UFC Rankings Update: Chad Mendes Removed From List Following USADA Suspension
The UFC’s partnership with USADA to clean up the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA) has already had a lasting effect on many high-profile cards, and now it’s affecting the official rankings list as well.
Word arrived on UFC Tonight this evening that former three-time featherweight title challenger Chad Mendes had been removed from the featherweight list after he was issued a two-year suspension for testing hot for growth hormone in a May 17 out-of-competition test.
With Mendes’ removal, all of the ranked featherweights from No. 4 Ricardo Lamas to No. 11 Darren Elkins moved up a single spot each. The top four spots comprised of champion Conor McGregor, interim champ Jose Aldo, No. 2 Frankie Edgar, and No. 3 Max Holloway stayed intact.
There was a decent amount of movement in the aftermath of last weekend’s (Sat., July 23, 2016) UFC on FOX 20 from Chicago, Illinois, and none more so than in the wild women’s bantamweight division. Valentina Shevchenko moved up a lofty four spots to the No. 3 position after a one-sided win over Holly Holm in the UFC on FOX 20 main event. The upset allowed Ronda Rousey to sneak into the No. 2 spot, with Miesha Tate remaining at No. 1 after her submission loss to current champion Amanda Nunes at UFC 200 two weeks ago.
Men’s bantamweight saw a small amount of movement, with former title contender Eddie Wineland moved up three spots to No. 12 after he knocked out Frankie Saenz, who dropped to No. 15, on the UFC on FOX 20 preliminary card. Jimmie Rivera, who will meet by far the biggest test of his career when he faces No. 3 Urijah Faber at UFC 203 this September, also moved up one spot to No. 13.
Check out the full updated rankings courtesy of UFC.com here:
POUND-FOR-POUND
1 Demetrious Johnson
2 Dominick Cruz
3 Jon Jones
4 Robbie Lawler
5 Daniel Cormier
6 Conor McGregor
7 Jose Aldo
8 Eddie Alvarez
9 Joanna Jedrzejczyk
10 Stipe Miocic
11 Michael Bisping
12 Luke Rockhold
13 Rafael Dos Anjos
14 TJ Dillashaw
15 Frankie Edgar
FLYWEIGHT
Champion : Demetrious Johnson
1 Joseph Benavidez
2 Henry Cejudo
3 Jussier Formiga
4 Kyoji Horiguchi
5 Ian McCall
6 Zach Makovsky
7 Wilson Reis
8 Ali Bagautinov
9 Louis Smolka
10 John Moraga
11 Matheus Nicolau
12 Dustin Ortiz
13 Justin Scoggins
14 Ray Borg
15 Sergio Pettis
BANTAMWEIGHT
Champion : Dominick Cruz
1 TJ Dillashaw
2 Urijah Faber
3 Raphael Assuncao
4 Bryan Caraway
5 John Lineker
6 Aljamain Sterling
7 Michael McDonald
8 Cody Garbrandt
9 John Dodson
10 Thomas Almeida
11 Takeya Mizugaki
12 Eddie Wineland
13 Jimmie Rivera
13 Johnny Eduardo
15 Frankie Saenz
FEATHERWEIGHT
Champion : Conor McGregor
1 Jose Aldo (Interim Champion)
2 Frankie Edgar
3 Max Holloway
4 Ricardo Lamas
5 Cub Swanson
6 Charles Oliveira
7 Jeremy Stephens
8 Dennis Bermudez
9 Brian Ortega
10 Hacran Dias
11 Darren Elkins
12 Dooho Choi *NR
13 Yair Rodriguez
14 Tatsuya Kawajiri
15 Mirsad Bektic
LIGHTWEIGHT
Champion : Eddie Alvarez
1 Khabib Nurmagomedov
2 Rafael Dos Anjos
3 Tony Ferguson
4 Nate Diaz
5 Edson Barboza
6 Donald Cerrone
7 Anthony Pettis
8 Dustin Poirier
9 Michael Chiesa
10 Michael Johnson
11 Beneil Dariush
12 Will Brooks
13 Al Iaquinta
14 Gilbert Melendez *NR
15 Rashid Magomedov
WELTERWEIGHT
Champion : Robbie Lawler
1 Stephen Thompson
2 Rory MacDonald
3 Demian Maia
4 Tyron Woodley
5 Carlos Condit
6 Kelvin Gastelum
7 Neil Magny
8 Johny Hendricks
9 Matt Brown
10 Rick Story
11 Dong Hyun Kim
12 Gunnar Nelson
13 Tarec Saffiedine
14 Donald Cerrone
15 Thiago Alves
MIDDLEWEIGHT
Champion : Michael Bisping
1 Luke Rockhold
2 Chris Weidman
3 Jacare Souza
4 Vitor Belfort
5 Anderson Silva
6 Robert Whittaker
7 Gegard Mousasi
8 Lyoto Machida
9 Uriah Hall
10 Derek Brunson
11 Tim Kennedy
12 Thales Leites
13 Dan Henderson
14 Rafael Natal
15 Thiago Santos
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT
Champion : Daniel Cormier
1 Jon Jones (Interim Champion)
2 Anthony Johnson
3 Glover Teixeira
4 Alexander Gustafsson
5 Ryan Bader
6 Ovince Saint Preux
7 Mauricio Rua
8 Rashad Evans
9 Jimi Manuwa
10 Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
11 Nikita Krylov
12 Corey Anderson
13 Ilir Latifi
14 Patrick Cummins
15 Gian Villante
HEAVYWEIGHT
Champion : Stipe Miocic
1 Fabricio Werdum
2 Cain Velasquez
3 Alistair Overeem
4 Junior Dos Santos
5 Ben Rothwell
6 Andrei Arlovski
7 Travis Browne
8 Brock Lesnar
9 Mark Hunt
10 Josh Barnett
11 Derrick Lewis
12 Roy Nelson
13 Frank Mir
14 Stefan Struve
15 Ruslan Magomedov
WOMEN’S STRAWWEIGHT
Champion : Joanna Jedrzejczyk
1 Claudia Gadelha
2 Carla Esparza
3 Rose Namajunas
4 Tecia Torres
5 Karolina Kowalkiewicz
6 Jessica Andrade
7 Joanne Calderwood
8 Maryna Moroz
9 Valerie Letourneau
10 Paige VanZant
11 Michelle Waterson
12 Jessica Penne
13 Jessica Aguilar
14 Randa Markos
15 Juliana Lima
WOMEN’S BANTAMWEIGHT
Champion : Amanda Nunes
1 Miesha Tate
2 Ronda Rousey
3 Valentina Shevchenko
4 Holly Holm
5 Julianna Pena
6 Cat Zingano
7 Sara McMann
8 Liz Carmouche
8 Raquel Pennington
10 Jessica Eye
11 Bethe Correia
12 Germaine de Randamie
13 Ashlee Evans-Smith
14 Katlyn Chookagian
15 Marion Reneau
