UFC fighter rankings: Brian Ortega is the new number-one featherweight contender

Brian Ortega made a huge splash at UFC 222, and it has been reflected in the UFC rankings. Ortega became the first man to stop Frankie Edgar, knocking him out late in the first round of their co-main event bout on the Vegas card. This has caused him to move into the top contender spot at 145 pounds, and earned him a future title shot.

Here’s a look at all the changes this week due to the outcomes from UFC 222. Obviously the headliner didn’t change anything rankings-wise, since they still don’t have enough women’s featherweights to populate a rankings list.

P4P – Khabib Nurmagomedov is up two spots into a tie for 12 with Cody Garbrandt. Amanda Nunes fell one spot to 14.

Heavyweight – Andrei Arlovski’s win over Stefan Struve saw them flip-flop their rankings. Arlovski is up two to 10, and Struve is down two to 12.

Light Heavyweight – Jordan Johnson entered the rankings at 15 with his win over Adam Milstead.

Middleweight – No changes.

Welterweight – No changes.

Lightweight – Anthony Pettis is up one to 12. Alexander Hernandez makes the rankings after just one fight in the UFC with his vicious KO win over Beneil Dariush. He’s at 13. Dariush fell three to 15.

Featherweight – Ortega is the top contender, and will have a date with champion Max Holloway. That dropped Jose Aldo down one spot to two, and Edgar down one spot to three. Near the bottom of the list, Calvin Kattar moved up one spot to 13, dropping Doo Ho Choi one to 14.

Bantamweight – Bryan Caraway’s loss after a long absence led to him dropping two spots from seven to nine. That allowed UFC 222 winner John Dodson to move up one to seven, andAljamain Sterling to move up one to eight. The man who beat Caraway, enters the list at 12. That drops Thomas Almeida, Brett Johns, and Eddie Wineland all one spot to 13, 14, and 15 respectively.

Flyweight – No changes.

Women’s Bantamweight – Ketlen Vieira’s win over Cat Zingano moved her up one spot from five to four, bumping Germaine de Randamie down to five. Leslie Smith dropped from a tie for nine into ten on her own. Ronda Rousey is finally falling out of the rankings, dropping two spots from 10 to 12. Aspen Ladd is up one to 11, and Lucie Pudilova is up one to 12.

Women’s Flyweight – No changes.

Women’s Strawweight – Cortney Casey is up one to 11, dropping Randa Markos to 12.