Patricio Pitbull is not giving up hope of adding UFC gold to his illustrious résumé.

The former three-time Bellator featherweight champion and one-time lightweight titleholder made a late-career switch to the UFC in 2025.

Pitbull lost his debut against Yair Rodriguez at UFC 314, the same event at which Alexander Volkanovski returned to the throne for his second reign at 145 pounds.

Fast forward 18 months and the Brazilian legend is 2-2 inside the Octagon. But that record does not mean he’s given up hope of challenging ‘Alexander the Great’, and the gap between them on the featherweight ladder recently closed slightly.

Patricio Pitbull earns first Meta UFC ranking amid his calls to challenge Alexander Volkanovski

Pitbull knocked out Dooho Choi at UFC 331 this past September, a performance that marked the best of his career in the promotion so far.

Despite losing his previous outing against Aaron Pico, the ex-MMA double champ believes he could be just one more victory away from earning a shot at Volkanovski.

“Congratulations to @alexvolkanovski on the record and great fight. I’ll finish whoever the @ufc puts in front of me so we cross paths. #UFC333,” Pitbull wrote on X after the Australian knocked out Movsar Evloev in October.

And Pitbull has not needed to fight again to secure a sudden spot in the Meta UFC featherweight rankings.

While he first earned a top-15 spot after beating Dan Ige in the summer of 2025, he did not have a number next to his name in the recently introduced AI rankings.

That changed this week, with Pitbull entering at No. 15 following the departure of Pavel Andrusca, who will be competing at bantamweight moving forward after debuting in the UFC on short notice at featherweight.

Johnny Walker passes his brother in the UFC heavyweight rankings after just two fights

Among the other stories to emerge from the latest rankings update is Johnny Walker’s rise up the heavyweight ladder.

After moving up from 205 pounds, the Brazilian stopped Mick Parkin with an emphatic and violent knee at UFC 332 in October.

Having accepted a late-notice call to headline UFC Vegas 124 this past Saturday, Walker knocked out Waldo Cortes-Acosta to continue his climb.

He has been rewarded with a four-place rise up the Meta UFC heavyweight rankings, landing him at No. 8. Among those Johnny passed in the pecking order is his brother, Valter.

It’s taken the former light heavyweight just two fights to earn a higher spot than his sibling, who has won five fights in a row via submission inside the Octagon.