The most recent rankings for 2023 place Alex Pereira at the top of the middleweight division, replacing former UFC champion Israel Adesanya.
The Brazilian opponent defeated the New Zealander, a Nigerian-born fighter, to win the title at UFC 281 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, USA.
The middleweight champion Adesanya (23-2 MMA, 12-2 UFC), who had a 3-1 scorecard advantage over Pereira in their title contest, was stopped in Round 5. Three minutes into the final session, Pereira (7-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) had Adesanya rocked and badly hurt, earning him a standing TKO victory.
For the first time since unifying the belt in 2019, Adesanya has dropped to number two and is now the top contender in the middleweight division.
In an expected title rematch this year, Adesanya remains the small betting favourite to ultimately extract retribution on the former.
Adesanya is expected to meet Pereira in the summer and is presently a -150 favourite over the champion, who is a +130 underdog. Adesanya is hoping to return to the winner's circle for the first time as a middleweight in his mixed martial arts career.