Pereira No. 1: MMA Light Heavyweight Ranking After UFC Victory

The weekend was packed with action in the MMA world, with Alofoke Deportes’ divisional rankings presenting significant changes after the UFC 320 and PFL Champions Series events. A total of 13 ranked fighters faced off, generating significant movements in several categories.

Alex Pereira is Crowned in Light Heavyweight

The light heavyweight division underwent a notable reconfiguration, with Alex Pereira dethroning Magomed Ankalaev in the UFC main event. Pereira, after reclaiming the title he lost to Ankalaev, declared his intention to move up to heavyweight, but for now, he remains the king of the 205-pound division. In total, six categories saw changes in their rankings. The rise of Youssef Zalal stands out, who climbed three positions to number 7 in featherweight, thanks to his quick submission over Josh Emmett. On the other hand, Patchy Mix, after his defeat at UFC 320, fell out of the men’s bantamweight rankings, being replaced by Marlon “Chito” Vera. Likewise, Raquel Pennington, former women’s bantamweight champion, was removed from the rankings due to inactivity. Here are the updated Alofoke Deportes rankings, with the results and standings as of October 7th.

Tom Aspinall was already number 1 in heavyweight, and now holds the UFC champion belt.

Heavyweight (up to 265 pounds)

• 1. Tom Aspinall
• 2. Francis Ngannou
• 3. Ciryl Gane
• 4. Curtis Blaydes
• 5. Alexander Volkov
• 6. Sergei Pavlovich
• 7. Jailton Almeida
• 8. Renan Ferreira
• 9. Waldo Cortes-Acosta
• 10. Serghei Spivac

Alex Pereira knocked out Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 320 to regain the light heavyweight title.

Light Heavyweight (up to 205 lbs)

• 1. Alex Pereira
• 2. Magomed Ankalaev
• 3. Jiří Procházka
• 4. Carlos Ulberg
• 5. Khalil Rountree Jr.
• 6. Aleksandar Rakić
• 7. Dominick Reyes
• 8. Jamahal Hill
• 9. Corey Anderson
• 10. Volkan Oezdemir

Khamzat Chimaev remains at the top of the UFC middleweight division, as expected.

Middleweight (up to 185 pounds)

• 1. Khamzat Chimaev
• 2. Dricus du Plessis
• 3. Nassourdine Imavov
• 4. Sean Strickland
• 5. Israel Adesanya
• 6. Reinier de Ridder
• 7. Anthony Hernandez
• 8. Caio Borralho
• 9. Robert Whittaker
• 10. Brendan Allen

Jack Della Maddalena celebrates with the welterweight belt after defeating Belal Muhammad at UFC 315.

Welterweight (up to 170 pounds)

• 1. Jack Della Maddalena
• 2. Belal Muhammad
• 3. Shavkat Rakhmonov
• 4. Sean Brady
• 5. Leon Edwards
• 6. Kamaru Usman
• 7. Ian Machado Garry
• 8. Michael Morales
• 9. Joaquin Buckley
• 10. Carlos Prates

Ilia Topuria poses with the lightweight belt after winning the title at UFC 317.

Lightweight (up to 155 pounds)

• 1. Islam Makhachev
• 2. Ilia Topuria
• 3. Charles Oliveira
• 4. Max Holloway
• 5. Justin Gaethje
• 6. Usman Nurmagomedov
• 7. Paddy Pimblett
• 8. Beneil Dariush
• 9. Mateusz Gamrot
• 10. Rafael Fiziev

Alexander Volkanovski regained the featherweight belt by defeating Diego Lopes at UFC 314.

Peso Pluma (up to 145 pounds)

• 1. Alexander Volkanovski