USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Feb. 18: Jan Blachowicz makes his move

Jan Blachowicz made the most of his big opportunity at UFC Rio Rancho, and now he soars up the rankings.

Opportunity only comes knocking so many times during a fighter’s career.

And in [autotag]Jan Blachowicz[/autotag]’s case, when that opportunity arrived, he sidestepped the door and burst through the wall like the Kool-Aid Man.

The Polish powerhouse altered the equation at 205 pounds with his vicious first-round knockout of Corey Anderson in the main event of Saturday night’s UFC on ESPN+ 25 in Rio Rancho, N.M.

He did so with champion Jon Jones, who expressed his approval, seated cageside.

And just like that, the conventional wisdom that a rematch between Jons and Blachowicz was an obvious choice got muddied in a hurry.

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So what does this mean for Blachowicz, who has now won seven of his past eight? It means he vaults up to No. 6 in the light heavyweight division in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings.

UFC Rio Rancho was filled with all sorts of important results. So to find out where your favorite — or least favorite — competitor places this week, scroll up to the top of the page and select a division from the drop-down menu.

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