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The Ultimate Fighting Championship is home to some of the world’s fittest athletes. Male fighters received most of the attention for a long time.
Dana White and company opened the UFC’s first-ever women’s division in 2007 and fans all over the world flocked to their dynamic roster of female stars. In recent years, women like Ronda Rousey, Holly Holm, and Miesha Tate have shown that they have all the ferocity-and maybe even more star power than their male counterparts, leading to some of the most dynamic and exciting fights in UFC history.
Led by Rousey, this group of physically gifted and totally badass women has proven that mixed martial arts aren’t just for the boys.
Best Female UFC Fighters Ever
The following are the top female fighters in the UFC.
Jessica Eye
“Evil” Eye uses a variety of boxing attacks, defensive jab moves, and agile strikes to take down her opponents. The Ohio native started her mixed martial arts career with a 10-1 record and she’s known for her strong body kicks, devastating elbow strikes, and takedowns. Even UFC President Dana White has praised her.
White told Yahoo Sports, “She has that special something about her.” “She’s a fighter, man. She’s one of those fighters like I talk about, who is a pure fighter. When it’s time to go, she’s tough as nails, and she loves it.
FeliceHerrig
The “Lil Bulldog” has quite the bite in the Octagon—the accomplished kickboxer uses Muay Thai and strong leg moves to take down her opposition.
She has won 23 of her 28 kickboxing matches as a native of Buffalo Grove, Illinois. After winning her UFC debut with an armbar submission against Lisa Ellis, she won ten of her next 16 matches.
Randa Markos
“Quiet Storm” doesn’t have any fear when she steps into the Octagon—she’s been through enough in her life to feel like she can overcome anything. She was born in Baghdad, Iraq, and her family was imprisoned during the Gulf War.
They tried to leave the country, eventually finding a way to escape to Canada. Using her 63.5-inch reach and powerful legs, Markos uses a combination of wrestling and jiu-jitsu moves to defeat her opponents, winning six of her first 10 career MMA fights.
Bethe Correia
She uses a combination of Brazilian jiu-jitsu, kickboxing, wrestling, Kung Fu, and jujitsu moves in the Octagon to take down her opponents.
The Brazilian fighter is as powerful as anyone in the UFC. She opened her mixed martial arts career by winning 10 of her first 12 fights, including a win over Jessica Eye at UFC 203.
Rose Namajunas
Contrary to her polished appearance, the American fighter goes by the nickname “Thug,” and she uses an arsenal of Brazilian jiu-jitsu and taekwondo moves to battle through her matches. The Milwaukee, Wisconsin native is a striking specialist with an impressive 65-inch reach.
She has black belts in both karate and taekwondo, making her as skilled as anyone in UFC when it comes to leg kicks and takedowns. Namajunas opened her career with five wins over her first eight matches, including a win over Angela Hill at UFC 192.
Joanne Calderwood
“The Whispering Assassin” started training in Muay Thai as a teenager and she uses that discipline along with Brazilian jiu-jitsu, powerful leg strikes, and devastating jabs to fight her opponents.
The Scottish fighter-who has been known by nicknames like “JoJo,” “BadmofoJoJo,” and “Dr.Kneevil”–was a gifted kickboxer who lost just two of her 21 matches, and started her mixed martial arts career by winning her first nine fights, four of which were knockouts.
Carla Esparza
The Cookie Monster is one of the best grapplers in the UFC. She uses a wide range of kicks and punches, combining wrestling and Brazilian jiu-jitsu moves when she’s in the ring. The Redondo Beach, California native was the first UFC Strawweight Champion, and she started her career by winning 11 of her first 14 mixed martial arts matches.
Cat Zingano
“Alpha” is one of the most badass female fighters in the UFC, with Brazilian jiu-jitsu, wrestling, and Muay Thai moves that can take down any opponent.
A native of Winona, Minnesota, she has a near-70-inch reach, which she used to devastating effect in 2013 when she became the first woman to win a UFC fight by technical knockout, knocking down another top fighter in Miesha Tate.
Zingano started her mixed martial arts career with nine straight wins. She took five of those by knockout, losing for the first time to an ascendant Ronda Rousey at UFC 184.