Jon Jones and 15 Fighters Under 28 Who Will Carry the Future of MMA

The sport of MMA is growing at a rapidly fast pace, and we're still seeing it grow 17 years after the premier organization started in 1993.

It has exceeded in prominence throughout the world and has changed more in the last two decades technically and financially than other sports have in their entire extensive histories.

What changes in a year for MMA is only seen in other sports in a decade or more, and this is because of fighters like the newly crowned UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones and the best of the new up-and-comers like Phil Davis and Anthony Pettis. There are also a younger generation of fighters like Rory MacDonald and John Makdessi quickly rising in the sport.

This is a list of fighters who are in their 20s that will enhance the sport in the minds of fans and will be taking the sport to the next level.

No. 15 John Makdessi (8-0)

John Makdessi (8-0) will be fighting for the ninth time in Canada at UFC 129. If fans haven't seen this guy fight, he is one everyone should check out. He is one of the more exciting up-and-comers in the UFC's lightweight division and has trained with UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre.

In his last fight versus Pat Audinwood, the 25-year-old Shotokan Karate black-belt showcased many of the inventive kicks in his arsenal. He threw everything—head kicks, turning side kicks and axe kicks. Goldberg described his performance as having one of the widest array of kicks used in a single fight.

With an undefeated record of 22-0 in kickboxing and 8-0 in MMA, Makdessi will not be afraid to mix it up inside the Octagon, and that's what fans love to see.

No. 14 Rory MaDonald (10-1)

Rory MacDonald (10-1) hasn't fought since June, when he made a strong case for himself as one of the best young fighters, even in defeat. He was on his way to winning a decision when Carlos Condit finished him with seven seconds left in the fight.

Without any one specialty under his belt, MacDonald is one of the leading up-and-comers training only in MMA. At 21, his growth in the upcoming years will be growing at an increasingly fast rate and may exceed the sport's own growth.

No. 13 Edson Barboza (8-0)

Edzon Barbza is a black belt in muay thai and undefeated in MMA. He has displayed some of the very best kicks in the division in his fights with Mike Lullo and Anthony Njokuani.

The 25-year-old Brazilian trains out of The Armory and is currently a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Fans don't see much of it, but what they do see are his vicious kicks and strikes that have earned him six stoppages since his MMA debut in 2009.

No. 12 Dave Herman (20-2)

Dave "Pee Wee" Herman makes his UFC debut at UFC 131 versus Joey Beltran.

The 26-year-old fighting out of Team Lloyd Irvin has only been to a decision once in his professional career of over 20 bouts. Among his 19 stoppages, he has beaten the likes of Don Frye, Ron Waterman and Jim York.

In a fight with Jim York in 2009, Herman knocked out the New Zealand fighter with axe kicks while York attempted a kneebar. It was one of the most brutal knockouts of the year and one of the most creative displays of kicks ever showcased in a professional fight.

At 6'5", Herman will be one of the taller heavyweights in the division. His style helps him utilize this advantage, and it will be a factor when he faces the smaller heavyweights in the division. He is an aggressive fighter with finishing ability and good submission skills that will continue to grow as he gets older.

No. 11 Stefan Struve (21-4)

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LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 24: UFC fighter Chase Gormley (R) battles with UFC fighter Stefan Struve (L) during their Heavyweight bout at UFC 104: Machida vs. Shogun at Staples Center on October 24, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/

Dutch fighter Stefan Struve has emerged as one of the most exciting fighters in the UFC's heavyweight division. He has only been to the scorecards once and has scored most of his victories by submission. At 6' 11", Struve brings physical attributes that creates unique challenges for anyone he fights.

If you look at any of the UFC fights the 23-year-old has been in, they have mostly all been back-and-forth slugfests with blood, knockdowns, submissions and knockouts.

Once Struve grows into his long and lanky frame, he will be a force in the biggest division in the sport.

No. 10 Carlos Condit (26-5)

It's hard to believe at only 26, Condit has already had over 30 professional MMA bouts and won and defended the WEC welterweight championship before transferring over to the UFC in 2009.

In his last fight versus Dan Hardy, Condit showed why fans love watching him fight. He isn't afraid to fight his opponents where their strengths are. How many fighters have been willing to stand with Hardy and trade strikes lately? He did just that and knocked out the British fighter for the first time in his career in the very first round.

He was scheduled to fight Chris Lytle at UFC 127 but pulled out due to an injury late in training. Possible opponent for him are Anthony Johnson and Brian Ebersole until he finds himself in title contention, which he shouldn't be very far from.

No. 9 Anthony Pettis (13-1)

WEC lightweight champion Anthony "Showtime" Pettis is scheduled to face Clay Guida at The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale on June 4th. It is one of the most anticipated fights of the summer and will be broadcast free on Spike TV.

Pettis, 24, broke out as a "Prospect of the Year" in 2010 after defeating Ben Henderson over five rounds for the WEC lightweight belt. Audiences were stunned with the kick "heard around the world" in the final round that sealed the victory for the fighter from Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

With a win over Guida, Pettis will be guaranteed a future title shot in the most stacked division in MMA.

