Anything MMA, except thumb wrestling

[StillUnknown]

[#98QBKiller]

Wtf, EA!

[Patrick86L]

lodZaYGGv-g

[ZoEd]

http://www.sherdog.com/news/rankings/Sherdogcoms-Pound-for-Pound-Top-10-25406

1. Anderson Silva (26-4)

A month after the fact, the hysteria that surrounded Silva following his dubious domination of Demian Maia has subsided. Attention has now turned to the next fight for the middleweight kingpin, as “The Spider” will risk his 185-pound mantle against outspoken Republican-stroke-fighter Chael Sonnen at UFC 117 on Aug. 7 in Oakland, Calif. With his recent string of victories over Dan Miller, Yushin Okami and Nate Marquardt, Sonnen has emerged as an accomplished, deserving challenger. However, the biggest factor in making the fight a blockbuster will center on Sonnen’s infamous trash talking and whether it can inspire Silva to fight from bell to bell.

2. Georges St. Pierre (20-2)

The story remains the same for St. Pierre. Coming off a dominant title performance against Dan Hardy in March, he has been positioned for a rematch with yet another elite welterweight in Josh Koscheck, courtesy of the former NCAA national wrestling champion’s May 8 win over Paul Daley. They met previously in August 2007, with St. Pierre winning a unanimous decision. Now, when they collide three-plus years later, it will be on the heels of the 12th season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” which figures to build the second GSP-Koscheck bout with an easy and obvious face-heel dynamic.

3. Jose Aldo (17-1)

Though Alexandre Franca Nogueira was perhaps the first true dominant featherweight during the division's embryonic stages, it his countryman Aldo who is now situated as the first truly great 145-pounder. Coming off a brutal blowout of divisional posterboy Urijah Faber in April, Aldo figures to return to action in the early fall to make his second title defense. Whether that title shot goes to veteran Manny Gamburyan or young upstart Josh Grispi, the real issue for WEC going forward is going to be making challengers seem credible against the dynamic, destructive Aldo.

4. Frankie Edgar (12-1)

At UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Edgar scored one of the most significant wins of 2010, dethroning lightweight kingpin B.J. Penn and took the UFC 155-pound title. Though it was not exactly a popular decision, Edgar took all three judges’ scorecards on the back of his aggressive combination punching and stellar movement. However, the surprise champion will have to replicate his feat in order to earn unanimous consideration as the sport’s top lightweight, as he has signed on for an August rematch with Penn in Boston.

5. B.J. Penn (15-6-1)

From one controversy to another, Penn lost his UFC lightweight title and MMA’s 155-pound mantle on April 12 with his shocking upset to Frankie Edgar. While debate still rages over the bout’s outcome, Penn has started his book tour to promote his eye-opening biography. The book has drawn the particular ire of UFC President Dana White over its anecdotes on the Hawaiian’s past dealings with the company. Brouhahas notwithstanding, “The Prodigy” will get his chance for redemption and the opportunity to regain top status at 155 pounds in August, when he meets Edgar for a second time at UFC 118 in Boston.

6. Jon Fitch (22-3, 1 NC)

With a straightforward and prosaic fighting style, Fitch does not appear to be as close to another crack at the UFC welterweight title as he would like. However, the former Purdue University wrestling captain still sports a staggering 12-1 record in the UFC, having compiled it in one of MMA’s greatest divisions. Unfortunately, Fitch’s rematch with Thiago Alves has been canceled twice already, and the third iteration of the bout has hit with another delay. Zuffa pushed the date from UFC 115 on June 12 to UFC 117 on Aug. 7 to ensure Alves’ full health. Let us hope it happens this time: Holding the title of the undisputed second banana at 170 pounds remains a great MMA accomplishment.

7. Mauricio Rua (19-4)

“Shogun” Rua’s current resume remains a far cry from where it was in 2005, when he tore through four top-10 opponents in half a year. However, assuming his recovery from a worrying third knee surgery goes swimmingly, the Curitiba native will have plenty of opportunity to carve out more outstanding pound-for-pound-quality wins in a talent-rich 205-pound division. First on deck for "Shogun" post-recovery will be former champion Rashad Evans in a highly alluring clash of premier fighters in one of MMA's premier divisions.

