UFC 328 Power Rankings: Rating The Night’s Big Winners In New Jersey

The Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey played host to the latest UFC numbered event as UFC 328 served up a fascinating night of fights on the East Coast.

Here are our power rankings for the main card winners from UFC 328.

UFC 328 Power Rankings

1. Joshua Van

Heading into fight night, perhaps the one fighter with the biggest question marks over him was flyweight champion Joshua Van. The Burmese champion captured the title from Alexandre Pantoja through unusual circumstances when a freak arm injury to “The Cannibal” rendered Pantoja unable to continue after just 26 seconds of the fight, leaving Van to be crowned champion almost before a punch had been thrown in anger.

It meant that all eyes were on Van when he put his title on the line against the dangerous, well-rounded Tatsuro Taira on Saturday night. Many were backing Taira to get the victory, but in one of the best fights of the year, Van produced a brilliant display to defeat Taira via fifth-round TKO.

Nobody doubts Van’s championship credentials now, but that rematch with Pantoja remains. Whether that happens later this summer or in the fall, it looks set to be one of the very best title fights of 2026. Mind you, Saturday night’s fight is going to take some beating.

2. Sean Strickland

Everyone has an opinion on Sean Strickland, but whether you like or loathe the now two-time UFC middleweight champion, one thing that can’t be denied is that he knows how to rise to the occasion.

When he was selected as the challenger for newly-crowned champ Khamzat Chimaev, few gave Strickland that much of a chance. Chimaev had steamrollered almost everyone he’d faced, and made beating Dricus Du Plessis embarrassingly easy when he won the title. 

But Strickland arrived with a gameplan, and a career’s worth of experience training with every type of fighting style you can imagine. And it was his well-roundedness, his conditioning and his sheer refusal to back down that saw him edge Chimaev on the scorecards after five super-close rounds at Prudential Center.

The pre-fight bad blood from both men took the build-up beyond the boundaries of taste at times, but when it came to the fight, Strickland had the upper hand, and Chimaev’s quiet, magnanimous acceptance of the result suggested he’d been beaten by the better man on the day.

Expect Du Plessis to campaign for another title shot, while Chimaev may look to run it back, too. However, the state of the Chechen-born fighter on weigh-in day suggested that a move up to light heavyweight might make more sense for “Borz” moving forward.

3. Sean Brady

Sean Brady comes from Philadelphia, so you shouldn’t be in the least bit surprised that, after he comprehensively defeated Joaquin Buckly over three rounds, he had a bit to say on the mic after his victory.

Brady is typically a respectful, relatively quiet character. But after having his credentials questioned after his TKO loss to Michael Morales clearly stung, and he had something to say about it after his win.

In short, he ain’t going nowhere, and of all the fighters in that clutch of contenders at 170 pounds, Brady remains the one fighter you don’t want to find yourself on the mat with. 

And in a division full of strikers, his grappling could prove to be the x-factor that keeps him in the mix, and a constant threat to the very best at 170.

4. Alexander Volkov

In many people’s eyes Alexander Volkov should have been the man fighting Alex Pereira at the White House, not Ciryl Gane. The big Russian was very harshly treated by the judges when he found himself on the wrong end of a split-decision verdict against the Frenchman at UFC 310. But since then, “Drago” has gone about the job of proving that he deserves a title shot, regardless.

He defeated Jailton Almeida via split decision at UFC 321 last October, then on Saturday night he defeated in-form Waldo Cortes Acosta on the scorecards to push his name even closer to a shot at the heavyweight title.

The division is in need of a kickstart in 2026, but with Pereira and Gane facing off for the interim title, and undisputed champion Tom Aspinall on his way back from double eye surgery, business is starting to pick up again. And Volkov absolutely deserves to be in the middle of it.

5. King Green

The main card kicked off with a battle of grizzled Octagon veterans, and while King Green and Jeremy Stephens are known for their contrasting striking styles in MMA gloves, it was Green’s sneaky good submission skills that proved to be the difference-maker, as he submitted “Lil’ Heathen” in the final minute of the first round in their 160-pound catchweight bout.

Stephens had missed weight by a wide margin ahead of the contest, and Green punished him for it by locking up a rear-naked choke to secure the 35th win, and the 10th submission finish, of his career.

He may be firmly in the veteran stage of his career, but Green remains a compelling character, with his enthusiasm for the sport seemingly as bright as ever. And, whisper it quietly, the 39-year-old is riding a three-fight win streak. 

He ain’t done yet. Not by a long shot.