UFC Rankings 2016: Conor McGregor Moves Up, Jon Jones No Longer No.1 Pound-For-Pound Fighter?

There is a new No.1 pound-for-pound fighter in UFC. Following the suspension that forced him off the card at UFC 200, Jon Jones is out of the top spot in the rankings, and he’s been replaced by the smallest male champion in the entire company.

Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson has moved atop the rankings, previously sitting at No. 2. The flyweight champion last fought on the same card as Jones, retaining his 125-pound belt with an impressive first-round knockout of Henry Cejudo. That fight gave Johnson a 10-0-1 UFC record as a flyweight.

The last man to defeat Johnson, bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz, is up to No. 2 in the rankings.

Johnson has been forced off the UFC 201 card with an injury, but it could be a while before someone knocks him off the top spot. Jones’ suspension for using performance-enhancing drugs could keep him out for two years, and he’s down to No. 3 in the rankings, even though his only loss in UFC was a disqualification that came nearly seven years ago.

Daniel Cormier was supposed to defend his light heavyweight title at UFC 200, but he instead defeated Jones’ replacement, Anderson Silva, in a non-title fight. Cormier is up to No. 6 in the pound-for-pound rankings, and he’s one of four fighters that moved up in the top-15 after a win at the biggest PPV of the year.

TJ Dillashaw joins the rankings at No. 15 after his unanimous decision victory over Raphael Assuncao. Jose Aldo goes from No. 8 to No. 7 with his win over Frankie Edgar. New lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez goes from being unranked all the way to No. 8, having taken the belt from Rafael Dos Anjos, who is down to No. 13.

Aldo’s victory makes him the interim featherweight champ, guaranteeing him a title shot against Conor McGregor. McGregor lost his last fight against Nate Diaz, but he moves from No. 6 to No. 5 after UFC 200. McGregor gets his rematch with Diaz at welterweight in the main event of UFC 202.

If the rankings are any indication, the featherweight division might be the best in UFC. McGregor (5), Aldo (7) and Edgar (14) are all in the top 15.

Brock Lesnar isn’t in the pound-for-pound rankings, but after just one fight, he’s once again a top-10 heavyweight. Defeating Mark Hunt in his first fight in nearly five years, Lesnar is the No.8 ranked heavyweight. He could look to have another UFC fight in the not-too-distant future, potentially moving him up the rankings even further.

Joanna Jedrzejczyk is the only female in the pound-for-pound top 15. She successfully defended her strawweight championship on the night before UFC 200.

UFC Pound-For-Pound Rankings

1) Demetrious Johnson

2) Dominick Cruz

3) Jon Jones

4) Robbie Lawler

5) Conor McGregor

6) Daniel Cormier

7) Jose Aldo

8) Eddie Alvarez

9) Joanna Jedrzejczyk

10) Stipe Miocic

11) Michael Bisping

12) Luke Rockhold

13) Rafael Dos Anjos

14) Frankie Edgar

15) TJ Dillashaw