UFC power rankings following Fight Night 331 in Los Angeles

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Hello everyone, and welcome back for another week of UFC rankings. Now that UFC 331 is in the rearview mirror, we turn our attention to UFC Fight Night 289 in Las Vegas, which features Raul Rosas Jr. versus Raoni Barcelos in the main event. 

However, at UFC 331, Joshua Van defeated Alexandre Pantoja to retain his Flyweight Championship. This fight was one for the ages, with both fighters battling to the end. For some, it was sad to see Pantoja fall, but right now, nobody is hotter than Van.

That being said, let’s get to this week’s rankings and see who made it. Have a great day, everyone, and may the fights be with you.

MORE: UFC 331 salaries: 2 fighters top $500,000

10.  Joshua Van:

MMA: UFC 323 - Pantoja vs Van
Dec 6, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, UNITED STATES; Joshua Van (blue gloves) reacts after the fight against Alexandre Pantoja (red gloves) during UFC 323 at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect (Reuters)

Joshua Van stayed in the tenth spot after defending his title against Alexandre Pantoja, who recorded five takedowns in the process. Many felt this was Pantoja’s path to success, but it fell short. Van dominated the striking exchanges by the end of the fight, which led to the judges studying with the champ.

9. Justin Gaethje:

Justin Gaethje defeated Ilia Topuria at UFC Freedom 250 to become the sole Lightweight Champion in the world. Gaethje is still ranked ninth, following this huge upset of the god-like Topuria. There are a lot of people deserving of a title shot, so I’m sure we’ll see things play out over the next few weeks. 

8. Max Holloway:

Max Holloway defeated Conor McGregor in under two minutes at UFC 329 after McGregor tried a spinning kick that tore up his knee. Now that Holloway officially won, he should be looking for either a title shot or another big-name fighter to put to sleep. For now, Holloway can take any match that comes his way since he didn’t even break a sweat against McGregor.

7. Charles Oliveira:

Charles “Do Bronx” Oliveira is the new BMF Champion after systematically taking apart Max Holloway at UFC 326. Recently, Oliveira has said he would like another rematch with Justin Gaethje, this time for the title. That could spell doom for Gaethje, since he went to sleep the last time they fought.

6. Alex Pereira:

Jun 14, 2026; Washington, D.C., UNITED STATES; Alex Pereira walks out prior to his fight against Ciryl Gane (not pictured) during UFC Freedom 250 at White House South Lawn. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images

Alex Pereira has been licking his wounds since losing to Ciryl Gane at UFC Freedom. Now that Josh Hokit will be fighting Ciryl Gane at UFC 334 on November 14th, Pereira will have to look to another fighter to fight, as he battles his way up the Heavyweight rankings. CHAMA!

5. Ilia Topuria:

Ilia Topuria has slipped to fifth on this list after losing badly to Justin Gaethje at UFC Freedom 250. It wasn’t just how he lost, but how his god-like complex got in the way of his goals. Since then, he’s back to ranting on X, making himself look more lost than we already thought he was. 

4. Merab Dvalishvili:

Merab Dvalishvili is finally done with his wrestling tour and will be facing Petr Yan at UFC 333 on October 24th. This was exciting to see, since everyone has been patiently waiting for Dvalishvili to win back his belt.

That is usually easier said than done, and he’ll have to take Yan down this time if he wants his Bantamweight Championship back. 

3. Sean Strickland:

May 9, 2026; Newark, New Jersey, UNITED STATES; Sean Strickland (blue gloves) celebrates after defeating Khamzat Chimaev (red gloves) during UFC 328 at Prudential Center. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images

Sean Strickland remains at the third spot as he continues to enjoy his time as champion. However, after Dricus Du Plessis defeated Kamaru Usman, DDP feels that a third match with Strickland is in order, since he’s already beaten him twice.

I didn’t want to see this rematch at first, but right now, it almost feels right. Until then, either Uncle Dana or Strickland’s mouth will let us know what’s next for our Middleweight Champion.

2. Alexander Volkanovski:

Alexander “The Great” Volkanovski will be fighting Movsar Evloev at UFC 333 on October 24th in Abu Dhabi. This exciting clash will take place as the main event, as we see a battle between an up-and-coming star in Evloev and the greatness we know in Volkanovski.

Stylistically, both are similar in their approach, but with a ton of tricks up his sleeve for Volk, he could easily retain. For now, we’ll have to wait, but you can bet that this fight is going to be one for the ages. 

1. Islam Makhachev:

Islam Makhachev is still the number one, pound-for-pound fighter in the world, and there ain’t no doubt about it. After dismantling Ian Machado-Garry at UFC 330, the champ can now sit back and enjoy the rest of the year, with some time off.

I say that because I don’t see Makhachev fighting again till early spring, if we’re lucky. Till then, we get to talk about a bunch of rumors and hope that maybe we’ll see Lord Makhachev sooner rather than later. SMESH!


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