Jack Della Maddalena? And the new champion.
Alexander Volkanovski? And champion again.
Jack Della Maddalena and Alexander Volkanovski secured important victories in their recent title bouts at UFC 315 and UFC 314. Della Maddalena captured the welterweight championship by defeating Belal Muhammad, while Volkanovski became a two-time featherweight titleholder with a hard-fought win against Diego Lopes.
These outcomes significantly impacted the May Men`s Pound-for-Pound rankings. Belal Muhammad, previously ranked No. 5, dropped eight places to No. 13 after his loss. In contrast, Jack Della Maddalena, who was unranked, surged to No. 9 after winning the title and extending his winning streak to 18 fights. Della Maddalena has been undefeated since 2016 (after an 0-2 start) and could further shake up the ranks if he faces Islam Makhachev later this year.
Alexander Volkanovski climbed from No. 13 to No. 8. After his knockout loss to Ilia Topuria at UFC 298, Volkanovski had dropped in the rankings, and it was thought the 36-year-old might continue to decline. However, his impressive performance against Diego Lopes not only regained him a UFC championship but also solidified his place in the top 10.
Furthermore, since the last update in March, former champion Leon Edwards suffered a significant defeat to Sean Brady. While this result didn`t immediately place Brady in the rankings (though he received multiple votes), it caused Edwards to fall dramatically from No. 12 completely off the list.
Regarding Jon Jones, his ranking continues to drop. He needs to fight again.There were also notable changes in the women`s rankings, driven by Natalia Silva and Virna Jandiroba. These Brazilian fighters strengthened their claim for potential title shots. Silva secured a clear decision victory over former flyweight champion Alexa Grasso at UFC 315, while Jandiroba extended her winning streak to five with a decision win against recent strawweight title challenger Yan Xiaonan at UFC 314.
While a superfight between Zhang Weili and Valentina Shevchenko remains a possibility, Silva and Jandiroba have certainly proven themselves worthy of championship consideration and made significant climbs in the Pound-for-Pound rankings. Silva jumped 11 positions to tie for No. 5 with Manon Fiorot (who recently had a strong performance against Shevchenko), and Jandiroba moved up seven spots to No. 11.
See the updated rankings information below.
Men`s Ranking Details
Recent Results for Ranked Fighters (Previous Ranking):
Jack Della Maddalena defeated No. 5 Belal Muhammad
No. 13 (tied) Alexander Volkanovski defeated Diego Lopes
Sean Brady defeated No. 12 Leon Edwards
Upcoming Bouts Featuring Ranked Fighters:
No. 2 Ilia Topuria vs. No. 18 Charles Oliveira (UFC 317, June 28)
No. 3 Alexandre Pantoja vs. Kai Kara-France (UFC 317, June 28)
No. 4 Merab Dvalishvili vs. No. 19 Sean O’Malley (UFC 316, June 7)
No. 5 Dricus du Plessis vs. No. 15 Khamzat Chimaev (UFC 319, Aug. 16)
No. 12 Max Holloway vs. Dustin Poirier (UFC 318, July 19)
Fighters Also Receiving Votes (Ballot Appearances):
Sean Brady (4), Movsar Evloev (2), Francis Ngannou (2), Jiri Prochazka (2), Brandon Moreno (1), Usman Nurmagomedov (1)
Falling Out of the Rankings (Previous Ranking):
No. 12 Leon Edwards
Women`s Ranking Details
Recent Results for Ranked Fighters (Previous Ranking):
No. 2 Valentina Shevchenko defeated No. 5 Manon Fiorot
No. 16 Natalia Silva defeated No. 3 Alexa Grasso
No. 18 Virna Jandiroba defeated No. 11 Yan Xiaonan
Jasmine Jasudavicius defeated No. 19 Jessica Andrade
No. 20 Liz Carmouche defeated Ilara Joanne
Upcoming Bouts Featuring Ranked Fighters:
No. 4 Kayla Harrison vs. No. 13 Julianna Peña (UFC 316, June 7)
No. 7 Erin Blanchfield vs. Maycee Barber (UFC Vegas 107, May 31)
No. 8 (tied) Dakota Ditcheva vs. Sumiko Inaba (PFL Africa, July 26)
No. 14 Rose Namajunas vs. Miranda Maverick (UFC Atlanta, June 14)
No. 19 Liz Carmouche vs. Elora Dana (PFL 6, June 20)
Fighters Also Receiving Votes (Ballot Appearances):
Maycee Barber (3), Jessica Andrade (2), Norma Dumont (2), Macy Chiasson (1), Amanda Lemos (1), Gillian Robertson (1)
Falling Out of the Rankings (Previous Ranking):
No. 19 Jessica Andrade
Wesley Dunham 
Marcus Blakely