John Brannigan/Sherdog.com illustration
Much to the dismay of those in attendance at SSE Arena in London — apparently including promotion head Scott Coker — Logan Storley relied on his wrestling to neutralize British knockout artist Michael Page to win a relatively dull split decision in the Bellator 281 headliner on Friday. Not only does Storley claim the interim welterweight crown, but he makes his debut in Sherdog’s 170-pound rankings at No. 13, one spot ahead of “MVP.” Excitement is nice, but victories, belts and rankings are even better for the four-time NCAA All-American.
Elsewhere, it was the women of Brazil making moves in the rankings at UFC on ESPN 36. Thanks to a grappling-heavy decision win over Angela Hill, Virna Jandiroba climbs past Michelle Waterson and into the 10th position in the strawweight poll, while Viviane Araujo’s clear-cut triumph against Andrea Lee propels her from 14th to No. 11 at flyweight.
At the top of the UFC on ESPN 36 bill, second-ranked Jan Blachowicz simply held serve after Aleksandar Rakic blew out his knee in the third round of their light heavyweight headliner. The victory allows Blachowicz to keep the 205-pound belt squarely in his sights, and he’ll be an interested observer when Glover Teixeira and Jiri Prochazka square off at UFC 275.
Note: Previous rankings listed in brackets.
HEAVYWEIGHT
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT
MIDDLEWEIGHT
WELTERWEIGHT
LIGHTWEIGHT
FEATHERWEIGHT
BANTAMWEIGHT
FLYWEIGHT
WOMEN'S FEATHERWEIGHT
WOMEN'S BANTAMWEIGHT
WOMEN'S FLYWEIGHT
WOMEN'S STRAWWEIGHT
WOMEN'S ATOMWEIGHT