UFC Vegas 118 has come and gone, as welterweight Gabriel Bonfim defeated former UFC Welterweight Champion Belal Muhammad by unanimous decision to keep his near-perfect record intact from the Meta APEX in Las Vegas Saturday night.
Bonfim’s victory will surely have an impact on the rankings at 170 pounds. Muhammad entered the fight as a Top-5 welterweight, despite back-to-back losses and no longer being champion.
Meanwhile, Bonfim increased his current winning streak to five and is interested in a fight with Jack Della Maddalena, another fellow ex-champion.
Gabriel Bonfim Eyes Ex-UFC Champ
“He is my next opponent because the division is kind of muddy waters up there,” Bonfim told reporters via translation. “Things are kind of scrambled up top. He’s in the top five, and I feel that he needs to be my next opponent.”
Based on the UFC’s soon-to-be new rankings criteria, the “measurable performance” element would make sense for a fight like this. While Bonfim has continued to win, Della Maddalena’s loss to Carlos Prates extended his current skid to two. Bonfim’s comments are validated, as the UFC has not announced plans for Islam Makhachev’s first title defense since moving up from lightweight.
Therefore, to keep the division moving, it seems like a logical next step to continue to build Bonfim’s reputation, while also giving Della Maddalena a formidable challenger.
“It’s pretty awesome," Bonfim said. "I’m very happy, actually, that it went five rounds because I proved to people that I can fight five rounds. And no one can say anything about this. I can do it, and I love doing it.”
Bonfim’s timetable for a return to the Octagon is explicitly clear, too.
“November-December, I’ll be ready to fight him," Bonfim said.
When Will New UFC Rankings System Start?
Zuffa LL
It’s unclear when the new rankings system will be implemented, as they were previously voted on by the media. However, the UFC still had the final say regarding the matchups, bout orders, event locations, etc. While the promotion will maintain much of that control, it will have to adjust to the new format by doing away with “popularity.”
Hence, no more potential mismatches (a big winning streak vs. a losing streak), so-called undeserved title shots, or any other elements that may skew the rankings altogether.
We’ll see how the changes play out over the coming months and years, but it seems the UFC is going ahead with a fundamental adjustment that will surely change the scope of how the rankings are interpreted moving forward.
Fighters with high finish rates should be given extra credit. I always though the fighters records should be announced as finishes/losses/decision wins.
Your new P4P…
Yes this is a joke, cant wait for this fagola to get starched.