Who Are MMA's Top 10 Best Pound-For-Pound Fighters?

Who is the best pound-for-pound fighter in MMA?

That's a question most people don't agree on and, when it's time to rank the 10 best MMA fighters, no two lists are the same.

Being the best pound-for-pound fighter means you have victories over the top fighters in your division and have a great MMA record overall.

The following list is stacked with the some of the very best fighters in the world, guys that have proved their worth on several occasions, and who deserve a place among the top 10 best pound-for-pound fighters in MMA today.

10. Quinton "Rampage" Jackson

Rampage barely made it on the list. With his recent loss to Forrest Griffin, some may not even rank Jackson in the top 10.

But the fact of the matter is, Jackson was a star back in PRIDE. Since coming to the UFC, he's become a superstar with wins over Chuck Liddell, Dan Henderson, and Wanderlei Silva.

Now, he's begun his rise back to the light heavyweight title.

9. Urijah Faber

Before his loss to Mike Brown at WEC 36, Faber was considered the best fighter at 145 pounds and one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world.

A second loss to Brown at WEC 41 could possibly toss Faber out of the list, but until then, the man who dominated the 145 division stays in.

He defended the featherweight title five times, something Brown has yet to do.

8. Shinya Aoki

This Japanese fighter is one of the best lightweight fighters in the world. Some of the most hardcore MMA fans know what Aoki is all about and would kill to see him fight B.J. Penn.

He fights in the Japanese organization DREAM and has proved to be the top lightweight over there, with victories over the best fighters DREAM has to offer.

7. Rashad Evans

Since winning The Ultimate Fighter 2, Evans has been on a roll.

During the show's run, even UFC President Dana White didn't give him a chance to win. But with a victory over Brad Imes in the finals, Evans established himself as a serious contender.

He followed it up with several brutal knockout wins and a light heavyweight title victory over then-champ Forrest Griffin. Evans is the current champion and is undefeated after having fought the best fighters in the light heavyweight division.

6. Miguel Torres

Torres fought 19 times in two years and never lost once. He then made a name for himself in the WEC bantamweight division, where he became champion after his second WEC fight.

He's defended his title twice now, with dominant victories over his opponents, and has an impressive MMA record of 35 wins with only one loss.

With the recent rumors that Torres would like to fight in the UFC, it will be interesting to see where he goes from here.

5. B.J. Penn

When it comes to UFC legends, don't look any further then "The Prodigy," B.J. Penn.

Penn is highly regarded as the best lightweight fighter in the world and was once considered to be the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

As one of only two men to ever win titles in two different weight classes in the UFC, he will go down in history as one of the most talented fighters in the world.

4. Lyoto Machida

Some people think he's boring, others think he's just too elusive for his fellow fighters.

Whatever you think, Machida is a phenomenal fighter. He's undefeated and makes his opponents look average. It seems every time he steps in the octagon, his opponents can't touch him.

Some may rank Penn over Machida, but the fact of the matter is, Machida defeated Penn back in 2005.

It's pretty hard to rank Penn over Machida after that.

3. Georges St. Pierre

Georges St-Pierre has been as dominant as anybody can be in the UFC.

Starting out in Montreal, GSP made his way into the UFC and began beating the top names. It seems every time St. Pierre loses, he comes back twice as good.

He has mowed through Matt Hughes, Matt Serra, Jon Fitch, and B.J. Penn, but it will be complicated for him to move any higher on the list, considering the two men above him right now.

2. Anderson Silva

There is one name standing on top of the UFC right now and that name is Anderson Silva. He's the current middleweight champion and has dominated every big name that the UFC has put before him.

Rich Franklin, Nate Marquardt, and Dan Henderson are just three of the names Silva took out—and he made it look easy.

Silva could easily be considered the best pound-for-pound fighter today because he is the best in the biggest MMA organization today. But there's still one man ahead of him.

1. Fedor Emelianenko

Until Emelianenko and Silva fight, we may never know who the best is. But just looking at the records, Emelianenko has an impressive 29 wins with only one loss, and the only loss he suffered was due to a cut.

He has never submitted to or been knocked out by any opponent.

With victories over the top names in the heavyweight division like Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Mirko Cro Cop, Tim Sylvia, and Andrei Arlovski, Emelianenko has shown why he is the very best fighter in the world.

Ten of the best fighters in the world are showcased here. In a sport as unpredictable as Mixed Martial Arts, this list can change every month. But right now, it's safe to say that these men are the very best.