8. Jake Shields (25-4-1)

There was a time just a few short years ago when Shields was reviled for being one of MMA’s most loathsome fighters to watch. During the last five years, the Cesar Gracie protégé has transformed himself from a drab, peripheral contender to one of the sport’s elite fighters. With his dominant April 17 upset over Dan Henderson, the Strikeforce middleweight champion now boasts a 14-bout winning streak and top-five credentials in two separate divisions. With it seeming more and more likely Shields is UFC-bound, he'll have ample opportunity to expand on his resume inside the Octagon, regardless of whether it’s at 170 or 185.

9. Lyoto Machida (16-1)

The majority of the MMA world felt Mauricio “Shogun” Rua was the better man in his first meeting with Machida in October. In their May 8 rematch, Machida certainly looked like the lesser man. The Belem, Brazil, native was polished off in less than four minutes -- a far cry from the supposedly untouchable fighter who took the title from Rashad Evans just a year earlier. However, criticisms at this point seem too sharp. Lost in the post-fight absolutes was the fact that it was not that long ago when Machida blew away strong competition in a deep division, crushing both Evans and Thiago Silva in his 2009 campaign.

10. Rashad Evans (15-1-1)

Evans' May 29 win over rival Quinton "Rampage" Jackson didn't exactly set the world on fire. Evans walked away with a unanimous decision win, though, that gave him yet another high-quality victory in MMA's historically strongest and most star-laden division. Better still, Evans will have the chance to take his resume from "very strong" to "exceptional" in the near future, as his win over Jackson installed him as the UFC's top 205-pound contender. Whenever Mauricio "Shogun" Rua is recovered from knee surgery, Evans will have the chance to regain the UFC light heavyweight title and even loftier pound-for-pound status.

Sherdog has lost it's freaking mind! Fedor loses one fight and he's not even in the top 10 but Rashad Evans and Jake Shields are? Seriously? They've lost all respect in my book. They must be on the UFC's payroll. Not to mention the fact he didn't get KNTO like Rashad, beat as soundly as Penn, Machida and Fitch.

Edited June 30, 2010 by ZoEd

[herrmag]

Sherdog has lost it's freaking mind! Fedor loses one fight and he's not even in the top 10 but Rashad Evans and Jake Shields are? Seriously? They've lost all respect in my book. They must be on the UFC's payroll. Not to mention the fact he didn't get KNTO like Rashad, beat as soundly as Penn, Machida and Fitch.

While I do think sherdog is home to some of the most sub-human filth existant on this planet, I don't think sherdog is in bed with the UFC. I do whole-heartedly disagree with their rankings, but it's not like they threw Brock up there. In fact, they didn't put a single HW on that list.

That being said, Rashad Evans being up there is a joke. Shields is DEFINITELY debatable. But honestly, I don't think their recount is that far off. Is anyone ready to put Ubereem up there yet? I certainly am not, and I think he can defeat Fedor (maybe). I'd almost put them on par. Simple fact is, Fedor doesn't fight the best talent (neither has Brock or Overeem), so none of them deserve to be top-ten.

EDIT: The Frankie Edgar thing is a bit much as well.

Edited July 1, 2010 by herrmag

[Chachie]

EDIT: The Frankie Edgar thing is a bit much as well.

A bit.

[herrmag]

A bit.

While I think putting Edgar at #4 is a bit much, at least they based it off of a win over one of the historically top P4P fighters in the world. Also, Edgar may be one of the most underrated fighters in MMA. He only has a single loss.

That being said, Frankie shouldn't be at 4, nor should he be in the top 10 (or possibly 20).

[ZoEd]

It's MMA, the guy didn't lose a fight for almost 10 years! That's an eternity in the fight game, one loss and you're out of the top 10? Come on now. Half of these guys haven't even been in the game as long as Fedor has been undefeated, I don't care if he's fighting Tijijuna taxi drivers. That's what they said about Cesar Chavez Sr.

I just think it's pretty disrespectful to take a guy who was easily #1 or 2 and take him completely out of the top 10 with one loss, while leaving all of Dana's Darlings up there with a 16th of the resume. It's just stupid!

[herrmag]

Fedor has (or rather, M1 has) prevented him from fighting top competition for a long time now. How did he fight Werdum over Overeem, and let Brett (whom he beat) fight the champ? It doesn't make sense. I like the fact that MMA has no time for people that avoid the best fighters. How does Fedor NOT fight the champ when given the opportunity?

Now, I'm a big Fedor fan. He will go down as the best fighter ever, but solely based on his Pride fights. He hasn't done **** since.

EDIT: And yes, putting Fedor out of the mix is probably disrespectful, but MMA will move on without you. If they had put in other HW's, I'd be more upset.

