UFC rankings report after UFC Fight Night: Costa vs. Vettori

UFC Fight Night: Costa vs. Vettori marked a return to form for the UFC, following a number of somewhat lackluster events. The card had plenty for MMA fans to enjoy, with exciting knockouts, surprise comebacks and an excellent five-round main event.

In the aftermath of the event, the UFC have updated their rankings accordingly. The headlining fight saw middleweights Marvin Vettori and Paulo Costa compete in a back-and-forth war that went the full 25 minutes.

Whilst the fight was initially scheduled to be at 185 pounds, Costa insisted that he would not be able to make weight, resulting in the fight taking place at light heavyweight. Whilst many fighters would have balked at this, Marvin Vettori took it in his stride.

In fact, he went out against a considerably larger Paulo Costa and thew everything in his arsenal at the Brazilian. 'The Italian Dream' pressured Costa the entire fight, picking up a much deserved unanimous decision victory.

The win resulted in Vettori climbing the UFC middleweight rankings to No.2. It seems unlikely that Costa will compete at middleweight again, but for the time being, he's dropped to No.5.

UFC featherweight Alex Caceres also picked up a big win. Going into the fight against rising prospect Seungwoo-Choi, Caceres was a considerable underdog. However, he rode out the storm of offense from 'Sting' and was able to lock in a slick rear-naked choke submission.

Now riding a five-fight win streak, Caceres has broken into the 145-pound rankings. This resulted in top prospect Ilia Topuria dropping out of the top 15, although he already has a matchup booked against No.13-ranked Movsar Evloev.

There are some slight changes in other divisions, although none for fighters who competed at UFC Fight Night: Costa vs. Vettori. Most notably, Jon Jones has fallen further down the men's pound-for-pound ranking. He's dropped another two places to No.4, with Alexander Volkanovski and Israel Adesanya climbing past him.

At women's strawweight, Brianna van Buren has entered the rankings at No.15, with Jessica Penne becoming unranked as a result. The same has occurred at bantamweight, with Raulian Paiva falling out of the top 15 thanks to Song Yadong's rise up.

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What is next in the UFC for Marvin Vettori?

Whilst Marvin Vettori is now ranked No.2 at middleweight, he has lost to current champion Israel Adesanya, twice. As a result, it seems unlikely that he will be competing for a title anytime soon.

A matchup with rising contender Sean Strickland may be more logical. Alternatively, he could wait for Jared Cannonier and Derek Brunson's fight to take place and face off against the loser.