The 2026 ESPYS nominees are out – and MMA only has one lone representative.
UFC lightweight champion Justin Gaethje is representing the entire sport, as he joins boxers Terence Crawford, Gabriela Fundora, and Claressa Shields in the “Best Fighter” category, ESPN revealed Thursday.
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The category marks a re-pool of MMA and boxing fighters. Since 2019, the ESPYs have presented “Best MMA Fighter” and “Best Boxer” separately. Prior to 2019, it was “Best Fighter.”
The 2026 ESPY Awards take place July 15 at David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center in New York, during which the winner, determined by fan voting, will be revealed. The time period in consideration is the 12 months leading up to the awards.
Gaethje (28-5 MMA, 11-5 UFC) went 2-0 in that time period with an interim title win over Justin Gaethje in January and then a shocking TKO stoppage of Ilia Topuria at UFC Freedom 250 at the White House on June 15.
Crawford (42-0) rode off into the retirement sunset after a historic unanimous decision victory against Canelo Alvarez in September, as he became the first male boxer to become undisputed champion in four weight classes.
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Fundora (18-0) went 2-0 over the past year with stoppage victories over Alexas Kubicki and Viviana Ruiz, defending her undisputed flyweight crown each time.
Shields (18-0) also went 2-0 with unanimous decision wins over Lani Daniels and Franchon Crews-Dezurn. Both were undisputed heavyweight title defenses.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: ESPYs announces 2026 Best Fighter – with lone MMA representative
