Sherdog’s Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

If popular perception was that Gegard Mousasi was undervalued in Sherdog.com’s rankings prior to Bellator 282, Johnny Eblen put an end to that line of thinking on Friday night in Connecticut.

Eblen dominated “The Dreamcatcher” in their middleweight championship headliner, keeping his undefeated record intact in a unanimous decision triumph at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. Whether age has caught up to soon-to-be 37-year-old Mousasi or he simply overlooked his opponent is unclear, but Eblen’s triumph causes a minor shakeup in the latest middleweight poll. The new champion takes over Mousasi’s previous spot at No. 8, while the Armenian-born Dutchman falls to 10th, still in search of his 50th career victory.

Elsewhere, Mateusz Gamrot edged Arman Tsarukyan via unanimous decision in the UFC on ESPN 38 main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. While the verdict was a topic of debate, the fight itself was an instant classic and established both men as fighters to watch in the lightweight division in the coming months. For now, both remain on the lightweight bubble, but that could easily change in the near future.

Another fighter who emerged as a person of interest on Saturday is Kazakhstan-based welterweight Shavkat Rakhmonov, who put together a complete performance in a second-round submission victory against notoriously tough divisional gatekeeper Neil Magny in the “UFC Vegas 57” co-headliner. With a resume that features 16 finishes in as many professional outings, “Nomad” is on the move in the welterweight rankings, making his debut at 11th.

Finally, Cat Zingano earned her third consecutive triumph under the Bellator banner, taking a three-round decision over ex-Invicta FC champ Pam Sorenson on the Bellator 282 undercard. Zingano enters the featherweight rankings at No. 6 — whether that’s enough to earn her a future date with reigning 145-pound champ Cristiane Justino remains to be seen. In other female featherweight rankings news, we bid farewell to Megan Anderson, who hasn’t officially retired but hasn’t indicated she plans on fighting anytime soon, either.

Note: Previous rankings listed in brackets.

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