Edited July 1, 2010 by herrmag

[styx491]

ESPN: No vuvuzelas allowed at UFC card

[Unforgiven]

Herrmag is right...

Fedor hasn't fought anyone worth mentioning in the past 4-5 years. I don't think he fears anyone or is dodging fights, it's that in his mind his job is to fight, and it's his managers job to line up these fights. I don't think they had the same faith and confidence in him that he had in himself and didn't want to risk their cash cow losing.

In fact I would say that lack of quality opponents is what cost him against Werdum. He's almost out of touch fighting against the current wave of Heavyweight (a division he shouldn't be in anymore...should move down to LHW) fighters.

I wouldn't have had him top 10 before this, not because of any lack of talent, but because of quality of fights.

That being said, he's one of the greatest ever, without a doubt. He seems like a really nice guy if you watch enough stuff about him.

[herrmag]

WE all agree (I think) that we don't end up like boxing. UFC has done a great job of saying "if you duck fighters, **** you, we move on without you". That won't last forever. Let's appreciate it while we can. Only a matter of time til we have multiple titles for every weight division.

EDIT: And thank you Unforgiven, for agreeing. It's HARD to go against Fedor, the greatest ever. But it's time.

EDIT 2: And Fedor is just pulling (not Fedor, but M1-global) a similar tactic to Rickson. Except it's his management, not him. And Fedor is much more impressive than Rickson. Unfortunate.

Edited July 1, 2010 by herrmag

[NoCalMike]

Well my original reply got erased somehow.

To summarize, I was mainly saying don't buy Dana White's "If you don't fight for UFC anymore you aren't a top fighter......until we re-sign you of course and are back main eventing one of our PPVs. "

No one is arguing that UFC's HW division is bad. However what I personally do believe, is that the two "top" guys in the division that we are being told are fighting this saturday in order to be called the "best heavyweight fighter in the world" are in their mid-30's and are relatively new to the sport. This isn't to say they aren't good. They are. But it should give some perspective into how million dollar advertising can make things look much better. Hell a UFC countdown show would have you believe Rich Franklin vs. Liddell was a compelling fight worth $50 to watch on PPV.

To me if the countdown show, shows us anything it should be that the Heavyweight division's weight limit should be a lot lower, and they should make a super heavyweight division. When you are trying to be taken seriously as an organization and every other division has strict weight limits, yet the heavyweight division is more of a freakshow then it doesn't look good. Fedor would probably look more like a LHW in UFC.

[#98QBKiller]

I'm sorry but not including Fedor on the P4P top 10 is a joke and it's another reason to not take Sherdog's rankings as the gospel of MMA. How can they possibly explain having Fedor as the #1, 2 & 3 P4P fighter in the world for the better part of a decade and then dropping him completely off the list after he gets caught in a triangle against one of the best BJJ fighters in the sport?

The argument that he's "not fighting the best" is true to an extent. But it doesn't disqualify what he's done up to this point. When he was in Pride the best HW's in the world resided there. The UFC's HW division was piss-poor and consisted of Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski. When the UFC bought out Pride they inherited all of the old HWs that Fedor defeated during his reign there and they booted Sylvia and Arlovski. Fedor fought both of them and absolutely pistol whipped them both.

Fast forward to today and the UFC are sporting a HW division consisting of a bunch of Super Heavyweight wrestlers that I still think Fedor can handle. I'm pretty sure we'll see him in the UFC following his last bout in Strikeforce so all of this can be settled.

Also, a lot of the crowd hyping Lesnar > Fedor are the ones saying that Fedor "hasn't fought anyone."

Who has Brock fought?

He's fought Randy past-his-prime, he's fought Heath Herring (who Fedor destroyed), he's fought Min-Soo Kim (3-7 record) and he's fought Frank the Wank twice, submitting to him once. That's not too impressive when you think about it.

[ZoEd]

I'm sorry but not including Fedor on the P4P top 10 is a joke and it's another reason to not take Sherdog's rankings as the gospel of MMA. How can they possibly explain having Fedor as the #1, 2 & 3 P4P fighter in the world for the better part of a decade and then dropping him completely off the list after he gets caught in a triangle against one of the best BJJ fighters in the sport?

The argument that he's "not fighting the best" is true to an extent. But it doesn't disqualify what he's done up to this point. When he was in Pride the best HW's in the world resided there. The UFC's HW division was piss-poor and consisted of Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski. When the UFC bought out Pride they inherited all of the old HWs that Fedor defeated during his reign there and they booted Sylvia and Arlovski. Fedor fought both of them and absolutely pistol whipped them both.

