Right, let’s talk about Alexander Volkanovski’s latest featherweight title defence and how it shifted the pound-for-pound landscape. The Australian’s dominant performance against Diego Lopes at UFC 325 sparked proper debate about whether we needed to watch this dance twice, yet it still earned him recognition in the volkanovski p4p rankings.
Volkanovski P4P Movement After Lopes Victory
Volkanovski schooled Diego Lopes over five rounds on 31st January, controlling every moment just like he did nine months prior when he first beat the same bloke. However, the ESPN panel remained divided on his performance. Three voters kept Volkanovski exactly where he was, whilst two others were impressed enough to bump him up significantly. The result? A slight shuffle from ninth to eighth spot in the volkanovski p4p rankings.
Top Ten Shake-Up Following Latest Rankings
Furthermore, that movement sent ripples through the entire top ten. Tom Aspinall dropped out of a shared third place, leaving Alex Pereira alone at number three. The heavyweight king now sits tied at fourth with Khamzat Chimaev.
Meanwhile, Islam Makhachev remains the king of kings after snatching the welterweight strap from Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 322. That victory tied him with Anderson Silva for the longest UFC win streak at sixteen fights straight. The lightweight-turned-welterweight champion has everyone clamouring for a scrap with Ilia Topuria.
In addition, Topuria himself sits pretty at number two after capturing the vacant lightweight title by starching Charles Oliveira at UFC 317. The Georgian knockout artist headlines the White House card against interim champion Justin Gaethje on 14th June.
Consequently, Alex Pereira proved his mettle against wrestler Magomed Ankalaev, losing the first encounter but violently settling the score in their rematch at UFC 320. He’ll vacate the light heavyweight crown to chase heavyweight gold against Ciryl Gane.
Most importantly, Volkanovski’s resurrection continues at 37, proving doubters wrong after that brutal Topuria knockout. Two wins over Lopes have silenced the retirement whispers for now, cementing his position amongst the sport’s elite fighters.