Conor McGregor Removed From Official UFC Featherweight Rankings

After Conor McGregor defeated Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205, things only got more complicated at the top of the 145 & 155-pound divisions. Snatching the lightweight title with a stunning performance, ‘The Notorious’ temporarily held two titles at once. Just weeks after the Irishman had claimed a record-breaking second belt, circumstances changed drastically. With alleged pressure to make UFC 206 marketable, Max Holloway vs. Anthony Pettis became the interim title fight.

The man McGregor had laid waste to at UFC 194, Jose Aldo, was promoted to full champion. ”Scarface’ had topped Frankie Edgar for the junior belt at UFC 200. There’d been much friction from contenders in both divisions in regards to the decisions made by the UFC this year. The tension all started before UFC 196, where McGregor was originally meant to fight for the lightweight belt against Rafael dos Anjos. Who knew that it’d be two welterweight fights with Nate Diaz before McGregor would eventually hit 155? After going 1-1 at UFC 196 at UFC 202, McGregor was paired with Alvarez at UFC 205.

Rankings Update

After being stripped of the featherweight belt for not defending it in just under a year, McGregor has now been removed from the division’s ranks. This perhaps comes as no surprise, but is nonetheless decisive in terms of the Irishman’s future. Any questions regarding a potential return to 145 pounds have now been completely cleared up. Dying for his rematch, Aldo will now certainly have to go up to lightweight to make this a reality.

As a result of ‘The Notorious’ now being ranked only at lightweight, the rest of the featherweight category enjoys a boost. Frankie Edgar fills the number one spot behind champion Jose Aldo, Max Holloway is second followed by Ricardo Lamas, Cub Swanson and Anthony Pettis.

The image is courtesy of the official UFC website:

What About Middleweight?

After a stunning KO victory over Derek Brunson in Australia, Robert Whittaker jumps up past Anderson Silva to number six. ”The Spider’ resides in 7th place, with Vitor Belfort at eight and Brunson in ninth. Elsewhere the rankings remain the same, for now.