Anthony Smith has jumped up two spots in the UFC’s light heavyweight rankings after his win over Ryan Spann last weekend.

Despite being seen as the favourite by many heading into Saturday night, Anthony Smith still managed to exceed expectations with a nasty submission win over Ryan Spann – followed by one of the best UFC promos of the year.

“Lionheart” clearly felt as if he’d been disrespected for the last time and for the third straight fight, he silenced his critics with yet another impressive finish.

It turns out that the UFC was watching pretty closely, too, as we can see from their updated light heavyweight rankings.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CT-eTKzvYYz/

Smith has jumped up from sixth place to fourth which shifts him above Thiago Santos & Dominick Reyes, vaulting him into the top five in the process. The only men ahead of him now are Aleksandar Rakic, Jiri Prochazka and Glover Teixeira, with Smith calling Rakic out in hoping of securing a rematch against him later this year.

As for Spann, he remains on the outside looking in at the top 10.

Is there a chance Anthony Smith could fight for the UFC light heavyweight title again before the end of 2022? Let us know your thoughts in the comments, BJPENN Nation!