The UFC athlete rankings have been boggling Dana White’s mind for a long time now. He has often expressed his disappointment at the pound-for-pound rankings and dissed the committee that made the list for not putting someone like Jon Jones at the top of the list. Now, it was high time for the UFC head honcho to take the matter into his own hands.

Not too long ago, White was triggered by the stagnant position of Khalil Rountree Jr. despite the kind of performance he showcased in his fight against Alex Pereira at UFC 307. He declared that he had set a meeting to bring about a change in the rankings. Now, the UFC CEO has solidified his take during a DWCS press conference.

Irritated Dana White promises to bring a change in the UFC rankings

During the press conference for DWCS season 8 week 10, a reporter asked White about his take on ‘The War Horse’ remaining at #8 in the light heavyweight rankings. But the UFC boss was already triggered. He pointed out that Rountree simply didn’t deserve to be placed in the same spot. After all, he fought someone like the ‘Poatan’ and was winning on the scorecards. However, the MMA Gods didn’t seem to favor Rountree as Pereira secured yet another win via knockout.

Dana White said, “If you look at who Pereira has beat, right? And how he has beat him leading up to this fight. He was winning on the scorecards when he got stopped. He was the head on the scorecards. Stayed in the pocket, put up one of the greatest fights anybody has ever seen, and he stays at number 8.” He was left in utter disappointment with the committee that updated the list. He continued, “I can’t handle the incompetence. I can’t take it anymore. It’s driving me crazy. And I can’t let people that I don’t believe know what the f–k they’re talking about deal with the rankings anymore. I just can’t do it. I have to figure out a solution.” 

And the solution came with a meeting with a group who might have a potential solution to the problem. White further said, “Tomorrow, I have a meeting with a group of people, coming to me, saying they have a solution to this problem. And God, I hope they’re right. Because I’m gonna change it. The media will no longer control the rankings in the UFC.”

As the 56-year-old bossman gets ready to overturn the story of the UFC athlete rankings, all eyes focus on the inclusion of artificial intelligence in the sport. Let’s see what the fuss is all about.

UFC CEO includes AI as a possible solution for fixing UFC rankings

The UFC athlete rankings are prepared and updated by a panel of media persons who analyze the fights and rank the fighters based on their performance, fighting history, and many more. But the discrepancies in the list keep rising with every passing event. White might have to rely on systems that don’t really include personal biases from the media. During the DWCS press conference for week 9, the UFC head honcho addressed this aspect of the change. He said, “Do you know what’s f—- great about technology? We’re not far away from AI actually doing these rankings! It’ll be a great f—– day when AI starts doing this s—-.”

This change can indeed bring about a transparency that the system previously lacked. But whether or not the UFC will deploy artificial intelligence is a subject that might be discussed in the meeting that White talked about. All that the fight fans can do now, is wait and watch the UFC head honcho bring a revolution in the athlete rankings.

What are your thoughts on the UFC athlete rankings? Let us know what you think of White’s take in the comments down below.