UFC Southpaw Fighters: 127 Active, 36 Ranked in 2026

Quick answer

As of October 22, 2026, AgentMMA counts 127 southpaws among 737 active UFC fighters with a recorded stance. That is 17.2% of the tracked roster. The same snapshot finds 36 ranked fighters or champions whose UFC Stats profile lists Southpaw. This page shows the full division breakdown, the ranked names, and the unranked southpaws with the most UFC wins.

Data snapshot: AgentMMA analysis of 8,950 UFC bouts and 737 active UFC fighters with a recorded stance, covering 1994-03-11 to 2026-10-17 (computed 2026-10-22).

UFC southpaw fighters by division

Women's flyweight has the largest southpaw share at 26.3%. Middleweight follows at 24.7%, then lightweight at 23.5%. Women's strawweight sits at the other end with 4 southpaws among 50 active fighters. Raw totals and percentages answer different questions, so check both columns.

Which ranked UFC fighters and champions are southpaws?

This is a roster snapshot, not a pound-for-pound ranking of the best southpaws in UFC history. Rank refers to AgentMMA's copy of the official UFC rankings on the computation date. A fighter's UFC record excludes bouts from every other promotion. The stance label also describes a listed base stance, not every stance used during a fight.

Which unranked active southpaws have the most UFC wins?

Jim Miller leads this group with 28 UFC wins. Dustin Poirier has 22, while Rafael Dos Anjos has 21. The order measures wins inside the UFC, not total professional wins or current form. It also doesn't turn the list into a claim about who would win today.

How this list is counted

AgentMMA starts with fighters whose UFC Stats profile records a stance. A fighter counts as a southpaw only when that profile says Southpaw. Switch-stance fighters stay outside the southpaw count, even if they spend long stretches with the right foot forward.

The denominator is the active roster with a known stance, not every name on a UFC website or every athlete who has fought there. Division shares use that division's known-stance active count. This matters because a missing stance can't safely be guessed from video, handedness, or one exchange.

“Active” has a fixed database rule. A fighter needs a UFC bout in the previous 548 days or a booked UFC bout in AgentMMA's data. That rule avoids subjective roster calls, but it can briefly retain someone who has announced retirement.

Ranked status comes from AgentMMA's stored copy of the official UFC rankings. The UFC record counts UFC bouts only. An overturned result is stored as a no-contest, which explains the “NC” labels.

Another site may produce a different list without either list being wrong. Its cutoff date may be newer, its inactivity window may be shorter, or it may count switch fighters. Some lists also mix a fighter's full professional record with the UFC-only record shown here.

Notable names on the list

Islam Makhachev

Islam Makhachev is the welterweight champion in this snapshot. UFC's official coverage records a successful title defence over Ian Machado Garry at UFC 330. The UFC record book also lists Makhachev on a 17-fight win streak. His 18-1-0 UFC record gives the ranked table its clearest champion entry.

Jim Miller

Jim Miller owns the largest UFC win total in the unranked table. The UFC record book listed him first in both wins, with 28, and appearances, with 47, after its October 18 update. That is why this table can show an unranked fighter above major contenders on experience. Rank and longevity measure different things.

Dustin Poirier

Dustin Poirier made his final walk at UFC 318 in July 2025, according to UFC's retirement coverage. He still appears because AgentMMA applies the 548-day activity rule to the cutoff date. This is a useful edge case: database-active does not always mean a fighter plans to compete again.

Manel Kape

Manel Kape is the highest-ranked non-champion in the table at #2. Flyweight has 9 southpaws among 50 active fighters, an 18.0% share. Kape's place shows why a small raw count can still include a leading title contender.

Sergei Pavlovich

Sergei Pavlovich is #3 at heavyweight in AgentMMA's rankings copy. That makes him the division's highest-ranked southpaw here. Heavyweight has only 6 southpaws among 59 active fighters, the second-lowest share in the table. His position matters more than the division's raw count suggests.

Related AgentMMA pages

• Southpaw vs orthodox in the UFC: the evidence
• Most UFC wins
• Longest UFC win streaks
• Most knockouts
• Most submissions

How solid is this data?

The main strength is scope: 737 active fighters with a recorded stance, checked against results from 1994-03-11 through 2026-10-17. AgentMMA computed the list on 2026-10-22 from its UFC Stats-derived bout database. The same rules run across every division.

There are firm limits. Only UFC bouts count toward a UFC figure. Fights elsewhere belong in a professional record only when a table labels it that way. Results follow UFC Stats as stored by AgentMMA, and an overturned result becomes a no-contest.

Stance is less exact than a win or date. Profiles record a fighter's main stance, while many fighters switch during exchanges. The method also excludes profiles with no recorded stance and keeps Switch separate from Southpaw.

The rankings column has its own timing limit. UFC rankings can change between weekly updates even when no listed fighter competes. Reading the computation date alongside the rank prevents an old placement from looking current after the next vote.

The page changes when a new result, booking, rankings update, stance correction, or 548-day cutoff changes the roster. The next refresh can move both the totals and the names. UFC's public record book may use another status filter or update on a different day. AgentMMA keeps this table tied to its stated cutoff.

FAQ

How many UFC fighters are southpaw?

AgentMMA counts 127 southpaws among 737 active UFC fighters with a recorded stance as of October 22, 2026. That is 17.2% of the measured roster.

What percentage of UFC fighters are southpaw?

The share is 17.2% in AgentMMA's current snapshot. Switch-stance fighters do not count as southpaws, and fighters without a recorded stance are excluded.

Who are the best southpaws in the UFC right now?

There is no single objective “best” list. By current rank, welterweight champion Islam Makhachev leads this table, followed by #2 flyweight Manel Kape among non-champions. By UFC wins among unranked names, Jim Miller leads with 28.

Which UFC champions are southpaws?

Islam Makhachev is the southpaw champion shown in AgentMMA's October 22, 2026 snapshot. Across the full data set, 36 ranked fighters or champions have Southpaw listed as their main stance.

Does switch stance count as southpaw?

No. AgentMMA counts only fighters listed as Southpaw on UFC Stats. A profile marked Switch remains separate, even when that fighter often uses a southpaw stance.

Is southpaw better than orthodox in the UFC?

This roster page can't answer that from headcounts. Win rates require bout-level matchup analysis. See Southpaw vs orthodox in the UFC: the evidence for that separate test.