#2. Sean Brady – 15-0 (5-0 in UFC)
While his grappling-heavy style and stoic personality have thus far meant that he’s avoided the spotlight somewhat, it’s safe to say that Sean Brady is one of the very best prospects in the welterweight division right now and should be considered a title contender.
Brady, who debuted in the UFC in October 2019, has already climbed up the rankings to No.9 and holds an MMA record of 15-0 with five of those wins coming inside the octagon.
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More importantly, the native of Philadelphia hasn’t simply been snacking on overmatched opponents. His debut came against a highly-experienced opponent in Court McGee, but Brady comfortably outpointed him. Most recently, he’s pulled off wins over Jake Matthews and a highly-touted contender in Michael Chiesa.
A no-nonsense fighter, Brady’s success stems from his powerful grappling. Despite not holding any amateur wrestling credentials to speak of, nobody’s really been able to stop his takedowns thus far. Once he’s got an opponent grounded, he’s an expert at both controlling them and advancing into a dominant position.
The big question mark around Brady is naturally how he’d do against an opponent who could prevent him from grounding them, but as nobody’s been able to do that thus far, he hasn’t really been tested in the octagon.
However, that may change if he can secure a bout with one of the fighters above him, someone like Stephen Thompson or Vicente Luque, for instance. So if he can remain unbeaten then, it’ll be hard to ever doubt him.
#1. Khamzat Chimaev – 11-0 (5-0 in UFC)
Naturally, the first name that comes to mind when discussing the unbeaten welterweights currently competing in the UFC is Khamzat Chimaev. It’s probably fair to argue that he’s taken the promotion by storm more than any fighter since Conor McGregor just under a decade ago.
Currently 11-0 in MMA with five of those wins coming in the octagon, ‘Borz’ has already ascended to the lofty heights of No.3 in the UFC rankings. It’s not out of the question that he could find himself fighting for the welterweight title in 2023.
The hype around Chimaev has not gone down one bit despite his struggles in his recent bout with Gilbert Burns. Sure, ‘Borz’ ate over a hundred significant strikes during the clash – the first he’d ever absorbed in his octagon career – and found himself hurt on more than one occasion, but overall, he did enough to outpoint the veteran.
When you consider the difference in experience between the two fighters – Burns has been with the UFC since 2014 and fought Kamaru Usman in a title bout in 2021 – it was hard not to be impressed by Chimaev’s performance.
Essentially, the Chechen-born Swede has an incredibly powerful wrestling game, brutal striking power, dangerous submissions, tons of confidence and, as we learned against Burns, a granite chin too.
Whether he can retain his unbeaten record as he inches closer to a title bout remains to be seen. Right now, it feels likely that ‘Borz’ will hold UFC gold at some point in the near future, justifying all of the hype that is currently around him.