Can anyone stop Alexandre Pantoja’s rise?
Credit to Author: ESPN| Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2024 08:14:35 EST
Alexandre Pantoja did not have much trouble getting past Kai Asakura in their men’s flyweight title fight at Saturday’s UFC 310. But Pantoja is having difficulty getting past four other fighters.
The weekend began with Pantoja at No. 5 in the ESPN men’s pound-for-pound MMA rankings, behind Islam Makhachev, Alex Pereira, Jon Jones and Ilia Topuria. The weekend ended the same way, as even a dominant performance and second-round submission in Pantoja’s third title defense was not enough to push him past any of those four.
However, Pantoja solidified his position in the top five and was bumped up in the rankings of some on the ESPN voting panel, just not enough to elevate his overall status.
That was the only fight Saturday that impacted these rankings, but its result was not the only championship-related news to come out of the evening, as two ranked champs had fights announced for UFC 312 on Feb. 8. Zhang Weili, the No. 1 fighter in the women’s top 10, will defend her strawweight title against undefeated Tatiana Suarez, and No. 10-ranked Dricus Du Plessis will put his middleweight belt on the line against former champion Sean Strickland.
For the ESPN divisional MMA rankings, click here.
Note: Results are current; rankings as of Dec. 10. To be eligible for the rankings, a fighter must have competed over the past 12 months or must have an upcoming fight booked. Fighters who have been dropped for inactivity can be reinstated only after they compete.
UFC lightweight champion
Record: 26-1
Last: W (Sub5) vs. Dustin Poirier, June 1, 2024
Next: Jan. 18 vs. Arman Tsarukyan
2. Alex Pereira 
UFC light heavyweight champion
Record: 12-2
Last: W (TKO4) vs. Khalil Rountree Jr., Oct. 5, 2024
Next: TBD
3. Jon Jones
UFC heavyweight champion
Record: 28-1, 1 NC
Last: W (TKO3) vs. Stipe Miocic, Nov. 16, 2024
Next: TBD
4. Ilia Topuria
UFC featherweight champion
Record: 16-0
Last: W (KO3) vs. Max Holloway, Oct. 26, 2024
Next: TBD
UFC flyweight champion
Record: 29-5
Last: W (TechSub2) vs. Kai Asakura, Dec. 7, 2024
Next: TBD
6. Tom Aspinall
UFC heavyweight interim champion
Record: 15-3
Last: W (TKO1) vs. Curtis Blaydes, July 27, 2024
Next: TBD
PFL heavyweight Super Fights champion
Record: 18-3
Last: W (KO1) vs. Renan Ferreira, Oct. 19, 2024
Next: TBD
UFC bantamweight champion
Record: 18-4
Last: W (UD) vs. Sean O’Malley, Sept.14, 2024
Next: Jan. 18 vs. Umar Nurmagomedov
UFC welterweight champion
Record: 24-3, 1 NC
Last: W (UD) vs. Leon Edwards, July 27, 2024
Next: TBD
UFC middleweight champion
Record: 22-2
Last: W (Sub4) vs. Israel Adesanya, Aug.17, 2024
Next: Feb. 8 vs. Sean Strickland
Other fighters receiving votes: Alexander Volkanovski, Khamzat Chimaev, Leon Edwards and Max Holloway.
Brett Okamoto: 1. Ilia Topuria; 2. Islam Makhachev; 3. Alex Pereira; 4. Tom Aspinall; 5. Jon Jones; 6. Alexandre Pantoja; 7. Belal Muhammad; 8. Merab Dvalishvili; 9. Alexander Volkanovski; 10. Dricus Du Plessis.
Andreas Hale: 1. Makhachev; 2. Jones; 3. Pereira; 4. Topuria; 5. Aspinall; 6. Dvalishvili; 7. Muhammad; 8. Francis Ngannou; 9. Pantoja; 10. Volkanovski.
Megan Anderson: 1. Jones; 2. Makhachev; 3. Pereira; 4. Ngannou; 5. Topuria; 6. Pantoja; 7. Volkanovski; 8. Du Plessis; 9. Aspinall; 10. Muhammad.
Carlos Contreras Legaspi: 1. Makhachev; 2. Jones; 3. Pereira; 4. Topuria; 5. Pantoja; 6. Du Plessis; 7. Dvalishvili; 8. Ngannou; 9. Muhammad; 10. Aspinall.
