5 most dominant wrestlers in the UFC right now
This weekend sees UFC 272 take place in Las Vegas. In the headline bout, one of the promotion’s most dominant wrestlers is in action, as Colby Covington faces Jorge Masvidal.
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Over the years, we’ve seen plenty of top-level wrestlers dominate their foes inside the UFC’s octagon. Right now, things are no different.
The promotion is currently home to a number of dominant wrestlers. Some even holding gold in their weight classes while others are looking likely to do that in the near future.
With that considered, here are the five most dominant wrestlers currently fighting in the octagon.
#5. Islam Makhachev – UFC lightweight contender
It’s arguable that prior to his retirement at the end of 2020, Khabib Nurmagomedov was the most dominant wrestler operating in the UFC. Since the retirement of ‘The Eagle’ though, another Dagestani lightweight has broken through and taken his mantle.
Islam Makhachev’s wrestling has not been quite as dominant as Khabib’s in the octagon just yet. This is largely because he hasn’t faced as many great opponents as Khabib did. However, it’s safe to say that as a takedown artist, he’s absolutely fantastic.
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Makhachev has averaged 3.41 takedowns per fight during his tenure with the promotion, which dates back to 2015. More to the point, he also has a takedown accuracy of 65%, which is higher than Khabib’s 48% accuracy.
In fact, Makhachev’s takedown accuracy is the 10th best in the promotion’s history. It makes him the most accurate takedown artist on the current roster.
More to the point, the Dagestani is not one-dimensional when it comes to his wrestling skills. He is capable of hitting double legs from the outside – as he did to Bobby Green in their recent bout – but also uses trips and throws from the clinch, like the high-octane toss he used to ground Leo Kuntz in his octagon debut.
Add in the fact that he’s only been taken down once in his entire career, and it’s safe to say that Makhachev is easily one of MMA's most dominant wrestlers right now.