Merab Dvalishvili has surged up the pound-for-pound rankings after UFC 316.
The UFC bantamweight champion submitted Sean O’Malley inside three rounds on Saturday night.
In doing so, ‘The Machine’ joined an exclusive group of legends who have won 13 UFC fights in a row.
The UFC rankings panel has now recognized and rewarded Merab Dvalishvili for his hard work.
- READ MORE: Israel Adesanya reacts after watching his Sean O’Malley prediction go up in smoke at UFC 316
Merab Dvalishvili shoots up the P4P rankings
Merab Dvalishvili entered UFC 316 as the fourth-ranked fighter on the roster, regardless of weight.
However, after running through Sean O’Malley, who has fallen out of the top 15, he’s now regarded as the second-best man in MMA.
UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones has slipped down to third place amid a lengthy layoff.
It’s a similar story for ex-featherweight champion Ilia Topuria, who is ranked fourth ahead of his lightweight title fight against Charles Oliveira at UFC 317 on June 28.
Elsewhere in the rankings, new welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena has entered at eighth and Alex Pereira has dropped down a spot as a result.
Lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan enters at number 15, while his former opponent, Oliveira, occupies 14th position as he prepares to face Topuria at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas later this month.
Check out the new pound-for-pound rankings in the graphic below provided by Sofascore.
What’s next for Merab Dvalishvili?
Merab Dvalishvili used his post-fight interview to set up a fight with Cory Sandhagen.
Dana White dropped a hint about Dvalishvili’s next opponent during his post-event press conference.
The UFC CEO talked up a rematch between his bantamweight champion and Umar Nurmagomedov, whom he beat earlier this year, before insisting that matchup won’t happen before a fight with Sandhagen.
“He’s beaten a lot of good guys, like Song Yadong, [Marlon] ‘Chito’ Vera, close fight with [Petr] Yan,” Dvalishvili said about Sandhagen during an interview with Ariel Helwani on Monday.
“He’s a new style. We’ve never fought each other, and we know there is no MMA math.
“The style makes the fight, and Cory, he’s a different style. It will be a test for me.”