Fast forward to today and the UFC are sporting a HW division consisting of a bunch of Super Heavyweight wrestlers that I still think Fedor can handle. I'm pretty sure we'll see him in the UFC following his last bout in Strikeforce so all of this can be settled.

Also, a lot of the crowd hyping Lesnar > Fedor are the ones saying that Fedor "hasn't fought anyone."

Who has Brock fought?

He's fought Randy past-his-prime, he's fought Heath Herring (who Fedor destroyed), he's fought Min-Soo Kim (3-7 record) and he's fought Frank the Wank twice, submitting to him once. That's not too impressive when you think about it.

Thank you 99!

Hell, who has Edgar fought except Penn?

In recent years Silva? Who has he fought that was a legit contender?

Rashad Evans? Seriously?

Fitch?

All good fighters, extremely good but who have they fought?

I'm actually getting pretty sick of the "who has he fought" crowd. It's MMA. To go undefeated that long in this sport is nothing short of amazing. This ain't boxing where you can dance around for 12 rounds, score some points and tie someone up. Wait a minute, didn't the P4P best do that his last three fights? Silva anyone.

[StillUnknown]

Thank you 99!

Hell, who has Edgar fought except Penn?

In recent years Silva? Who has he fought that was a legit contender?

Rashad Evans? Seriously?

Fitch?

All good fighters, extremely good but who have they fought?

I'm actually getting pretty sick of the "who has he fought" crowd. It's MMA. To go undefeated that long in this sport is nothing short of amazing. This ain't boxing where you can dance around for 12 rounds, score some points and tie someone up. Wait a minute, didn't the P4P best do that his last three fights? Silva anyone.

i agree completely about the "who has he fought" argument. it allows for too much revisionist history. the sad part is, those with that argument can't even stay consistent. they ignore the fact that when Fedor fought Timmay, Timmay was still in the top 10 of every ranking around, Arlovski was in the top 3 of every ranking when he fought Fedor.

of course the UFC could make things alot easier on everybody if they had their own official rankings, but then Dana wouldn't be able to justify giving Cote, Leites, Dan Hardy, etc title shots

Edited July 1, 2010 by StillUnknown

[d0ublestr0ker0ll]

Fedor shouldn't have dropped out of the top 10, that's a payoff from the UFC.

Any hunches for the big fight this weekend? How about Leben vs. The sex?

I've been thinking Carwin for so long, I think he can delay Lesnar's takedowns and use the fence enough to turn him around and beat him up. That, or he just lands a bomb. Obviously the fight is almost a coin flip...anybody know the Vegas odds?

I'll go with Akiyama, but I'm rooting for Leben. Kid reminds me of a punk-rocker Wanderlei Silva. Just brawl and eat shots...hell yes. Akiyama is one of those rare talented striking Japanese. Him being fresh and Leben coming off a pretty tough fight could definitely be a factor.

If Leben wins he's officially one of my favorite fighters. Chachie will be proud.

Edited July 1, 2010 by d0ublestr0ker0ll

[StillUnknown]

Fedor shouldn't have dropped out of the top 10, that's a payoff from the UFC.

Any hunches for the big fight this weekend? How about Leben vs. The sex?

I've been thinking Carwin for so long, I think he can delay Lesnar's takedowns and use the fence enough to turn him around and beat him up. That, or he just lands a bomb. Obviously the fight is almost a coin flip...anybody know the Vegas odds?

I'll go with Akiyama, but I'm rooting for Leben. Kid reminds me of a punk-rocker Wanderlei Silva. Just brawl and eat shots...hell yes. Akiyama is one of those rare talented striking Japanese. Him being fresh and Leben coming off a pretty tough fight could definitely be a factor.

If Leben wins he's officially one of my favorite fighters. Chachie will be proud.

Lesnar is floating around a -170-200 favorite for the fight

i'm going with Carwin mainly because timing is usually the last thing to comeback after a long layoff. carwin by (T)KO in round 2 is what i'm leaning towards at the moment

i think Akiyama will be smart enough not to exchange with Leben and his judo will be good enough to get him on the ground and keep him there for a decision or maybe even a submission

[NoCalMike]

The question is, can Carwin catch Brock, as Brock explodes in for the takedown. I doubt Brock is going to try and stand & trade. We've seen Couture's dirty boxing back Brock off, so imagine if Carwin connects.

