Massive change in the middleweight division after UFC 308

The latest UFC rankings were released on Tuesday, October 29, and the middleweight division saw massive changes following UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi.

The biggest lifter in the promotion is 185-pound boogeyman Khamzat Chimaev. Following his devastating first-round victory over Robert Whittaker, Chimaev moved up ten spots to third in the middleweight division.

Here’s a look at the new middleweight rankings, with Chimaev trailing only the champion, Dricus Du Plessis, Sean Strickland and Israel Adesanya in the rankings.

UFC middleweight champion – Dricus Du Plessis

1. Sean Strickland
2. Israel Adesanya
3. Khamzat Chimaev (Rank increased by 10)
4. Robert Whittaker (Rank decreased by 1)
5. Nassourdine Imavov (Rank decreased by 1)
6. Caio Borralho (Rank decreased by 1)
7. Marvin Vettori (Rank decreased by 1)
8. Jared Cannonier (Rank decreased by 1)
9. Brendan Allen (Rank down by 1)
10. Roman Dolidze (Rank has decreased by 1)
11. Paulo Costa (Ranked down by 1)
12. Jack Hermansson (Rank decreased by 1)
13. Anthony Hernandez (Rank decreased by 1)
14. Shara Magomedov (NR)
15. Michel Pereira (Rank has decreased by 1)

Strickland was promised his next shot at Du Plessis in a rematch of their January meeting, when the latter won the title on a split decision. However, Chimaev was so dominant in his win over Whittaker that it looked like Dana White could be waiting for a title shot at the 30-year-old unbeaten Chechen.

In addition to Chimaev’s 10-point jump, Shara Magomedov made headlines with his spectacular double KO of Armen Petrosyan. Magomedov was previously unranked, but the viral KO win put him at No. 15.

In case you missed it, take a look.

Magomedov is now sandwiched between two middleweights (Anthony Hernandez and Michel Pereira) who just fought at UFC Vegas 99 earlier this month.

While Magomedov has called out Adesanya, a case could be made for him to fight either Hernandez or Pereira in his next fight. A scrap with Hernandez would be an important test for Magomedov.

Stylistically, Hernandez can be a nightmare for the dynamic Russian striker. Hernandez will test Magomedov’s cardio training and his defense on the move. The UFC could save that potential scrap for later in their careers and instead give the up-and-comers two fights with the veterans who are currently ranked higher.

Jared Cannonier and Jack Hermansson would seem to be ripe fruit for the picking as we look at some serious changes taking place in the middleweight division.

Other changes in the UFC rankings

Despite his big third-round KO victory over Max Holloway, UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria did not rise in the promotion’s pound-for-pound rankings. He remains fourth behind UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev, heavyweight champion Alex Pereira and heavyweight champion Jon Jones.

Holloway dropped one place in the P4P rankings to 12th, while the vacant UFC men’s flyweight champion moved to 11th. Somehow, Adesanya, who was unemployed and on a two-fight losing streak, moved up the pound-f4p rankings to No.15.

I’ve disagreed with White lately, but he’s spot on when he says something needs to be done about the promotion ranking system. Here’s a look at the updated p4p rankings.

UFC Pound-for-Pound Champion – Islam Makhachev

1. Alex Pereira
2. Jon Jones
3. Ilia Topuria
4. Belal Muhammad
5. Dricus Du Plessis
6. Merab Dvalishvili
7. Tom Aspinall
8. Leon Edwards
9. Alexander Volkanovski
10. Alexandre Pantoja (Rank increased by 1)
11. Max Holloway (Rank decreased by 1)
12. Sean O’Malley
13. Sean Strickland
14. Israel Adesanya (NR)

UFC Fight Night Edmonton has a ton of fighters lined up in action, so we could see another big change next week. Stay tuned.