Belal Muhammad is now ranked in the Top 10 of the pound-for-pound rankings.
The newly-crowned welterweight champion unseated former division titleholder Leon Edwards in the UFC 304 pay-per-view (PPV) main event last weekend in Manchester, shaking up the 170-pound leaderboard in the process.
“Rocky” slipped to No. 7 at pound-for-pound and No. 1 at welterweight.
Interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall also gained some ground on the “bullsh*t” pound-for-pound chart, clocking in at No. 9 after disposing of longtime contender Curtis Blaydes. In addition, lightweight sensation Paddy Pimblett finally cracked the Top 15 at 155 pounds by submitting veteran bruiser King Green.
Here’s how UFC compiles its official rankings:
Rankings were generated by a voting panel made up of media members. The media members were asked to vote for who they feel are the top fighters in the UFC by weight-class and pound-for-pound. A fighter is only eligible to be voted on if they are in active status in the UFC. A fighter can appear in more than one weight division at a time. The champion and interim champion are considered to be in the top positions of their respective divisions and therefore are not eligible for voting by weight-class. However, the champions can be voted on for the pound-for-pound rankings.
Take a look at what the latest rankings field looks like courtesy of the UFC app. Note: (+/- = movement in rankings, T = tie, *NR = Not previously ranked).
MEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND
1. Islam Makhachev
2. Alex Pereira
3. Jon Jones
4. Ilia Topuria +1
5. Sean O’Malley +1
6. Belal Muhammad *NR
7. Leon Edwards -3
8. Alexander Volkanovski -1
9. Tom Aspinall +2
10. Max Holloway -2
11. Dricus Du Plessis -2
12. Alexandre Pantoja -2
13. Israel Adesanya -1
14. Sean Strickland
15. Charles Oliveira -2
FLYWEIGHT
Champion: Alexandre Pantoja
1. Brandon Royval
2. Brandon Moreno
3. Amir Albazi
4. Kai Kara France
5. Tatsuro Taira
6. Alex Perez +1
7. Steve Erceg +2
8. Matheus Nicolau +2
9. Manel Kape -1
10. Tim Elliott +1
11. Matt Schnell +1
12. Tagir Ulanbekov +1
13. Bruno Silva +1
14. Asu Almabayev +1
15. Cody Durden *NR
Note: Muhammad Mokaev released from UFC, removed from flyweight rankings
BANTAMWEIGHT
Champion: Sean O’Malley
1. Merab Dvalishvili
2. Cory Sandhagen
3. Petr Yan
4. Marlon Vera
5. Henry Cejudo
6. Deiveson Figueiredo
7. Song Yadong
8. Jose Aldo
9. Rob Font
10. Umar Nurmagomedov
11. Kyler Phillips
12. Mario Bautista
13. Dominick Cruz
14. Jonathan Martinez
15. Montel Jackson
FEATHERWEIGHT
Champion: Ilia Topuria
1. Alexander Volkanovski
2. Max Holloway
3. Brian Ortega
4. Yair Rodriguez
5. (T) Movsar Evloev
5. (T) Arnold Allen +1
7. Josh Emmett
8. Aljamain Sterling
9. Calvin Kattar
10. Giga Chikadze
11. Lerone Murphy
12. Diego Lopes
13. Bryce Mitchell
14. Dan Ige
15. Edson Barboza
LIGHTWEIGHT
Champion: Islam Makhachev
1. Arman Tsarukyan
2. Charles Oliveira
3. Justin Gaethje
4. Dustin Poirier
5. Mateusz Gamrot
6. Michael Chandler
7. Beneil Dariush
8. Rafael Fiziev
9. Max Holloway
10. Renato Moicano
11. Dan Hooker
