8. C. M. PUNK

Though the sport continues to mature, there is still a lot of carnival in mixed martial arts, and most fans enjoy that. Brock Lesnar was an accomplished heavyweight champion, but his popularity in the cage stemmed in large part from his years in professional wrestling. Now another colorful wrestler, C. M. Punk, whose real name is Phil Brooks, is set to try his hand at M.M.A., with a debut sometime in 2016. There is no telling how good he will be, and many people expect him to flop. But if it turns out he can fight, his background will make him one of the most watched fighters very quickly.

7. ANDERSON SILVA

The king of M.M.A. for years, Silva, of Brazil, holds the record for most consecutive U.F.C. wins, 16. Flamboyant and cocky, he would have topped a list like this for a decade or more. But the last few years have not been kind; he was knocked out while showboating against Chris Weidman and lost his title, then suffered a terrible leg injury in a rematch. After a year away, he came back, then failed a drug test. He plans to return to the Octagon in 2016, and there will be excitement when he does. But at 40, his time may be past.

6. CHRIS WEIDMAN

A native of Long Island who wrestled at Hofstra, Weidman is champion of the ultracompetitive middleweight division. He made his name with those back-to-back wins in 2013 over Silva and has done little wrong since. He fights Luke Rockhold in Las Vegas on Dec. 12 and will be favored again. But his ability to transcend the sport is still in doubt; the Rockhold bout is not even the main event on the card.