USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Sept. 29: Israel Adesanya continues pound-for-pound rise
Israel Adesanya continues to impress each time he steps in the cage, and his latest win earned him a rise in the pound-for-pound list in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings.
After downing a previously unbeaten Paulo Costa (13-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) in emphatic fashion at UFC 253, Adesanya (20-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) surpasses longtime UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson in the pound-for-pound ranking. “The Last Stylebender” now sits at No. 3, residing only behind all-time greats Jon Jones and Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Adesanya, of course, retained his No. 1 spot at middleweight, as well.
Also at UFC 253, Brandon Royval took advantage of his main-card booking by scoring a submission win over the well-respected Kai Kara-France in a bout that was awarded the evening’s “Fight of the Night” award in Abu Dhabi. Now 2-0 in the UFC and with two notable victories to his name, Royval takes a massive leap up to No. 9 in the division.
Following this past weekend’s pay-per-view event, check out the latest look of all the divisions in the latest edition of the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings.