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UFC 261, which is scheduled to take place on April 25, will see two women's championship fights.
While UFC flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko will defend her title against Jessica Andrade, Weili Zhang takes on Rose Namajunas in a mouthwatering strawweight title bout.
Where do Shevchenko and Zhang rank among the most dominant female fighters in the UFC right now? In this article, we take a look.
#5 Mackenzie Dern (UFC Record: 6-1)
Only 7 fights into her UFC career, Mackenzie Dern is on the cusp of a strawweight title shot after a commanding win over Nina Nunes at UFC Vegas 23 earlier this month.
The 28-year-old, whose grappling credentials have never been in question, appears to have greatly improved in the striking department over the last year or so. There's no doubting that if Dern's able to secure takedowns, she'll overpower her opponent on the mat. And that's what makes her one of the most dominant female fighters in the UFC at the moment.
On a 4-fight win streak since her only professional loss to Amanda Ribas, Dern has 7 submission wins under her belt and 4 in the UFC. She arguably presents the biggest threat to Zhang in the strawweight division.
#4 Yan Xiaonan (UFC Record: 6-0)
Yan Xiaonan might not find herself in the spotlight as other fighters who are unbeaten across their last 11 fights would, perhaps due to the lack of finishes on her resume. But there's no doubting that the Chinese strawweight is right up there with the most dominant female fighters in the UFC.
With 6 wins under her belt in the promotion, all by way of unanimous decision, Xiaonan has carved a niche for herself as a smart, measured fighter who gets the job done. 'Fury' dominated Karolina Kowalkiewicz in February 2020 before coasting to a comfortable win over Claudia Gadelha, and is probably one statement win away from seriously contending for the strawweight title.
Xiaonan is scheduled to face Carla Esparza in May.
#3 Valentina Shevchenko (UFC Record: 9-2)
Apart from her two losses - the second of which was highly controversial - to Amanda Nunes, flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko has been next to impossible to stop in the UFC.
Shevchenko is currently on a 6-fight win streak, and has left a trail of destruction in her wake with wins over Joanna Jedrzejczyk, Jennifer Maia and Liz Carmouche among others. Her technique and skill are rivaled by none in the UFC women's divisions, leading to calls for a trilogy fight against Nunes, although both fights ended with 'The Lioness' getting her hand raised.
'Bullet' has the chance to further her legacy against Andrade next week.
#2 Weili Zhang (UFC Record: 5-0)
After suffering a loss in her first professional MMA fight, the powerful and resolute Weili Zhang has been flawless.
With 21 career wins on the trot, 6 of which have come in the UFC, 'Magnum' is among the most dominant female fighters in MMA history. She cruised to the UFC strawweight title with a first-round knockout of Jessica Andrade, and then showed her heart and perseverance in an absolute war against Joanna Jedrzejczyk.
Zhang will have her second title defence against Rose Namajunas at UFC 261. It remains to be seen if the punishment she took against Jedrzejczyk weighs her down against a kickboxer as talented as 'Thug' Rose.
#1 Amanda Nunes (UFC Record: 15-2)
Does anything need to be said about Amanda Nunes being at the top of this list? 'The Lioness', who is undoubtedly the most accomplished female fighter of all time, is on a 12-fight win streak stretching all the way back to March 2015.
Valentina Shevchenko, Holly Holm, Germaine De Randamie, Felicia Spencer, Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate have all been vanquished by Nunes, who has only gotten better with time. She is perched atop the women's pound-for-pound list, and seems to have her opponents beat even before entering the Octagon.
Blessed with freak power and having very few holes in her game, the 32-year-old has cleared out most of the UFC featherweight and bantamweight divisions, and has then gone on to defend her titles in both weight classes.
Nunes is without doubt the most dominant female fighter in the UFC at the moment, and quite possibly of all time as well.
