UFC updated its official rankings in the weekly update after the UFC 311 PPV (pay-per-view) event last weekend. Current bantamweight titleholder Merab Dvalishvili climbed two places to #5 in pound-for-pound rankings after defeating Umar Nurmagomedov. This is the first time that the Georgian bantamweight has ever graced the top five rankings.
Merab Dvalishvili outpaced the Dagestani all the way to a unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46) at UFC 311. The once-unbeaten contender slipped one place to third behind Petr Yan. Meanwhile, UFC 155-pound king Islam Makhachev sits atop the pound-for-pound rankings after making quick work of late-replacement, Renato Moicano. Until AI takeover happens, here’s how the rankings go, per UFC.com:
Rankings are 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.
UFC Official Pound-for-pound Ranking catergory statement (H/T: SBNation Network)
A ‘+/-‘ mark denotes movement in rankings; check it out as Merab Dvalishvili made quite the leap. ‘T’ stands for tie and happens rarely. ‘*NR’ means fighters that were not previously ranked. The Georgian passes both Belal Muhammad (-1) and Dricus Du Plessis (-1).
Both the champs would have to put in their body of work to make a case for a higher spot. Undefeated featherweight champion Ilia Topuria sits at #4 and the light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira maintains his pound-for-pound spot at number 3. Tom Aspinall, Alexandre Pantoja, and Leon Edwards complete the top 10.
A new face in the Top 5 📈
Here’s how the P4P rankings look after #UFC311!
[ B2YB @VeChainOfficial ] pic.twitter.com/BA7ekdC9Kr
— UFC (@ufc) January 21, 2025
Merab Dvalishvili’s 12-fight UFC winning streak at bantamweight is the longest active streak right now. “Machine” has landed 92 takedowns in UFC competition, surpassing GOAT Georges St-Pierre. Dvalishvili is also in the sole possession of 79 takedowns in bantamweight competition; the highest in the division. The fighter is truly worth his weight in gold right now.
Dana White gives update on AI-based pound-for-pound rankings
UFC CEO Dana White has finally changed his mind on the order of the top two pound-for-pound rankings. However, he is persistent in giving the ranking system an overhaul. Throughout 2024, the UFC headman has faced various issues with rankings.
Dana White has new AI-based pound-for-pound ranking news after UFC 311 (Source: X)Before facing Makhachev, veteran Moicano battered lightweight berserker Benoit Saint-Denis at UFC Paris. He wasn’t expecting much of a leap for working down the order but was dejected when he didn’t even move a spot.
Other than his particular second-round doctor stoppage TKO, Khalil Rountree sat stagnant. Rountree proved to be Pereira’s toughest challenge in recent times; White had to nudge the system for a timely update. Then, there’s never-defeated Jon Jones sitting at #2 that irks White.
UFC ponied up with an artificial intelligence (AI) brand-partnership with IBM and its “watsonx” data platform. The fight statistics insight engine has been at work recently providing odds. However, after UFC 311, White said there’s more solid stuff to come for UFC pound-for-pound rankings.
Yeah, we’re still working on it…and actually we should be announcing that in the next few weeks, like two or three weeks. Yeah [include AI], and some other stuff too, …I think we have a good plan in place and when we’re ready to unveil it, we will…
Dana White at UFC 311 PPV Post-fight conference interviews
White recently joined the board of directors of META under Mark Zuckerberg. It could potentially lead to META’s big involvement in the digital overhaul. If Moicano had gone toe-to-toe with Makhachev and stayed the same or if Merab Dvalishvili 10-8ed the competition and jumped a meager single spot, it’d be another travesty. There might be good things to come yet in 2025 due to the AI involvement.
Stay Updated!
Join our newsletter to receive exclusive updates and curated insights directly to your inbox.
