How do UFC stars Conor McGregor, Khabib Nurmagomedov, and Jon Jones rank in the top 15 best fighters in the MMA world right now?

Conor McGregor, Khabib Nurmagomedov, and Jon Jones are three of the top pound-for-pound athletes competing in mixed martial arts today. The pound-for-pound concept means ranking fighters according to talent, potential, accomplishments, recent level of competition, and victories.

Pound-for-pound lists tend to create arguments, and this ranking will be no different. Conor McGregor is the first name on the list at No.15. The Irishman has only won one fight since 2016, but his level of competition before that was extraordinary. He is expected to raise his game further in 2020.

But who ranks above McGregor, and where?

15: Conor McGregor – 22 wins (19 knockouts (KO), 1 submission, and 2 decisions) against 4 losses (4 submissions)

Organisation and weight class: UFC welterweight

Nationality and style: Irish striker

Why he's ranked: McGregor is one of mixed martial art's few simultaneous two-weight world champions, meaning he topped two divisions at the same time because of his thumping wins over Jose Aldo in 2015 and Eddie Alvarez in 2016.

But that was then. Now, he's only won once since besting Alvarez in 2016 – a dominant 40-second win over Donald Cerrone, a fighter who entered the Las Vegas bout in January with back-to-back losses. After annihilating the “Cowboy”, McGregor is on the hunt for a meaningful fight. A summer showdown against Justin Gaethje would be just that, and should he win, he would find himself far higher in this list.

14: Jorge Masvidal – 35 wins (16 KOs, 2 submissions, and 17 decisions) against 13 losses (1 KO, 2 submissions, and 10 decisions)