UFC Rankings Update: Conor McGregor moves up at 155lbs, Jon Jones up in P4P, Daniel Rodriguez enters 170lbs after controversial catchweight win over Li Jingliang at UFC 279
The aftermath of UFC 279 saw one of the busiest UFC Rankings Updates in a while, including the inactive Jon Jones and Conor McGregor.
In the men's pound-for-pound rankings, Jon Jones moved up to No.11, and Petr Yan and interim flyweight champion Brandon Moreno both jumped a place to No.13 and No.14, respectively. These position changes came at the expense of Max Holloway dropping a position to No.12 and Stipe Miocic losing out on two positions to settle at the bottom of the pound-for-pound rankings.
Tony Ferguson's loss to Nate Diaz at UFC 279 saw him tumble down four places to 15th at lightweight. Conor McGregor and Damir Ismagulov capitalized and climbed to 11th and 12th respectively in the lightweight division. Ismagulov's five-fight win streak in the UFC was rewarded with a three-place climb.
Daniel Rodriguez's controversial UFC 279 catchweight win against Li Jingliang saw him enter the welterweight top 15 for the first time as he placed No.14 and pushed out his opponent. Amir Albazi moved up a place to No.9 and pushed David Dvorak to No.10 in the flyweight division.
Check out the complete summarisation of all the moves in the UFC rankings:
#UFCRankings update 9/13/22. https://t.co/2nVH4zUlZL
Chan Sung Jung moved up one position to share the No.6 place with Arnold Allen in the featherweight rankings. Shamil Abdurakhimov moved to the bottom of the heavyweight rankings and was superseded by Blagoy Ivanov.
Meanwhile, the light heavyweight division was the busiest of them all with five fighters moving upwards. Paul Craig, Nikita Krylov, Dustin Jacoby, and Jimmy Crute moved up a place while Johnny Walker's UFC 279 win against Ion Cutelaba saw him move up two places to No.11, just behind Paul Craig.
Elsewhere, Maycee Barber and Casey O'Neill exchanged No.10 and No.11 places in the women's flyweight division. Miesha Tate and Lina Lansberg both dropped down to No.12 and No.13 in the women's bantamweight division, while Karol Rosa moved above both of them.
Conor McGregor promises a trilogy fight with Nate Diaz
Although Conor McGregor climbed up in the latest lightweight rankings, the Irishman hasn't fought since July 2021. His back-to-back losses to Dustin Poirier and a subsequent injury forced him to take a break from the octagon.
He recently weighed in on his former two-time opponent Nate Diaz's exit from the UFC after headlining UFC 279. He tweeted:
"Congrats Nate Diaz on making it to the end of his contractual obligations with the UFC, and as a bonafide superstar goer. An incredible feat. Fair play. Our trilogy will happen."
Check out his tweet below:
Congrats Nate Diaz on making it to the end of his contractual obligations with the UFC, and as a bonafide superstar goer. An incredible feat. Fair play.
Our trilogy will happen.
'The Notorious' acknowledged Diaz's achievements in the UFC and the love he has garnered from the fans. He also surprisingly promised a third fight against the Stockton native.
The two fighters famously brawled twice in 2016 in two Fight of the Night-winning bouts at UFC 196 and UFC 202. With an even split in the results, a third fight could well be the decider between Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz.
A potential third meeting between the two icons may also replicate the same commercial success that their previous two pay-per-view events netted.