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In the lightweight main event of UFC 291 on Saturday, Gaethje avenged a 2018 loss to Dustin Poirier by knocking out “The Diamond” early in Round 2 with a blistering head kick. While the sensational win allowed “The Highlight” to pick up the UFC’s BMF title in style, it also reaffirmed his status as a top contender for a regular belt in the lightweight division in which he competes. Gaethje enters the men’s pound-for-pound poll at No. 8, while Poirier falls from ninth to 15th in defeat.
Meanwhile, a longtime fixture in these rankings finally bids adieu—at least for the time being. Previous No. 7, Francis Ngannou has not fought in 18 months since his heavyweight title unification win over Ciryl Gane at UFC 270, and falls from the list due to inactivity.
Note: Previous ranking in brackets.
1. Jon Jones (27-1, 1 NC) | UFC [1]
After a three-year absence, Jones looked as strong as ever in a new division, authoring a first-round submission triumph against Ciryl Gane in the UFC 285 headliner on March 4 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. In victory, “Bones” staked his claim to GOAT status while adding heavyweight gold to his trophy case. The longtime light heavyweight king will next focus on a UFC 295 showdown with ex-heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic at Madison Square Garden for his first title defense.2. Islam Makhachev (24-1) | UFC [2]
Though he was hardly dominant, Makhachev found a way at UFC 284, earning a five-round verdict against reigning featherweight king Alexander Volkanovski in the evening’s main event at the RAC Arena, in Perth, Australia. While the size advantage wasn’t as big a factor as expected, Makhachev nonetheless extended his winning streak to 12 and retained his 155-pound belt in the process. While he may yet have unfinished business with Volkanovski down the road, Makhachev will now devote his focus to a full cadre of contenders in the UFC’s always-crowded lightweight division.3. Alexander Volkanovski (26-2) | UFC [3]
After a near-miss in his bid to become a two-division champion, Volkanovski returned to 145 pounds with a dominant performance at UFC 290, where he overwhelmed Yair Rodriguez with sheer physicality in a third-round technical knockout victory at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Volkanovski now has six victories in featherweight title bouts, No. 2 all-time behind Jose Aldo, the man he is chasing for the title of 145-pound GOAT. After his latest victory, Volkanovski revealed that he may need to undergo surgery for an arm injury. After that, a title defense against Ilia Topuria or a return to 155 pounds for a rematch against Islam Makhachev are both in play.4. Leon Edwards (21-3, 1 NC) | UFC [4]
While Edwards needed a last-minute knockout to wrest the welterweight crown from Kamaru Usman at UFC 278, “Rocky” authored a much more complete performance in their trilogy, taking a five-round, majority-decision triumph over “The Nigerian Nightmare” in the UFC 286 headliner at the O2 Arena in London. Edwards outlanded Usman on the feet, showcased solid defensive wrestling and weathered a third-round point deduction to extend his unbeaten streak to 12 within the Las Vegas-based promotion. Edwards can move on from his rivalry with Usman, but his next challenge may already be looming: Colby Covington weighed in as an alternate for the main event and was tabbed by Dana White as the No. 1 contender in waiting.5. Israel Adesanya (24-2) | UFC [5]
Adesanya restored order to the middleweight division with a massive second-round knockout of Alex Pereira in the UFC 287 headliner. Not only did “The Last Stylebender” regain the belt he lost to his rival at UFC 281 last November, but he earned his first victory in the pair’s combat sports series — which now spans four bouts across kickboxing and MMA. Adesanya’s eight title fight victories rank second all-time at 185 pounds, and he has victories over the top five UFC middleweights currently ranked below him: Pereira, Robert Whittaker, Jared Cannonier, Marvin Vettori and Paulo Costa.6. Charles Oliveira (34-9, 1 NC) | UFC [6]
After relinquishing his belt to Islam Makhachev in October 2022, Oliveira made an emphatic statement in his return, as he defeated top contender Beneil Dariush via first-round technical knockout in the UFC 289 co-main event. “Do Bronx” held his own with Dariush on the canvas, but it was on the feet that he did his best work, rattling the Kings MMA product with head kicks and heavy punches before sealing his victory with ground-and-pound. By ending the eight-fight winning streak of his opponent, Oliveira makes a strong case for receiving a rematch with Makhachev at a future event.7. Aljamain Sterling (20-3) | UFC [8]
Sterling held serve—and held onto his UFC title—at UFC 288 on May 6, taking a hard-fought decision over returning former two-division champ Henry Cejudo. While it may not have been the emphatic result he hoped for, his third title defense breaks a three-way tie with T.J. Dillashaw and Dominick Cruz for the most in UFC bantamweight history. Sterling has made noises about moving up to featherweight, but should he elect to stay at 135 pounds, his next title challenger would appear to be set, as Sean O’Malley entered the cage after the UFC 288 main event for a face-off that ended up having to be broken up by security. That bout has already been announced for UFC 292, though some questions remain regarding Sterling’s health.8. Justin Gaethje (25-4) | UFC [NR]
Gaethje picked up a statement win — and the UFC’s BMF belt — in style at UFC 291, getting the better of Dustin Poirier for six minutes before flattening him with a head kick. In avenging his 2018 loss to Poirier, “The Highlight” reaffirmed his status as a top contender in the UFC lightweight division. He figures to be one of the most invested watchers of the Islam Makhachev-Charles Oliveira title rematch at UFC 294 in October.9. Vadim Nemkov (16-2, 1 NC) | Bellator [10]
Nemkov was largely dominant in his latest title defense, as he earned a clear-cut unanimous verdict over former UFC title challenger Yoel Romero in the Bellator 297 main event. The Fedorteam representative battered his adversary with straight punches and an arsenal of kicks while surviving a late Romero takedown in the final stanza. While a finish would have been an ideal punctuation to the night, Nemkov still had to respect the explosive ability of his opponent. The Russian standout is unbeaten in his last 12 professional outings, a stretch that also includes a victory in the Bellator 205-pound grand prix.10. Alexandre Pantoja (26-5) | UFC [11]
Pantoja nearly made short work of Brandon Moreno in the UFC 290 co-main event before settling in for an epic five-round battle that saw him crowned as the fifth flyweight champion in promotion history. Including an exhibition win on “The Ultimate Fighter 24,” Pantoja is now 3-0 against Moreno — though the latest triumph was by far the most difficult. “The Cannibal” will take a four-fight winning streak into his first 125-pound title defense.Other Contenders: Kamaru Usman, Alex Pereira, Jiri Prochazka, Brandon Moreno, Dustin Poirier.
Sherdog’s divisional and pound-for-pound rankings are compiled by a panel of Sherdog.com staff members and contributors: Tristen Critchfield, Mike Fridley, Brian Knapp, Ben Duffy, Jay Pettry, Edward Carbajal, Marcelo Alonso, Tudor Leonte, Keith Shillan, Tyler Treese and Lev Pisarsky. revious ranking in brackets.