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Middleweight
1. Robert Whittaker (20-4)
An emergency hernia surgery forced Whittaker to withdraw from his scheduled title defense against Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 234. Even more disappointing, that’s twice that “The Reaper” has been forced to pull out of headlining championship fights in his home country of Australia (An injury also forced him out of a proposed matchup with Luke Rockhold at UFC 221.) Whittaker has won nine bouts in a row but is still awaiting his first official belt defense, as his UFC 225 triumph over Yoel Romero was a non-title bout due to Romero missing weight.2. Yoel Romero (13-3)
Romero was not eligible to win a title at UFC 225, but he still delivered a memorable performance in his rematch with Robert Whittaker. Despite landing knockdowns in the third and fifth rounds, “The Soldier of God” lost a heartbreaking split verdict in the June 9 headliner at the United Center in Chicago. Romero’s difficulties on the scale of late had him contemplating a move to 205 pounds, but instead, he will remain at middleweight. After initially being linked to a matchup with Paulo Henrique Costa, Romero will instead rematch Ronaldo Souza in the UFC on ESPN 3 headliner in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on April 27.3. Kelvin Gastelum (16-3)
Gastelum’s championship dreams were put on hold after Robert Whittaker withdrew from their headlining bout at UFC 234 to undergo surgery for a hernia just hours before the event. With Whittaker still healing and not ready until summer, Gastelum will square off against Israel Adesanya for the interim 185-pound title at UFC 236 in Atlanta on April 13.4. Ronaldo Souza (26-6)
After having lost two of his last three bouts heading into UFC 230, Souza showed he still has plenty left in the tank against Chris Weidman at Madison Square Garden. After engaging in a back-and-forth slugfest for more than two rounds, “Jacare” knocked Weidman silly with a right hand to the temple in the third stanza. A couple follow-up blows ended the bout at the 2:46 mark, and re-established the 38-year-old Brazilian as a title contender in the UFC’s middleweight division. Souza will get a chance to avenge a contentious split decision loss to Yoel Romero when he faces “Soldier of God” in a rematch at UFC on ESPN 3 on April 27.5. Luke Rockhold (16-4)
Rockhold once looked capable of a lengthy reign as UFC middleweight champion. However, the California native is now on the outside of the title picture looking in after suffering a brutal third-round knockout loss to Yoel Romero in the UFC 221 headliner in Perth, Australia. The American Kickboxing Academy product was booked in a rematch against Chris Weidman at UFC 230 on Nov. 3 in New York but was forced to withdraw from the booking due to injury.6. Gegard Mousasi (45-6-2)
Mousasi did exactly what he was supposed to do, as he took apart welterweight champion Rory MacDonald in the Bellator 206 main event to retain his 185-pound belt. The Armenian-born Dutchman picked MacDonald apart with a crisp jab before unloading with brutal punches and elbows from full mount to secure a stoppage in the second stanza. The UFC veteran was scheduled to make his next title defense against American jiu-jitsu ace Rafael Lovato Jr. at Bellator 214 but had to withdraw from the bout due to a back injury.7. Israel Adesanya (16-0)
It wasn’t the lopsided victory some expected, but Adesanya took care of business against the still-dangerous Anderson Silva, winning a unanimous decision in the UFC 234 headliner. “The Last Stylebender” couldn’t get his desired finish, but he nonetheless won the majority of the striking exchanges against his veteran opponent. Adesanya has now won five straight, tying him for the second-longest active winning streak in the middleweight division. As a result of that work, the Nigerian-born Kiwi has been booked against Kelvin Gastelum in an interim middleweight title fight at UFC 236.8. Chris Weidman (14-4)
Madison Square Garden has not been kind to “The All American.” Weidman returned following a lengthy injury-related hiatus at UFC 230, but the result was disappointing, as he suffered a third-round knockout loss to Ronaldo Souza in the evening’s co-main event. The former middleweight champion has now lost four of his last five Octagon appearances, including another brutal knockout loss against Yoel Romero in the UFC’s MSG debut in November 2016. His lone win during that time: a third-round submission of current No. 1 contender Kelvin Gastelum at UFC on Fox 25.9. Jared Cannonier (11-4)
After so-so results during stints at heavyweight and light heavyweight, Cannonier may have found a home at 185 pounds. Sporting a new-and-improved physique, “The Killa Gorilla” scored a second-round technical knockout stoppage of David Branch at UFC 230. Cannonier is just 4-4 during his promotional tenure overall, but his path is looking much more interesting following the most significant win of his career to date. That will continue to hold true at UFC 237, when he faces Brazilian legend Anderson Silva in hostile territory.10. Paulo Henrique Costa (12-0)
“Borrachinha” has established himself as a forced to be reckoned in the UFC with thanks to TKO finishes in his first four Octagon appearances. One of the sport’s most physically imposing middleweights, Costa was first supposed to fight Yoel Romero at UFC 230, then at UFC Brooklyn. The matchup was targeted for a third time at UFC on ESPN 3, but the promotion elected to go another direction for that card, booking Romero in a rematch against Ronaldo Souza. Costa, meanwhile, has not competed since stopping Uriah Hall at UFC 226 this past July.Other Contenders: Antonio Carlos Jr., David Branch, Derek Brunson, Elias Theodorou, Anderson Silva.
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