Ian Parker: 1. Jones; 2. Pereira; 3. Makhachev; 4. Topuria; 5. Dvalishvili; 6. Du Plessis; 7. Pantoja; 8. Muhammad; 9. Aspinall; 10. Khamzat Chimaev.
Eddie Maisonet III: 1. Makhachev; 2. Jones; 3. Pereira; 4. Pantoja; 5. Topuria; 6. Ngannou; 7. Volkanovski; 8. Muhammad; 9. Leon Edwards; 10. Max Holloway.
Jeff Wagenheim: 1. Pereira; 2. Makhachev; 3. Topuria; 4. Ngannou; 5. Aspinall; 6. Jones; 7. Pantoja; 8. Dvalishvili; 9. Volkanovski; 10. Chimaev.
1. Zhang Weili
UFC strawweight champion
Record: 25-3
Last: W (UD) vs. Yan Xiaonan, April 13, 2024
Next: Feb. 8 vs. Tatiana Suarez
UFC flyweight champion
Record: 23-4-1
Last: W (UD) vs. Alexa Grasso, Sept. 14, 2024
Next: TBD
3. Cris Cyborg
Bellator featherweight and PFL Super Fights champion
Record: 28-2, 1 NC
Last: W (UD) vs. Larissa Pacheco, Oct. 19, 2024
Next: TBD
4. Alexa Grasso
UFC flyweight
Record: 16-4-1
Last: L (UD) vs. Valentina Shevchenko, Sept. 14, 2024
Next: TBD
UFC bantamweight
Record: 18-1
Last: W (UD) vs. Ketlen Vieira, Oct. 5, 2024
Next: TBD
6. Manon Fiorot
UFC flyweight
Record: 12-1
Last: W (UD) vs. Erin Blanchfield, March 30, 2024
Next: TBD
PFL featherweight champion
Record: 23-5
Last: L (UD) vs. Cris Cyborg, Oct. 19, 2024
Next: TBD
UFC bantamweight champion
Record: 12-5
Last: W (SD) vs. Raquel Pennington, Oct. 5, 2024
Next: TBD
UFC flyweight
Record: 13-2
Last: W (UD) vs. Rose Namajunas, Nov. 2, 2024
Next: TBD
10. Yan Xiaonan
UFC strawweight
Record: 19-4, 1 NC
Last: W (UD) vs. Tabatha Ricci, Nov. 23, 2024
Next: TBD
Other fighters receiving votes: Rose Namajunas, Dakota Ditcheva, Seika Izawa and Amanda Lemos.
Brett Okamoto: 1. Zhang Weili; 2. Valentina Shevchenko; 3. Cris Cyborg; 4. Alexa Grasso; 5. Manon Fiorot; 6. Rose Namajunas; 7. Erin Blanchfield; 8. Kayla Harrison; 9. Larissa Pacheco; 10. Yan Xiaonan.
Andreas Hale: 1. Zhang; 2. Shevchenko; 3. Grasso; 4. Cyborg; 5. Fiorot; 6. Harrison; 7. Pacheco; 8. Namajunas; 9. Peña; 10. Blanchfield.
Megan Anderson: 1. Zhang; 2. Shevchenko; 3. Cyborg; 4. Grasso; 5. Fiorot; 6. Harrison; 7. Peña; 8. Yan; 9. Pacheco; 10. Blanchfield.
Carlos Contreras Legaspi: 1. Shevchenko; 2. Zhang; 3. Grasso; 4. Cyborg; 5. Harrison; 6. Peña; 7. Pacheco; 8. Dakota Ditcheva; 9. Fiorot; 10. Blanchfield.
Ian Parker: 1. Zhang; 2. Shevchenko; 3. Cyborg; 4. Harrison; 5. Grasso; 6. Yan; 7. Peña; 8. Pacheco; 9. Fiorot; 10. Namajunas.
Eddie Maisonet III: 1. Zhang; 2. Shevchenko; 3. Grasso; 4. Cyborg; 5. Pacheco; 6. Harrison; 7. Peña; 8. Fiorot; 9. Blanchfield; 10. Amanda Lemos.
Jeff Wagenheim: 1. Zhang; 2. Shevchenko; 3. Cyborg; 4. Fiorot; 5. Grasso; 6. Pacheco; 7. Harrison; 8. Yan; 9. Blanchfield; 10. Seika Izawa.