, Brad Tavares

References:

1. Shelton, Cole, (2019, January 13). EXCLUSIVE | Coach Javier Mendez explains how AKA became one of the greatest gyms in MMA. Retrieved from https://www.bjpenn.com/mma-news/exclusive-interviews/exclusive-coach-javier-mendez-explains-how-aka-became-one-of-the-greatest-gyms-in-mma/
2. Fighter Interviews, (2019, February 3). Dan Lambert. Retrieved from http://www.fighterinterviews.com/en/interviews/2019/02/dan-lambert
3. Shelton, Cole, (2019, January 12), EXCLUSIVE | Mike Winkeljohn talks starting JacksonWink and becoming a top gym in MMA. Retrieved from https://www.bjpenn.com/mma-news/exclusive-interviews/exclusive-mike-winkeljohn-talks-starting-jacksonwink-and-becoming-a-top-gym-in-mma/
4. Cowan, Stu, (2016, June 2), Montreal’s Tristar Gym becomes MMA training mecca. Retrieved from https://montrealgazette.com/sports/stu-cowan-montreals-tristar-gym-becomes-mma-training-mecca
5. Florian, Kenny, (2014, February 3). The Success of Nova União’s Aldo and Barao. Retrieved from https://www.foxsports.com/vault/ufc/story/the-success-of-nova-uni-o-s-aldo-and-barao-020314

Brandon Ruiz

Hi, I’m Brandon, editor here at MMA-Today. Mixed Martial Arts has been my life long obsession as long as I can remember. I was introduced to Muay Thai at a young age, but ultimately fell in love with BJJ and grappling in my teenage years, and have never looked back. My goal with MMA today is to inspire people to train and enjoy mixed martial arts more every day.