No. 8 Jim Miller (20-2)

Jim Miller is currently riding a seven-fight win streak including impressive victories over Kamal Shalorus, Charles Oliveira, Gleison Tibau, Mark Bocek and Mac Danzig.

His only losses have come against the two top fighters in the division; number one contender Gray Maynard and UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar.

Miller should be on the list of title challengers, and by the looks of it, he will get the next shot at the young age of 27.

No. 7 Gegard Mousasi (30-3-1)

Former Strikeforce light-heavyweight champion Gegard Mousasi will be taking on UFC veteran Keith Jardine on April 9th. The fight will air live on Showtime on the Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley event.

The 25-year-old Armenian-born fighter has already had over 30 professional MMA bouts and has been fighting since 2003. He also has an 8-0 kickboxing record.

Mousasi has only been to a decision three times in his career, and this is turning out to be very common among the up-and-comers in MMA even if more fights are going to decisions more than ever.

With a win over Jardine and the recent purchase of Strikeforce from Zuffa and the UFC, Mousasi could be next in line to make his debut in the leading organization.

No. 6 Eddie Alvarez (22-2)

To continue the trend of fighters who like to finish fights, Alvarez has finished 19 of his 22 opponents including 12 knockout victories and seven submission victories. Four of these stoppages came over tough fighters like Roger Huerta, Tatsuya Kawajiri, Aaron Riley and Josh Neer.

The 27-year-old recently defended his Bellator lightweight belt against Pat Curran at Bellator 39. He won a dominant five-round decision but left fans wanting to see more of a standout performance that he had shown before in winning the Bellator Season 1 Lightweight Tournament.

There aren't many options for the top 10 lightweight, but at his age, he has time to build his skills before making it into the UFC where the lightweight division is nothing but stacked with competition. 

No. 5 Phil Davis (9-0)

Photo by Tracy Lee, Yahoo Sports

Phil Davis made his MMA debut in 2008 and has gone undefeated over nine bouts, including five in the UFC with wins over Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Tim Boetsch and Alexander Gustafsson, who is another young fighter worth mentioning.

Davis is quickly exceeding in skills and potential ever since being crowned the No Gi Grappling World Jiu-Jitsu Champion as a blue belt in 2009. The former Penn State wrestler also won a NCAA title in 2008.

Fans are saying the same things about Davis that they said about Jones, and that's that he still needs to take time to improve his skills before taking on the best of the division. Jones proved that there is a new breed of fighters that are taking the sport to the next level, and Davis is right behind him.

No. 4 Dominick Cruz (17-1)

UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz will be competing in the biggest fight of his career when he faces Urijah Faber for the second time at UFC 132. Cruz was submitted in their first fight, giving him the only blemish on his record that spans six years of competing.

Cruz is a top 10 pound-for-pound fighter and has an eight-fight win streak to back it up. This includes wins over Brian Bowles, Joseph Benavidez twice and Scott Jorgensen.

The 25-year-old displays his phenomenal striking display in almost all of his fights and shows why he is such a difficult fighter to beat. He has some of the best technical boxing in the sport and movement that mirrors current UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar. He is consistent throughout and never slows down. This is what makes the the younger generation of fighter standout form all the rest.

No. 3 Junior Dos Santos (12-1)

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DALLAS - SEPTEMBER 19: UFC fighter Junior Dos Santos (L) battles UFC fighter Mirko Cro Cop (R) during their Heavyweight bout at UFC 103: Franklin vs. Belfort at the American Airlines Center on September 19, 2009 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/

Junior dos Santos has 12 victories with eight knockouts including victories over Fabricio Werdum, Mirko Cro Cop and Roy Nelson. He is currently one of the coaches on the newest season of The Ultimate Fighter.

His vicious knockout power and boxing skills are some of the very best in the heavyweight division. His next fight will be against his opposite coach on TUF, former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar at UFC 131.

The 26-year-old Brazilian trains in one of the best camps in MMA at Black House with Anderson Silva, the Nogueira brothers, Lyoto Machida and Jose Aldo.

No. 2 Jose Aldo (18-1)

UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo has knocked out seven of his last eight opponents. After winning the title from Matt Brown in 2009, Aldo defended the title twice versus Manny Gamburyan and Urijah Faber in the first WEC PPV event.

The 24-year-old Brazilian will be fighting Mark Hominick at UFC 129 on April 30th. Hominick will be his toughest opponent when it comes to stand up, and it will be a proving point for both fighters. If Aldo is able to stop the Canadian fighter standing, it will be a statement that should launch his status into the discussion as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

No. 1 Jon Jones (13-1)

At 23, Jon "Bones" Jones became the youngest UFC champion when he defeated Mauricio "Shogun" Rua for the light-heavyweight championship at UFC 128.

With that win, Jones secured himself a position as a top 10 pound-for-pound fighter and as one of the best fighters in MMA right now. His physical tools and fearless, confident personality has enabled him to do things that other fighters never think of including dangerous spinning back elbow strikes and moves that leave him open for counters.

Still, Jones has never truly been tested despite having eight bouts inside the UFC in one of the deepest divisions. His lone defeat, a disqualification loss to Matt Hamill, is a mark that mirrors Fedor Emelianenko's record as he is quickly establishing a legacy that will not soon be forgotten.