Douglas Lima and Demian Maia earned big wins over ranked opponents in the welterweight division this past weekend, but only one of them made a major jump in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings.
On Saturday at Bellator 232, Lima regained the 170-pound title for the third time by capping off the promotion’s grand prix with a unanimous decision win over Rory MacDonald in their rematch. Earlier in the day at UFC on ESPN+ 20, 41-year-old Demian Maia earned a signature win by cementing himself as one of – if not – the best grappler in the game with a third-round submission win over Ben Askren, who lost for the second time in as many fights.
What was the effect of these two matchups in our 170-pound rankings? You can check that, as well as the rest of the rankings, in the dropdowns above.
