Image: John Brannigan/Sherdog.com illustration
Dustin Poirier isn’t quite ready to step aside for the next generation of lightweight talent.
The old guard wasn’t as successful at welterweight, as Gilbert Burns racked up an early lead on the scorecards before falling to Australian prospect Jack Della Maddalena via third-round TKO on the UFC 299 main card. That results in a significant shakeup in the divisional rankings: Maddalena climbs from No. 15 to sixth, while Burns falls from fourth to eighth.
Another fighter making moves at UFC 299 was Maycee Barber, who earned her sixth consecutive victory at the expense of former flyweight title challenger Katlyn Cerminara. While it wasn’t pretty — Barber fights rarely are — her most significant victory to date propels her to the No. 7 spot at 125 pounds.
While Sean O'Malley maintained his spot atop the bantamweight rankings with a thorough thrashing of Marlon Vera in the UFC 299 main event, ex-title holder Petr Yan proved he still has something left in the tank by rallying for a decision victory over Yadong Song in another matchup of ranked 135-pound competitors. By snapping a three-bout skid, “No Mercy” climbs to the fifth spot at 135 pounds.
Elsewhere, Curtis Blaydes derailed the hype train of Brazilian grappling ace Jailton Almeida in a preliminary heavyweight clash. By halting Almeida’s 15-bout winning streak, Blaydes holds on to his No. 5 ranking and prevents “Maladinho” from advancing any further in the heavyweight poll. Finally, Mateusz Gamrot held off a strong early surge from Rafael dos Anjos to capture a decision triumph over the former lightweight king. As a result,” Gamer” keeps his No. 7 ranking in one of the sport’s most competitive divisions.
Note: Previous rankings listed in brackets.
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