The UFC 316 event on Jun. 7, 2025, was headlined by UFC Men’s Bantamweight Champion Merab Dvalishvili’s rematch against former divisional kingpin Sean O’Malley. Dvalishvili beat O’Malley to defend his title successfully.
Additionally, the event’s co-headlining match saw Kayla Harrison defeat Julianna Pena to become the new UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion. The fight card also featured various other matchups, with some ending in electrifying finishes. As such, a few notable changes have come about in the post-UFC 316 rankings update.
Post-UFC 316 Rankings Update: Merab Dvalishvili and Kayla Harrison Rise in Pound-for-Pound Lists
Dvalishvili bested O’Malley via unanimous decision in their first encounter in September 2024. He won their rematch even more decisively by submitting O’Malley at UFC 316 this past Saturday. As reported by John Morgan, Dvalishvili’s latest win has boosted him up the men’s pound-for-pound rankings.
“The Machine” moved up two spots, surpassing Jon Jones, who’s now ranked No. 3, and Ilia Topuria, currently ranked No. 4 on the list. Dvalishvili almost dethroned the top-ranked men’s pound-for-pound fighter, Islam Makhachev. While Makhachev managed to hold to the position in the rankings update, speculation has abounded that another quick turnaround and win for Dvalishvili could possibly make him the pound-for-pound king.
O’Malley was removed from the men’s pound-for-pound list, and Arman Tsarukyan re-entered the list at No. 15.
“The Machine” is the UFC’s No. 2-ranked pound-for-pound fighter.
Following #UFC316, @MerabDvalishvil moves up two spots – past Ilia Topuria and Jon Jones – and now sits only behind Islam Makhachev.
Sean O’Malley is off the list, allowing Arman Tsarukyan to return at No. 15. pic.twitter.com/9HrHXhkmMt
— John Morgan (@JohnMorgan_MMA) June 10, 2025
Two-time Olympic gold medalist Judoka and ex-PFL Women’s Lightweight Champion Kayla Harrison captured her maiden UFC title. She submitted Julianna Pena and was crowned the new UFC women’s bantamweight champ at UFC 316. The dominant victory helped her ascend four spots in the women’s pound-for-pound rankings. Harrison is currently ranked No. 3 on that list.
Valentina Shevchenko is still the No. 1-ranked women’s pound-for-pound fighter, whereas Zhang Weili stands at No. 2. Meanwhile, Pena dropped two spots and is now ranked No. 5 in the women’s pound-for-pound rankings.
Kayla Harrison is the UFC’s No. 3-ranked pound-for-pound women’s fighter, trailing only Valentina Shevchenko and Zhang Weili.@KaylaH moves up four spots with her #UFC316 title win. Julianna Peña falls two spots to No. 5.
Peña also takes the No. 1 contender spot at 135. pic.twitter.com/rn9T5EihTN
— John Morgan (@JohnMorgan_MMA) June 10, 2025
On the other hand, Mario Bautista’s unanimous decision victory against ex-Bellator bantamweight kingpin Patchy Mix has resulted in the former moving up one spot and bagging the No. 9 position in the men’s bantamweight rankings. Umar Nurmagomedov, who didn’t compete at UFC 316, moved up one place and is ranked No. 2 in the division.
Kevin Holland also earned a spectacular win at UFC 316, stopping Vicente Luque via submission. Having previously been out of the top 15 at welterweight, Holland is now ranked No. 14, which was Luque’s rank heading into their fight. Luque has been ousted from the top 15 due to his loss against Holland.
Wang Cong, who outpointed Ariane Lipski da Silva at UFC 316, has entered the women’s flyweight top-15 rankings and now stands at No. 14. Meanwhile, da Silva went down two spots and is now ranked No. 15. Moreover, JJ Aldrich was removed from the division’s top-15 ranks.
Waldo Cortes-Acosta outpointed Serghei Spivac in their heavyweight showdown at UFC 316. He’s resultantly ascended three spots in the heavyweight ranks and is ranked No. 8. Alternatively, Spivac fell two spots and now holds the No. 9 position.
Elsewhere on the card, Azamat Murzakanov beat Brendson Ribeiro via TKO in their heavyweight clash, later moving up one spot in the heavyweight rankings and now standing at No. 11. Furthermore, Joshua Van defeated Bruno Gustavo da Silva via TKO in a flyweight clash at UFC 316. Van moved up by four spots in the division to No. 10, while his opponent fell two spots to No. 14.