UFC’s current rankings system is on its way out. And few will miss it. Long criticized for its inconsistencies, the rankings have frustrated both fans and UFC CEO Dana White. Now, the promotion has revealed that a brand-new system is just around the corner. The announcement came during Saturday night’s UFC Vegas 118 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

“For years, the top 15 in each division have been shaped… title shots, contender status, and how fans debate the sport,” UFC announcer Brendan Fitzgerald said. “A new UFC ranking system is currently being developed that will be based on measurable performance, not opinion, not popularity, by evaluating who you beat, strength of competition, activity, and consistency.

“The system’s being designed to reward performance and better reflect results inside the octagon. We’ll have more details on that coming soon.”

Although Fitzgerald didn’t go into detail about the new system, the legit fans already know what’s coming. In April last year, Dana White’s UFC and tech giant Meta, led by Mark Zuckerberg, entered into a partnership. And as part of this partnership, White announced that the company will develop a new fighter ranking system. Although he didn’t say it explicitly, the new system will likely rely on AI to collect data for the rankings.

In comparison, the current ranking system involves a voting panel made up of media members. They are asked to rank fighters in every division, as well as the pound-for-pound rankings. One can easily see how recency bias and personal opinion can skew the rankings in such a scenario, something UFC CEO Dana White has long been vocal about.  

Back in January, Barstool Sports’ Robbie Fox questioned why Colby Covington was still ranked in the UFC’s top 15 despite not competing since 2024. The criticism carried weight—Covington had lost his last two fights and remained firmly in the rankings. Dana White agreed, admitting the current rankings are deeply flawed. Despite the criticism about the rankings system, the PFL adopted the same model for its own promotion later that same month. 

But long before the PFL embraced its own rankings, Tapology had already shaken up the conversation. In August 2025, the fighter database and record-keeping site unveiled an alternative rankings system that many viewed as a legitimate challenger to the UFC’s model. Several then-UFC top-15 fighters dropped significantly in Tapology’s version, including Shavkat Rakhmonov, Reinier de Ridder, and Justin Gaethje. 

Regardless, after UFC Vegas 118’s announcement, fans didn’t appear too pleased about it. 

Fans beg for ‘no AI’ in new UFC rankings

The announcement immediately sparked questions among fans. One asked, “So it was based on opinion and popularity before?” While the rankings were meant to be free of bias, relying on human voters made some level of subjectivity inevitable. 

The next user had a similar question. “I mean, is that not what it’s supposed to f–king be?” the user posted. Now, with the introduction of the new system, it would be interesting to see how it works. 

Meanwhile, this user used the moment to mock Sean Strickland. “New UFC ranking system has Sean Strickland holding the belt but ranked #6 at MW,” the user wrote. ‘Tarzan’ recently defeated Khamzat Chimaev to become the middleweight champion again, but not all appear to be sold on his superiority. 

Another user had just one request. “God, please do not let this ‘new system’ be AI 🙏,” the user commented. However, the system will likely have AI to collect, analyze, and compile the data for the rankings. 

But the next user was certain about AI’s involvement. “Here comes the biggest AI bulls–t you’ve ever seen,” the user wrote. Hopefully, Meta’s AI won’t crash and burn like its Metaverse. 

That being said, even though a new ranking system is set to replace the old one nobody likes, people are not quite happy. But do you think the new one will be any better than the old one?