12. Benoit Saint-Denis
13. Jalin Turner
14. Rafael dos Anjos
15. Paddy Pimblett *NR
WELTERWEIGHT
Champion: Belal Muhammed
1. Leon Edwards -1
2. Kamaru Usman -1
3. Shavkat Rakhmonov
4. Colby Covington
5. Jack Della Maddalena
6. Gilbert Burns
7. Ian Machado Garry
8. Sean Brady
9. Stephen Thompson
10. Geoff Neal
11. Joaquin Buckley
12. Neil Magny
13. Vicente Luque
14. Michael Page -1
15. Kevin Holland
MIDDLEWEIGHT
Champion: Dricus Du Plessis
1. Sean Strickland
2. Israel Adesanya
3. Robert Whittaker
4. Nassourdine Imavov
5. Jared Cannonier
6. Marvin Vettori
7. Brendan Allen
8. Paulo Costa
9. Jack Hermansson
10. Roman Dolidze
11. Khamzat Chimaev
12. Caio Borralho
13. Michel Pereira
14. Anthony Hernandez
15. Chris Curtis
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT
Champion: Alex Pereira
1. Jiri Prochazka
2. Magomed Ankalaev
3. Jamahal Hill
4. Jan Blachowicz
5. Aleksandar Rakic
6. Nikita Krylov
7. Volkan Oezdemir
8. Khalil Rountree
9. Johnny Walker
10. Carlos Ulberg
11. Anthony Smith
12. Bogdan Guskov
13. Dominick Reyes
14. Azamat Murzakanov
15. Alonzo Menifield
HEAVYWEIGHT
Champion: Jon Jones
1. Tom Aspinall
2. Ciryl Gane
3. Alexander Volkov
4. Sergei Pavlovich +1
5. Curtis Blaydes -1
6. Stipe Miocic
7. Jailton Almeida
8. Marcin Tybura
9. Serghei Spivac
10. Tai Tuivasa
11. Derrick Lewis
12. Jairzinho Rozenstruik
13. Alexandr Romanov
14. Marcos Rogerio De Lima
15. Rodrigo Nascimento
WOMEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND
1. Alexa Grasso
2. Zhang Weili
3. Valentina Shevchenko
4. Manon Fiorot
5. Julianna Pena
6. Raquel Pennington
7. Rose Namajunas
8. Erin Blanchfield
9. Tatiana Suarez
10. Yan Xiaonan
11. Jessica Andrade
12. Kayla Harrison
13. Virna Jandiroba
14. Ketlen Vieira
15. Amanda Lemos
WOMEN’S STRAWWEIGHT
Champion: Zhang Weili
1. Tatiana Suarez
2. Yan Xiaonan
3. Virna Jandiroba
4. Jessica Andrade
5. Amanda Lemos
6. Marina Rodriguez
7. Mackenzie Dern
8. Amanda Ribas
9. Angela Hill
10. Loopy Godinez
11. Tabatha Ricci
12. Luana Pinheiro
13. Gillian Robertson
14. Iasmin Lucindo
15. Karolina Kowalkiewicz
WOMEN’S FLYWEIGHT
Champion: Alexa Grasso
1. Valentina Shevchenko
2. Manon Fiorot
3. Erin Blanchfield
4. Maycee Barber
5. Rose Namajunas
6. Jessica Andrade
7. Katlyn Cerminara
8. Natalia Silva
9. Amanda Ribas
10. Viviane Araújo
11. Karine Silva
12. Tracy Cortez
13. Ariane Da Silva
14. Jasmine Jasudavicius
15. Casey O’Neill
WOMEN’S BANTAMWEIGHT
Champion: Raquel Pennington
1. Julianna Pena
2. Ketlen Vieira
3. Kayla Harrison
4. Irene Aldana
5. Macy Chiasson
6. Mayra Bueno Silva
7. Holly Holm
8. Karol Rosa
9. Miesha Tate
10. Norma Dumont
11. Pannie Kianzad
12. Yana Santos
13. Julia Avila
14. Chelsea Chandler
15. Germaine De Randamie
You can expect these rankings to change around this time next week, particularly in the bantamweight division, following the UFC Abu Dhabi: “Sandhagen vs. Nurmagomedov” mixed martial arts (MMA) event on ABC and ESPN+, scheduled for Sat., Aug. 3, 2024 at Etihad Arena, Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, UAE.
For much more on that upcoming fight card click here.