Which Ranked Fighters Are Competing This Weekend? UFC Fight Night 164 Rankings Tracker
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The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to Sao Paulo, Brazil, as UFC Fight Night 164 takes place this Saturday. A number of ranked fighters are competing on the main card, so let’s take a look at them and the possible implications their fights could have on the rankings.
In the main event, Jan
Blachowicz welcomes Ronaldo
Souza to the light heavyweight division. Blachowicz (24-8) is
coming off an emphatic knockout of former middleweight champion
Luke
Rockhold at UFC 239. That made it five wins in his last six for
the Pole as he is ranked highly as a result. Sherdog and ESPN rate
him as the seventh-best light heavyweight in the world while he is
No. 6 in the UFC rankings.
Ideally, a win over another elite former middleweight should push Blachowicz up the rankings. But it will be interesting to see how things pan out especially with the No. 4-ranked Dominick Reyes and No. 5-ranked Corey Anderson above him and also coming off big victories.
However, given the depth of the division, a win or two at light heavyweight could see him finally land that elusive title shot. And getting past Blachowicz could see Souza leapfrog a number of contenders to potentially sit at No. 6 in the rankings. As it stands, Sherdog and ESPN rate Souza as the ninth-best middleweight in the world while he is currently No. 8 in the UFC rankings.
In the co-main event, former light heavyweight champion Mauricio Rua returns to action when he faces Paul Craig. Rua (26-11) bounced back from a decisive knockout defeat to Anthony Smith with a TKO win over young prospect Tyson Pedro in December last year. Despite being 37, "Shogun" has four victories in his last five and is the current No. 14 contender in the UFC rankings. Another triumph could see him move up further.
Craig (12-4), meanwhile, will look to get the biggest win of his career on Saturday. The 31-year-old is coming off a submission win over Vinicius Moreira, but is yet to win two in a row since joining the UFC in 2017. He now has a chance to do that against Rua, where getting his hand raised could see him enter the Top 15 of the rankings for the first time.
Lastly, Charles Oliviera looks to continue his winning streak against Jared Gordon. Oliviera (27-8, 1 NC) is coming off a TKO triumph over Nik Lentz. In total, he is on a five-fight winning streak, but given the amount of killers in the lightweight division, he is only ranked No. 13 in the UFC rankings. However, a sixth win in a row could see “Do Bronx” rise up further, especially with a number of fighters above him coming off losses.
His opponent in Gordon (15-3) has the opportunity of ending that run and getting the biggest win of his career in the process. "Flash" ended a two-fight losing skid with a unanimous decision victory over Dan Moret in June. If he can stop Oliveira next, he could also potentially insert himself into the top 15 of the lightweight rankings.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to Sao Paulo, Brazil, as UFC Fight Night 164 takes place this Saturday. A number of ranked fighters are competing on the main card, so let’s take a look at them and the possible implications their fights could have on the rankings.
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Ideally, a win over another elite former middleweight should push Blachowicz up the rankings. But it will be interesting to see how things pan out especially with the No. 4-ranked Dominick Reyes and No. 5-ranked Corey Anderson above him and also coming off big victories.
Souza (26-7, 1NC) will look for a change in fortune as he makes the
move up to 205. The Brazilian is coming off a unanimous decision
defeat to Jack
Hermansson back in April. That made it three losses in his last
five at middleweight for “Jacare,” who saw yet another opportunity
for a title shot slip out of his hands.
However, given the depth of the division, a win or two at light heavyweight could see him finally land that elusive title shot. And getting past Blachowicz could see Souza leapfrog a number of contenders to potentially sit at No. 6 in the rankings. As it stands, Sherdog and ESPN rate Souza as the ninth-best middleweight in the world while he is currently No. 8 in the UFC rankings.
In the co-main event, former light heavyweight champion Mauricio Rua returns to action when he faces Paul Craig. Rua (26-11) bounced back from a decisive knockout defeat to Anthony Smith with a TKO win over young prospect Tyson Pedro in December last year. Despite being 37, "Shogun" has four victories in his last five and is the current No. 14 contender in the UFC rankings. Another triumph could see him move up further.
Craig (12-4), meanwhile, will look to get the biggest win of his career on Saturday. The 31-year-old is coming off a submission win over Vinicius Moreira, but is yet to win two in a row since joining the UFC in 2017. He now has a chance to do that against Rua, where getting his hand raised could see him enter the Top 15 of the rankings for the first time.
Lastly, Charles Oliviera looks to continue his winning streak against Jared Gordon. Oliviera (27-8, 1 NC) is coming off a TKO triumph over Nik Lentz. In total, he is on a five-fight winning streak, but given the amount of killers in the lightweight division, he is only ranked No. 13 in the UFC rankings. However, a sixth win in a row could see “Do Bronx” rise up further, especially with a number of fighters above him coming off losses.
His opponent in Gordon (15-3) has the opportunity of ending that run and getting the biggest win of his career in the process. "Flash" ended a two-fight losing skid with a unanimous decision victory over Dan Moret in June. If he can stop Oliveira next, he could also potentially insert himself into the top 15 of the lightweight rankings.
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