The latest Bellator rankings have been released, with some notable changes following Bellator 293 last weekend.
Main event winner Daniel James picked up a knockout win over Marcelo Golm to announce himself as a legitimate threat to the division’s top guns, and he now has a ranking to reflect that.
James has leaped three spots, from seventh to fourth, in the Bellator heavyweight rankings, with only Linton Vassell, Valentin Moldavsky, and Steve Mowry standing between him and the top spot in the list.
The event in Temecula, California, was also a breakout occasion for England’s Luke Trainer. The Great Britain Top Team fighter handed fellow prospect Sullivan Cauley his first career defeat with a first-round rear-naked choke, and surged into the light heavyweight rankings at number eight.
The other movement of note came at featherweight, where Lucas Brennan’s submission win over Josh San Diego saw him bumped up to the number nine spot in the 145-pound list.
Bellator fighter rankings
HEAVYWEIGHT
Champion: Ryan Bader
- Linton Vassell
- Valentin Moldavsky
- Steve Mowry
- Daniel James
- Tyrell Fortune
- Marcelo Golm
- Tim Johnson
- Davion Franklin
- Oleg Popov
- Gokhan Saricam
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT
Champion: Vadim Nemkov
- Corey Anderson
- Phil Davis
- Yoel Romero
- Grant Neal
- Alex Polizzi
- Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov
- Karl Moore
- Luke Trainer
- Julius Anglickas
- Karl Albrektsson
FEATHERWEIGHT
Champion: Patricio Pitbull
- Adam Borics
- Jeremy Kennedy
- Aaron Pico
- AJ McKee
- Pedro Carvalho
- Mads Burnell
- Justin Gonzales
- Timur Khizriev
- Lucas Brennan
- Daniel Weichel