Who Are The UFC Fighters On The Rise?

There are few things more exciting in professional sports than witnessing the rise of a star – and as the world’s leading Mixed Martial Arts promotion, the UFC has many athletes on its roster aiming to become the next Conor McGregor or Anderson Silva. 

Here are eight UFC fighters on the rise who look to be on the path to stardom, that you should back up if you are into sports betting.

Khamzat Chimaev

Every now and then a talent emerges that grabs everyone’s attention; a fighter who appears destined to one day join the greats of UFC past and present. For this generation, that fighter is Khamzat Chimaev, the Chechen-born Swedish welterweight who has wasted no time breaking records and solidifying himself as a superstar-in-waiting.

After cutting his teeth in Brave CF – where he racked up four wins inside the distance – Chimaev took his talent to the UFC and has since claimed another four stoppage wins. He also holds the record for fastest turnaround between UFC wins, his victories over John Phillips and Rhys McKee coming just 10 days apart … at different weights. 

Now ranked No 11 in the welterweight division, Chimaev faces the biggest test of his career so far when he takes on second-ranked Gilbert Burns at UFC 273 on Saturday. Win that fight and the 27-year-old will establish himself as one of the biggest stars in the UFC. Lose and the hype train could be derailed. 

Ian Garry

Another fighter aiming to give his burgeoning a profile a boost at UFC 273 is Ian Garry. The comparisons to Conor McGregor have already started, not least of all from Garry himself, and the Irishman, who calls himself ‘The Future’, has so far delivered inside the cage. 

Having claimed the Cage Warriors welterweight title, Garry impressed on his UFC debut at UFC 268, stopping Jordan Williams in the first round to extend his perfect professional record to eight fights.

The 24-year-old still has some way to go to emulate his idol McGregor but he can take that next step forward with another stylish win against Darian Weeks in Las Vegas. The future is bright for Garry.

Alex Pereira

Despite being 34 years old, Alex Pereira is a relative newcomer to MMA and joined the UFC in September last year. However, the Brazilian has some serious pedigree as a kickboxer and was a double champion at middleweight and light-heavyweight at Glory. Among his wins as a kickboxer was a knockout victory over current UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.

Pereira lost his first professional MMA bout while signed to Jungle Fight, but bounced back with five straight wins, the most recent two coming in the UFC including a stunning knockout on his debut against Andreas Michailidis.

The Brazilian is not yet ranked in the UFC but given his vast experience and impressive start at the promotion, it won’t be long until he starts climbing the rankings. 

Erin Blanchfield

The women’s flyweight division is stacked with talent, none more so than up-and-coming fighter Erin Blanchfield.

The 22-year-old American came through the ranks at the all-women Invicta FC, winning five of her six bouts, before debuting for the UFC with a points victory over Sarah Alpar in September last year.

Blanchfield followed that up with another victory, beating Miranda Maverick on points and breaking a women’s flyweight record of most takedowns in one fight (8). 

She has now cracked into the top 15 in the flyweight rankings and is expected to keep rising.

Paddy Pimblett

Already on the fast track to becoming a star in the UK, Paddy Pimblett has lit up the UFC since his move to the promotion last year. A standout for his infectious personality and unique hairstyle, ‘The Baddy’ has been backing up the hype with fine displays inside the octagon.

After establishing himself in Cage Warriors, Pimblett made his UFC debut with a first round KO win against Luigi Vendramini in September, before backing it up as the promotion made its return to London in March, stealing the show with another first round stoppage.

Given his already enormous popularity, we can expect UFC president Dana White to give Pimblett plenty of opportunities to become a star in the lightweight division.

Muhammad Mokaev

One of the UFC’s youngest fighters, 21-year-old Muhammad Mokaev signed with the promotion last year after amassing a perfect record at Brave CF of seven wins and one no contest.

Mokaev, who arrived in the UK from Dagestan as a refugee at the age of 12, delivered a stunning performance on his UFC debut in front of his home crowd in March, submitting Cody Durden in the first round.

The flyweight, who goes by the moniker ‘The Punisher’, is already creating a large amount of hype and will surely be ranked in the division in the not too distant future.