Sherdog’s Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

Image: John Brannigan/Sherdog.com illustration

In a little less than three years’ time, Ciryl Gane has carved out quite the heavyweight résumé.

Though his latest performance – a somewhat tepid five-round verdict over Jairzinho Rozenstruik at UFC Fight Night 186 – doesn’t stand out as memorable, simply winning a headlining bout against a fellow contender is a significant accomplishment, especially for a still-improving mixed martial artist. As it stands, Gane is already Sherdog.com’s No. 5-ranked heavyweight by virtue of his latest victory. What’s scary is there’s still plenty of room to grow.

On the other end of the spectrum is Rozenstruik, whose inability to pull the trigger for 25 minutes results in a drop from fifth to eighth in our latest poll. Meanwhile, two prominent Bellator heavyweights, reigning champ Ryan Bader and ex-kingpin Vitaly Minakov, exit the rankings after reaching the inactivity threshold. Joining the heavyweight bubble in their absence are surging UFC prospects Tom Aspinall and Chris Daukaus.

Note: Previous rankings listed in parentheses.

Continue Reading » Heavyweight