5 ranked UFC fighters who you've probably never heard of

#4. Casey O’Neill – ranked #14 in the UFC flyweight division

Casey O'Neill is largely unknown for UFC fans, but she has serious talent.

The UFC women’s flyweight division is often considered one of the weakest the promotion has to offer. Thus it stands to reason that many of the fighters ranked in the top 15 right now aren’t exactly considered big stars. However, one such fighter whom UFC fans might not have heard of, but who is also extremely dangerous, is Casey O’Neill.

‘King Casey’ hails from Scotland, but grew up in Australia and now fights out of the famed Tiger Muay Thai gym. That has been home to more well-known UFC stars like Alexander Volkanovski, Dan Hooker and Brad Riddell.

Like those fighters, O’Neill has an impressive striking style, but if anything, she has become more well-known for her grappling in the octagon.

A member of the UFC’s roster since February 2021, O’Neill has already picked up three victories during this period. More impressively, all three wins have come via finish, with her most recent one being over Antonina Shevchenko, the sister of current UFC flyweight champion Valentina.

She is only ranked #14, and is largely unknown in the eyes of most casual fans of the promotion. However, some hardcore observers have already talked up O’Neill’s chances of earning a flyweight title shot in 2022. If ‘King Casey’ can achieve that, she certainly won’t be unknown for much longer.

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#3. Movsar Evloev - ranked #13 in the UFC featherweight division

Movsar Evloev is on a five-fight UFC winning streak.

It's difficult for any fighter to remain largely unknown in the UFC after putting together a five-fight winning streak. However, that's exactly what Movsar Evloev has done.

The native of Russia has entered the octagon on five occasions, and has never been beaten. That has helped him up to the #13 spot in the UFC's featherweight rankings. Nevertheless, he remains largely off the radar of the promotion's fans, particularly casuals. There are many reasons for that.

Firstly, none of Evloev's victories in the octagon, including those over Nik Lentz and Hakeem Dawodu, have come on the main card of a UFC event. Secondly - and probably more importantly - none of them have come via finish.

Evloev has fought conservatively during his UFC career thus far, largely using his powerful wrestling background to win his fights. That probably explains the promotion's reluctance to really push him.

However, there's no disputing his effectiveness in the octagon. The Russian averages four takedowns per fight, and it's rare his opponents can escape his grasp.

If he can begin to fight in a more exciting manner - preferably in his next fight with Ilia Topuria at UFC 270 - things could change. For now, though, he remains largely unknown for fans of the promotion.