MMA Pound-for-Pound Top 10: Anderson Silva’s World

By now, all the angles have been covered on Anderson Silva. Enough superlatives have been used in describing his game to empty a thesaurus. All the rumination on his place in mixed martial arts history has been done, and all the q…

Mark J. Rebilas-US PRESSWIRE

By now, all the angles have been covered on Anderson Silva. Enough superlatives have been used in describing his game to empty a thesaurus. All the rumination on his place in mixed martial arts history has been done, and all the questions about whom he should next face have been asked.

So rather than give you rehashed rundown No. 456,987 on the aftermath of the UFC middleweight champion’s UFC 148 victory over Chael Sonnen, let’s take a look at just a few of the numbers that quantify why Silva is the world’s top pound-for-pound fighter and leave it at that:

  1. Fifteen straight UFC victories (16 overall), a company record
  2. Ten successful title defenses, also a UFC record
  3. A 6-0 record against former UFC and PRIDE champions
  4. A 3-0 record in rematches, all of which were finished in under eight minutes
  5. Twenty-two finishes inside of 10 minutes; 20 inside of eight.
No. 2 Jon Jones is following fast in Silva’s footsteps, including his 4-0 record against ex-champs. The two even share questionable disqualifications on their record. Jones is the overwhelming favorite to overtake the top spot when Silva finally slows down, retires, or stumbles. But until that time, the matter of who is the world’s best MMA fighter is all but closed.

(Official MMAFighting.com ranking policy: Fighters who are under commission suspensions are ineligible to be ranked during the duration of their penalty).

1. Anderson Silva (30-4) – Reminded everyone who’s the boss at UFC 148.

2. Jon Jones (16-1) – A win over Dan Henderson on Sept. 1 will all but clean out the light heavyweight division.

3. Georges St. Pierre (22-2) – Recently tweeted that he’s back to full-time workouts and throwing kicks with his right knee. A November date in Montreal with Carlos Condit seems a lock.

4. Jose Aldo (21-1) – Anyone else get the feeling Aldo will be OK to fight again just in time for the UFC’s planned fall return to Brazil.

5. Junior dos Santos (15-1) – Still waiting on a new date for the Cain Velasquez rematch.

6. Dominick Cruz (18-1) – Rehabbing his knee injury while waiting for the winner of the July 21 Urijah Faber-Renan Barao fight.

7. Benson Henderson (15-2) – Title rematch with Frankie Edgar is the highlight of a crowded August MMA calendar

8. Gilbert Melendez (21-2) – Same old song and dance: Seven straight wins dating back four years, but who will he face next.

9. Frankie Edgar (14-2-1) – For all his heart, it’s hard to rank him higher at the moment when his hand has only been raised once in nearly two years.

10. Dan Henderson (29-8) – Coming off wins over former champions Mauricio Rua and Fedor Emelianenko, but will still be a heavy underdog against Jon Jones.

Honorable mention: Joseph Benavidez, Carlos Condit, Chael Sonnen, Rashad Evans, Cain Velasquez.

Want more? Check out the SB Nation consensus divisional rankings.