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Kamaru Usman has topped the UFC pound-for-pound rankings since September 2021. 'The Nigerian Nightmare' is on an incredible run of victories and it will take a monumental effort to overtake him on that list.
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The pound-for-pound rankings are an effort to pinpoint the very best fighter in the promotion, with weight classes taken out of the picture. Only a select few fighters have held the top position in these rankings and doing so is considered a massive achievement.
When Kamaru Usman reached the peak of this list he joined an exclusive club of fighters to have done so. The other men to achieve this are Anderson Silva, Jon Jones, Demetrious Johnson, Jose Aldo, Daniel Cormier and Khabib Nurmagomedov.
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This should indicate just how challenging it is to accomplish this goal. However there are a number of fighters who appear to be in a position to achieve it in 2022. In most cases, these stars will likely need a slip-up from Usman to overtake him in the rankings, unless they are to put together a truly historic 2022.
In any case, here are the 5 UFC fighters who have a chance at snatching the top spot away from Kamaru Usman in 2022:
#5. Charles Oliveria - UFC lightweight champion
Charles Oliveira had a sensational year in 2021, capturing the UFC lightweight title in May and successfully defending it in December. These wins over Michael Chandler and Dustin Poirier have seen the Brazilian climb to No.5 in the pound-for-pound rankings.
Given he is still a relatively new champion, Oliveira faces somewhat of an uphill struggle to claim the top spot in these rankings. The mixed results from early in his career also make it more difficult for 'Do Bronx' to overtake the promotion's elite, who do not have quite so many losses on their records.
If he is to become the No.1 pound-for-pound fighter, Oliveira must continue to rack up title defenses in one of the toughest weight divisions. Should 'Do Bronx' be able to pick up three wins next year and Usman and others above him in the rankings suffer losses, it's not unthinkable that Oliveira could claim the top spot for himself.
#4. Israel Adesanya - UFC middleweight champion
Israel Adesanya would likely already be top of the UFC pound-for-pound rankings had he won the light heavyweight championship back in March. Instead, he suffered his first career loss to Jan Blachowicz and now faces a more challenging task if he is to claim the No.1 spot.
However, this ability to fight in two different weight classes gives Adesanya a good chance of achieving this feat. Should 'The Last Stylebender' hang on to his middleweight championship throughout the duration of 2022 and be successful in a second attempt to win light heavyweight gold, he would have a very good case.
However, that is obviously much easier said than done. Adesanya would have to beat Robert Whittaker in February, then possibly defeat the winner of Jared Cannonier and Derek Brunson.
Adesanya would then need to move up a weight division and successfully capture the title. However, he failed at this goal when he last fought for the light heavyweight title.
#3. Francis Ngannou - UFC heavyweight champion
At this point in time, it's very difficult to try and predict what 2022 has in store for Francis Ngannou. 'The Predator' is on the last fight of his contract and will face Ciryl Gane in a heavyweight title unification fight on January 22nd.
Should Ngannou lose that fight his chances of becoming number one pound-for-pound would obviously disappear and who knows what would come next. Should 'The Predator' win, however, he would likely be in line for a massive payday which could lead to the UFC finally getting behind one of their biggest stars.
If Ngannou can win that bout and add a couple more title defenses throughout 2022 it may be tough to deny him the top spot, particularly if he continues to knock his opponents out cold, as he has been doing recently.
#2. Jon Jones - Former UFC light heavyweight champion
While Jon Jones is currently ranked sixth in theUFC pound-for-pound rankings, he has previously occupied the top spot on a number of occasions. If his long-awaited move up to heavyweight does materialize in 2022 and he is successful, Jones could easily find himself atop the list regardless of Usman's performances.
With that being said, Jon Jones has not fought since February 2020. Given his history of getting into trouble away from the cage, there's always the chance that his return to competition will not come this year. Additionally, it is very tricky to predict how he would fare against powerful heavyweights like Francis Ngannou.
Despite those factors, Jones' resume speaks for himself and no one has been able to get the better of him thus far in his career. If he does indeed return, it would be a brave man to bet against 'Bones' and a win would almost certainly see him return to the top of the pound-for-pound rankings.
#1. Alexander Volkanovski - UFC featherweight champion
Alexander Volkanovski is currently just one spot behind Kamaru Usman in the pound-for-pound rankings. This puts the Australian in a great position to overtake 'The Nigerian Nightmare' should he have any slip-ups in 2022.
As long as Volkanovski continues to rack up wins, as he has done recently with defenses over Max Holloway and Brian Ortega, the top spot would almost certainly fall to him after any Usman loss.
Volkanovski will undoubtedly face some tough tests in the meantime given the wealth of talent at featherweight. The champion also has a third fight with Max Holloway on the horizon. However, no one's been able to beat him in the UFC thus far, and the Australian could continue his incredible winning streak far beyond 2022 as well.
