Anderson Silva’s failed drug tests leading up to and after his UFC 183 bout with Nick Diaz in January not only resulted in “The Spider” being suspended for a year and being leveled with a hefty fine, it has also shaken up the official UFC rankings quite a bit.
The standard procedure in the UFC when a fighter is popped for failing a drug test is for that fighter to be immediately removed from the official UFC rankings, which is why longtime top-ten ranked lightweight contender Gilbert Melendez was taken off of the list after UFC issued a statement on his failed drug test at UFC 188.
With Silva popping hot at UFC 183 and UFC issuing their statement after his horrendous Nevada Athletic Commission hearing on Thursday, “The Spider” is no longer in any of the official UFC rankings, which has moved a lot of people around in the middleweight division, and has had an impact on the pound-for-pound rankings.
Silva was ranked number six in the middleweight division, so everyone who was ranked from 7-13 has moved up a spot. Additionally, Silva was number 11 on the pound-for-pound list, and now that he is gone, UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk has entered the list at number 15.
Check out the complete official UFC rankings at UFC.com.
