Paddy Pimblett's ranking plummets as the UFC introduces controversial new system

Paddy 'The Baddy' Pimblett has seen his ranking plummet after the UFC introduced a new system to determine athlete performance.

On Monday (June 22), the UFC announced the introduction of the Meta UFC Rankings, which the company describes as "a new athlete evaluation system transforming how fighters are assessed, offering fans, athletes and media an objective, data-driven view of the sport's competitive landscape".

The promotion explained that it will move away from the traditional rankings decided by a media panel and instead rely on fight data in collaboration with Meta.

Rankings will be determined and announced each Monday following UFC events, with the system combining "statistical modelling and machine learning with the deep domain expertise of the UFC".

Outcome probability, win type, fighter trajectory and weight-class sensitivities are all metrics that will be used when determining rankings, while not all wins and losses are treated equally.

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For example, beating a higher-ranked opponent is considered more valuable than defeating a lower-ranked fighter.

Meanwhile, a dominant finish is weighted more heavily than a close decision victory over an unranked opponent.

The UFC stated: "The system also accounts for recency, with more recent fights carrying greater weight while applying inactivity penalties for fighters who go extended periods without competing. By relying exclusively on measurable fight data, the Meta UFC Rankings ensure a fighter's placement accurately reflects their true competitive performance inside the Octagon — nothing else."

And it appears Pimblett has been penalised for inactivity, having last fought on January 24 when he lost by unanimous decision to Justin Gaethje at UFC 324.

Pimblett dropped from sixth to ninth in the lightweight rankings, although he will likely improve his ranking if he beats Benoît Saint Denis in the co-main event of UFC 329 on July 11.

UFC President Dana White has insisted that, for the time being, the UFC will use both the traditional and newly introduced ranking systems, with the media panel rankings continuing to be updated on Tuesdays following events.

Speaking after UFC Vegas 119, he said: “I’m going to have both. I’m still going to do human, non-human, however you want to look at it, rankings. And I think neither will be perfect, but, you know, it will get us closer.”

Three former UFC champions have lost their rankings, with Rafael Fiziev, Robert Whittaker and Jessica Andrade now unranked after the Meta update.

In total, 27 fighters have lost their rankings, including Marlon Vera, Payton Talbott, Raul Rosas Jr., Yair Rodriguez, Brian Ortega, Josh Emmett, Beneil Dariush, Derrick Lewis and Miesha Tate.

Dana White speaks out on UFC Meta Rankings

White explained how he had been “unhappy” with the traditional rankings and “believed there had to be a better way” in a UFC press release on Monday.

"As of June 22, 2026, the UFC will begin the transition of its official rankings from the traditional media panel towards Meta UFC Rankings, offering an innovative new approach to rankings determined entirely by fight data,” he said.

“In close collaboration, the two organisations came together to develop a new methodology for an objective and clear UFC athlete ranking system that fans and athletes can understand and trust.

“We’ve always been a company that runs towards technology and innovation and now we’ve worked with Meta to integrate it directly into our rankings system. I’m excited to see how this innovation can help change the sport for both the fans and the athletes.”