Glover Teixeira takes No. 1 LHW spot in updated UFC rankings

UFC light heavyweight veteran Glover Teixeira has moved up two spots in the company's ranking system and has now assumed the No. 1 spot in the light heavyweight division.

Glover Teixeira is now the No.1 ranked UFC LHW fighter after his spectacular victory over fellow elite 205-pound fighter Thiago Santos at UFC Vegas 13.

Teixeira’s opponent, Thiago Santos, dropped 1 spot after his loss at UFC Vegas 13. Santos is now ranked No.2 in the UFC light heavyweight division.

Intriguingly, Teixeira, 41, besting a dangerous foe such as Santos has once again brought the former on the cusp of a UFC light heavyweight title shot.

Teixeira, a veteran Brazilian fighter, is likely to challenge for the UFC LHW belt in the 2021 calendar year.

Additionally, Chinese women’s strawweight competitor Yan Xiaonan has moved up five spots in the division’s rankings and is now ranked No. 3.

On the other hand, Yan Xiaonan’s opponent, Claudia Gadelha, has moved down two spots and is now ranked No. 6 in the UFC women’s strawweight division.

While Teixeira secured a third-round submission victory over Thiago Santos at UFC Vegas 13, Yan Xiaonan defeated Claudia Gadelha via unanimous decision at the same event, resulting in the aforementioned notable changes in the UFC’s official rankings.

The updated rankings reflect the significant changes that took place at UFC Vegas 13

The UFC has updated its official rankings, following the conclusion of the UFC Vegas 13 fight card that took place this past weekend (Kindly Note: +/- = movement in rankings; T = tie; *NR = Not previously ranked) –

MEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND RANKINGS

1. Khabib Nurmagomedov

2. Jon Jones

3. Israel Adesanya

4. Stipe Miocic

5. Kamaru Usman

6. Alexander Volkanovski

7. Dustin Poirier

8. Max Holloway

9. Petr Yan

10. Justin Gaethje

11. Conor McGregor

12. Robert Whittaker

13. Tony Ferguson

14. Deiveson Figueiredo

15. Francis Ngannou

FLYWEIGHT RANKINGS

Champion: Deiveson Figueiredo

1. Joseph Benavidez

2. Brandon Moreno

3. Askar Askarov

4. Alex Perez

5. Alexandre Pantoja

6. Brandon Royval

7. Jussier Formiga

8. Kai Kara France

9. Rogerio Bontorin

10. Matt Schnell

11. Raulian Paiva

12. David Dvorak

13. Tim Elliott

14. Tyson Nam

15. Jordan Espinosa

BANTAMWEIGHT RANKINGS

Champion: Petr Yan

1. Aljamain Sterling

2. Cory Sandhagen

3. Marlon Moraes

4. Cody Garbrandt

5. Frankie Edgar

6. Pedro Munhoz

7. Jose Aldo

8. Jimmie Rivera

9. Raphael Assuncao

10. Dominick Cruz

11. Rob Font

12. Merab Dvalishvili

13. Cody Stamann

14. Song Yadong

15. Marlon Vera

FEATHERWEIGHT RANKINGS

Champion: ALEXANDER VOLKANOVSKI

1. Max Holloway

2. Brian Ortega

3. Zabit Magomedsharipov

4. Yair Rodriguez

5. Chan Sung Jung

6. Calvin Kattar

7. Josh Emmett

8. (T) Jeremy Stephens

8. (T) Arnold Allen

10. Sodiq Yusuff

11. Dan Ige

12. Shane Burgos

13. Ryan Hall

14. Bryce Mitchell

15. Edson Barboza

LIGHTWEIGHT RANKINGS

Champion: KHABIB NURMAGOMEDOV

1. Justin Gaethje

2. Dustin Poirier

3. Tony Ferguson

4. Conor McGregor

5. Dan Hooker

6. Charles Oliveira

7. Paul Felder

8. Diego Ferreira

9. Al Iaquinta

10. Kevin Lee

11. Beneil Dariush

12. Islam Makhachev

13. Gregor Gillespie

14. Drew Dober

15. Donald Cerrone

WELTERWEIGHT RANKINGS

Champion: KAMARU USMAN

1. Colby Covington

2. Gilbert Burns

3. Leon Edwards

4. Jorge Masvidal

5. Stephen Thompson

6. Demian Maia

7. Tyron Woodley

8. Michael Chiesa

9. Neil Magny

10. Vicente Luque

11. Geoff Neal

12. Rafael dos Anjos

13. Nate Diaz

14. Anthony Pettis

15. Robbie Lawler

MIDDLEWEIGHT RANKINGS

Champion: ISRAEL ADESANYA

1. Robert Whittaker

2. Paulo Costa

3. Jared Cannonier

4. Jack Hermansson

5. Yoel Romero

6. Darren Till

7. Derek Brunson

8. Kelvin Gastelum

9. Uriah Hall

10. Chris Weidman

11. Edmen Shahbazyan

12. Brad Tavares

13. Omari Akhmedov

14. Marvin Vettori

15. Ian Heinisch

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT RANKINGS

Champion: Jan Blachowicz

1. Glover Teixeira +2

2. Thiago Santos -1

3. Dominick Reyes -1

4. Aleksandar Rakic

5. Jiri Prochazka

6. Anthony Smith +1

7. Volkan Oezdemir -1

8. Nikita Krylov

9. Johnny Walker

10. Misha Cirkunov

11. Magomed Ankalaev

12. Ryan Spann

13. Jim Crute

14. Mauricio Rua

15. Paul Craig

HEAVYWEIGHT RANKINGS

Champion: STIPE MIOCIC

1. Francis Ngannou

2. Curtis Blaydes

3. Jairzinho Rozenstruik

4. Derrick Lewis

5. Alistair Overeem

6. Alexander Volkov

7. Junior dos Santos

8. Shamil Abdurakhimov

9. Augusto Sakai

10. Aleksei Oleinik

11. Walt Harris

12. Sergei Pavlovich

13. (T) Ciryl Gane

13. (T) Blagoy Ivanov +1

15. Andrei Arlovski *NR

WOMEN’S POUND-FOR-POUND RANKINGS

1. Amanda Nunes

2. Weili Zhang

3. Valentina Shevchenko

4. Rose Namajunas

5. Jessica Andrade

6. Joanna Jedrzejczyk

7. Germaine De Randamie

8. Holly Holm

9. Aspen Ladd

10. Cynthia Calvillo

11. Nina Ansaroff +1

12. Katlyn Chookagian -1

13. Yan Xiaonan *NR

14. Claudia Gadelha -1

15. Julianna Pena -1

WOMEN’S STRAWWEIGHT RANKINGS

Champion: WEILI ZHANG

1. Rose Namajunas

2. Joanna Jedrzejczyk

3. Yan Xiaonan +5

4. Carla Esparza -1

5. Nina Ansaroff

6. Claudia Gadelha -2

7. Michelle Waterson -1

8. Marina Rodriguez

9. Tecia Torres +1

10. Amanda Ribas -1

11. Mackenzie Dern

12. Angela Hill

13. Virna Jandiroba

14. Felice Herrig

15. Livinha Souza

WOMEN’S FLYWEIGHT RANKINGS

Champion: VALENTINA SHEVCHENKO

1. Jessica Andrade

2. Katlyn Chookagian

3. Jennifer Maia

4. Cynthia Calvillo

5. Lauren Murphy

6. Jessica Eye

7. Joanne Calderwood

8. Roxanne Modafferi

9. Viviane Araujo

10. Andrea Lee

11. Maycee Barber

12. Gillian Robertson

13. Alexis Davis

14. Montana De La Rosa

15. Antonina Shevchenko

WOMEN’S BANTAMWEIGHT RANKINGS

Champion: AMANDA NUNES

1. Germaine de Randamie

2. Holly Holm

3. Aspen Ladd

4. Raquel Pennington

5. Irene Aldana

6. Julianna Pena

7. Ketlen Vieira

8. Yana Kunitskaya

9. Sara McMann

10. Marion Reneau

11. Lina Lansberg

12. Macy Chiasson

13. Sijara Eubanks

14. Pannie Kianzad

15. Julia Avila

Glover Teixeira is likely to receive a UFC LHW title shot

The consensus in the MMA world is that, as noted by UFC President Dana White, reigning UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz will defend his belt against current UFC middleweight titleholder Israel Adesanya in a champion-vs-champion super-fight that’ll transpire in 2021.

Moreover, recent comments made by Dana White suggest that Teixeira will most definitely receive an opportunity to fight for the UFC light heavyweight championship. It is no more than Teixeira deserves.

The vast majority of MMA fans and experts believe that Glover Teixeira won’t receive a shot at Jan Blachowicz right now, but will instead face the winner of the Blachowicz vs. Adesanya super-fight for the UFC light heavyweight title.

Teixeira had previously challenged then-UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones for the title in 2014, but lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Presently, Teixeira is still regarded as one of the top 205-pounders in the world. Teixeira, despite being older than most other fighters in MMA today, continues impressing one and all with his consistency and skills. Teixeira has stated that he aims to capture the UFC LHW title, adding that he will win UFC gold before retiring. There is no doubting Teixeira's ambition.

Can Teixeira beat the odds? Do you think he has what it takes to capture the UFC light heavyweight championship? Sound off in the comments.