Usman Nurmagomedov is 22-0 with one no contest, and the last man to try to take the PFL lightweight title from him, Archie Colgan, lasted until 3:42 of the first round. Behind the champion, the top seven spots did not move at all in the latest rankings.
PFL lightweight champion
Nurmagomedov is 28 and a Russian champion with a finish rate of 73 per cent. He met Colgan in a title fight at PFL New York on 31 Jul 2026 and stopped him with punches in round one. Colgan, 13-1, still sits at number four.
The contenders directly beneath him are experienced. Alexandr Shabliy is 33 with a finish rate of 76 per cent, and Gadzhi Rabadanov is 33 with a record of 28-5-2.
PFL lightweight rankings
Only two names changed place. Natan Schulte moved up one spot to number eight, while Amru Magomedov slipped one place to number nine despite being unbeaten.
| Rank | Fighter | Record | Finish rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Champion | Usman Nurmagomedov | 22-0-0, 1 NC | 73% |
| 1 | Alexandr Shabliy | 25-4-0 | 76% |
| 2 | Gadzhi Rabadanov | 28-5-2 | 57% |
| 3 | Alfie Davis | 20-7-1 | 45% |
| 4 | Archie Colgan | 13-1-0 | 46% |
| 5 | Jakub Kaszuba | 16-1-0 | 50% |
| 6 | Paul Hughes | 14-3-0 | 71% |
| 7 | Jay-Jay Wilson | 12-2-0 | 75% |
| 8 | Natan Schulte | 27-6-0 | 52% |
| 9 | Amru Magomedov | 10-0-0 | 90% |
| 10 | Darragh Kelly | 9-1-0 | 78% |
Jakub Kaszuba is 16-1 at number five, Paul Hughes is 14-3 at number six and Jay-Jay Wilson, 29, is 12-2 at number seven. Schulte, 34, owns the longest résumé outside the top three at 27-6. Alfie Davis, also 34, is 20-7-1 and has the lowest finish rate of the top four at 45 per cent.
Two things stand out. The top of the list is veteran territory, with all five of the top contenders aged 31 or older. And the finishers live lower down: Magomedov at 90 per cent, Kelly at 78 per cent and Wilson at 75 per cent are all ranked seventh or below.
How the division fought over the last year
Lightweight produced 33 bouts in the last 12 months, and 17 of them ended in a finish.
Shabliy beat Davis by unanimous decision at PFL San Diego on 27 Jun 2026, a meeting of the number one and number three contenders. Rabadanov took out Tracy Reeder with first-round punches at PFL Tampa on 22 Aug 2026, and Schulte beat Makkasharip Zaynukov by unanimous decision on the same card.
Magomedov, 27 and 10-0, added a second-round TKO of Angel Alvarez on the PFL New York card that Nurmagomedov headlined. Further down the order, Gamid Khizriev submitted Biaggio Ali Walsh with a first-round twister on 18 Jul 2026, and Levan Khabalaev stopped Chamy Delva in the first round on 31 Jul 2026.
What is booked at lightweight
None of the lightweight bouts booked is a title fight, and the next action involves men just outside the rankings.
PFL Africa 3 on 10 Oct 2026 carries three lightweight bouts, among them Hussain Al Kurdi against Demba Seck.
At PFL Chicago on 16 Oct 2026, Khizriev meets Michael Boylan, and Khabalaev faces Morquez Forest. Boylan and Forest each lost a split decision in the last outing, Boylan to Landry Ward on 7 Aug 2026 and Forest to Dakota Bush on 22 Aug 2026. Khizriev and Khabalaev, both coming off first-round finishes, are the two to watch on the night.
In this story
This article was generated with AI and may contain errors.