With that said, if Brock is able to get Carwin down, and get a dominant position, I see little chance of Carwin being able to recover.

I am still having a hard time picking this fight, but I think part of it is because I think it is one of those instances where if these guys fought 10 times I could easily see it going five a piece. When you have guys this massive, it almost seems like it will come down to who connects first, or who gases out first. I don't think we are going to see a lot of "skill" on display.

[Chachie]

I'm so torn on who I think will win this matchup. I know Carwin's got engine blocks for hands and Lesnar's chin hasn't been tested but I think his neck will keep his brain from jarring. You gotta move that head for a concussion to occur and I wonder if Brock's head moves when it's hit.

I also agree with those who say once Lesnar gets on top of you, there's really no way to do anything to stop him from pounding you out.

Having said all that, I think Brock is a big baby. I hope he gets flattened.

Edit- There's also zero doubt in my mind that if Brock loses, he'll blame it on the diverticulitis.

Edited July 1, 2010 by Chachie

[#98QBKiller]

i'm going with Carwin mainly because timing is usually the last thing to comeback after a long layoff. carwin by (T)KO in round 2 is what i'm leaning towards at the moment

i think Akiyama will be smart enough not to exchange with Leben and his judo will be good enough to get him on the ground and keep him there for a decision or maybe even a submission

I agree with these two predictions. Like everyone else, I could see the main event going either way but Brock's been out of the ring for almost exactly a year and he went several months without any training whatsoever. I think Carwin will be better prepared from a technique perspective, although I don't expect him to look like Ali out there moving around the cage.

I agree about Akiyama, I think he'll protect himself and get into the clinch with Leben and control him from there. He can probably tire Leben out after a round or two of clinching and forcing himself into dominant positions. I really wish this was Wand fighting though.

[StillUnknown]

this event will really tell how big of a ppv draw lesnar is. this is truly a card where everyone is paying for one fight

[Destino]

If Brock shoots and takes Carwin down it's over. Brock isn't the kind of guy you can shrug off. He has crazy power on the ground. If Brock tries to stand and bang with Carwin he goes to sleep.

My guess? The rust is thick enough to slow down Brock and he gets put to sleep in the 1st round. Carwin becomes the only current champion with a day job.

I think Akiyama got screwed when Leben agreed to step in. I think he's more dangerous than the Ax murderer at this stage of his career. Leben steps into a win win situation here; if he loses it's expected, if he wins he's a hero. He'll be throwing bombs in the ring because the pressure is all on Akiyama.

I think Akiyama is dumb enough to exchange with Leben and he goes to sleep in round 3.

[StillUnknown]

http://mmajunkie.com/news/19762/quinton-jackson-vs-antonio-rogerio-nogueira-targeted-ufc-119-or-ufc-120-likely.mma

Quinton "Rampage" Jackson (30-8 MMA, 5-2 UFC) and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (19-3 MMA, 2-0 UFC) have agreed to meet in an upcoming light-heavyweight superfight, though an exact date hasn't been decided for the bout.

Sources close to the competitors told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) verbal agreements are in place but that bout agreements have not been distributed.

And though the fight would appear a perfect headliner for September's UFC 119 event, a source said October UFC 120 or UFC 121 slots are also possibilities.

UFC 119 takes place Sept. 25 in Indianapolis, and UFC 120 takes place Oct. 16 in London. UFC 121, meanwhile, is still in the planning stages but expected in late October or early November.

Jackson, a former UFC light-heavyweight champion, recently returned from a 14-month layoff and dropped a unanimous decision to Rashad Evans at UFC 114. The loss (his first since losing his belt to Forrest Griffin in 2008) followed a knockout victory over Wanderlei Silva and a decision win over Keith Jardine.

Now in need of a quality win to get back in the title picture, Jackson meets a fellow ex-PRIDE star in Nogueira. "Little Nog," the twin brother of former UFC champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, made his UFC debut in 2009 and has since earned a TKO win over Luiz Cane at UFC 106 and a controversial split-decision victory over Jason Brilz and UFC 114.

Although the Brilz victory came with heavy criticism (he won via scores 28–29, 29–28 and 29–28 despite Brilz's impressive showing), Nogueira owns a seven-fight win streak stretching back to his days with Affliction and World Victory Road.

i would rather see him fight Machida

[NoCalMike]

Rampage moving to heavyweight. Hmm....one time special attraction?