Top 15 MMA Fighters Over Time Ranked by Elo (1980-2020)
41A ranking of the 15 MMA fighters over time from (1980-2020) based on elo.
Elo is a rating system used to rank chess players, that can be applied any sort of game where there is one winner and one loser. Basically, if you win a match, you gain rating based on the difference between your rating and your opponent's rating. If your opponent has a higher rating than you, you gain more rating.
This video is based on elo calculations made on data set of over 150k fighters and 300k fights. It includes fighters from all weight classes and divisions (including female divisions) and uses a standard chess elo formula to calculate ratings over time. This plot uses a starting rating of 1500 and then rating adjusts up or down over time based on wins, losses and draws.* Fights judged "No Contest" do not factor into the calculations.
The ratings in this plot should provide a relatively objective pound-for-pound ranking across divisions over time. One thing to keep in mind, however, is that fighters maintain their final elo rating after they retire. This means if a fighter retires at the top (like GSP) he will stay at a high ranking even if he is not active. Also note that ratings tend to inflate a bit over time as more fighters enter the fighter pool and more fights take place. One of the reasons the top female ratings aren't quite as high as the men is that their divisions haven't been around as long and there are fewer total female fighters, so there is less elo being generated for the top female fighters to hoard.
I made this plot because I am a long time MMA fan and also because there are some great fights coming up in the next few months among some top fighters:
At UFC 252, #8 Daniel Cormier will face #10 Stipe Miocic.
At UFC 254, #6 Khabib Nurmagomedov will face #11 Justin Gaethje.
Fighters Who Made #1:
Rickson Gracie
Kazuhiro Sakamoto
Kenji Kawaguchi
Yasuto Sekishima
Noboru Asahi
Naoki Sakurada
Ken Shamrock
Royce Gracie
Bas Rutten
Igor Vovchanchyn
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
Matt Hughes
Fedor Emelianenko
Anderson Silva
Georges St. Pierre
Jon Jones
Top 15 Peak Elos:
Jon Jones - 2471
Daniel Cormier - 2409
Max Holloway - 2393
Alexander Volkanovski - 2391
Georges St. Pierre - 2385
Tony Ferguson - 2384
Kamaru Usman - 2383
Ryan Bader - 2379
Khabib Nurmagomedov - 2375
Patricio Freire - 2368
Demetrious Johnson - 2360
Gegard Mousasi - 2354
Tyron Woodley - 2349
Fedor Emelianenko - 2342
Jose Aldo - 2340
Top Elo of Notable Female Fighters:
Amanda Nunes - 2196, Jun, 2020
Chris Cyborg - 2142, Jan, 2020
Joanna Jędrzejczyk - 2137, May, 2017
Rhonda Rousey - 2134, Aug, 2015
Valentina Shevchenko - 2112, Feb, 2020
Megumi Fujii - 2047, Sep, 2010
*Note: The elo calculation uses a k-factor of 100 to allow for greater point gains and losses than would be typical with a chess rating system due to the relative infrequency of fights in MMA. Also, note that the plot itself does not display fighters with fewer than 5 career fights.
#mma #ufc #ufc252
Tools Used:
R, movie maker, flourish.studio (https://flourish.studio/)
Music:
By PokéMixr92:
Attack On Titan S4 (Final Season) - Trailer Theme (Epic Cover by PokéMixr92) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OrvOaa5n9k
Dragon Ball FighterZ - Trunks' Theme (HQ Cover)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BO-zmcaTjFI
Dragon Ball Z Dokkan Battle - Angel Golden Freeza Theme (Epic Orchestral Cover) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GV-WaNN2mEE&t=8s
Dragon Ball Z Dokkan Battle - Ultra Instinct Goku Theme (HQ Epic Cover) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUwMNlJrPas
By GaMetal:
You Will Know Our Names (Xenoblade Chronicles) - GaMetal
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHRuqkUe-vQ