Filed under: UFC, WEC, Strikeforce, Rankings, OverallWhen it comes to pound-for-pound rankings, the biggest question is always how to deal with heavyweights. Some people think a pound-for-pound list should never include any heavyweight champions at all…
When it comes to pound-for-pound rankings, the biggest question is always how to deal with heavyweights. Some people think a pound-for-pound list should never include any heavyweight champions at all. Others say if you’re the heavyweight champ, you belong in the Top 10, just as the champions at bantamweight, featherweight, lightweight, welterweight, middleweight and light heavyweight belong.
When Fedor Emelianenko was the heavyweight king, I always had him on my pound-for-pound list. But when Brock Lesnar took Fedor’s place as the sport’s top heavyweight, I didn’t list Lesnar. My feeling was that Lesnar’s greatness was much more about size and strength than skill, and therefore Lesnar wasn’t really suited to being in the pound-for-pound Top 10.
Now that Cain Velasquez is the heavyweight champion of the world, I’m back to having a heavyweight in my Top 10. Find out where and why below.
(Belfort has no problem with Brazilian on Brazilian crime.)
During an interview with Tatame earlier this month, number one UFC middleweight contender Vitor Belfort was asked to respond to recent remarks made by Wanderlei Silva that Anderson Silva is go…
(Belfort has no problem with Brazilian on Brazilian crime.)
During an interview with Tatame earlier this month, number one UFC middleweight contender Vitor Belfort was asked to respond to recent remarks made by Wanderlei Silva that Anderson Silva is going to, "beat the hell out of ‘The Phenom’" and let’s just say he wasn’t overly impressed.
"I don’t think anything, he’s a spectator and he can think whatever he wants to. If you have a mouth, you can say whatever you want and Wanderlei has a big mouth. But it’s about cheering, everyone can cheer for their favorite, and the important is to be respectful and know how to choose the right words," Belfort said. "In February I’ll have my chance for the belt and let’s see how it’ll be."
(The beginning of the end for the Predator…)
From #1 contender to castoff in three fights — such is the fate of Patrick Cote, who confirmed today that he has been cut by the UFC following his decision loss to Tom Lawlor at UFC 121. As Cote wr…
(The beginning of the end for the Predator…)
From #1 contender to castoff in three fights — such is the fate of Patrick Cote, who confirmed today that he has been cut by the UFC following his decision loss to Tom Lawlor at UFC 121. As Cote wrote, "I had a little hope but finally got the release word from the UFC. Its been a awesome experience! Ill be back!!"
The TUF 4 middleweight finalist lost his first four official matches in the Octagon (including his TUF 4 finale fight against Travis Lutter), but then went on a monster run in 2007-2008 that saw him score five consecutive victories over Scott Smith, Jason Day, Kendall Grove, Drew McFedries, and Ricardo Almeida.
("We have ways to make the infidels…er…fighters agree to our demands.")
It looks like a GSP vs. Anderson Silva match-up might be closer than anticipated.
Dana White brushed off the potential blockbuster bout this summer as being something…
("We have ways to make the infidels…er…fighters agree to our demands.")
It looks like a GSP vs. Anderson Silva match-up might be closer than anticipated.
Dana White brushed off the potential blockbuster bout this summer as being something that likely won’t happen for a while, but according to his partner, UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta, the fight may happen as early as next summer if both fighters continue to dominate in their respective divisions.
"I want to see that fight," Fertitta said during a Q&A session in London ahead of UFC 120. "That’s probably the one fight I really want to see the most."
For that to happen, Silva will have to get by former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort in February and St-Pierre faces fellow TUF 12 coach and MMA superheel Josh Koscheck in December. White has also held steadfast to his assertion that Jake Shields will face the winner of that bout, so it may still be a while off if he gets his way.
In a recent interview with Fighters Only, UFC president Dana White revealed that the next time Michael Bisping steps through the doors of the Octagon to compete, he will be staring across the cage at a top five opponent.
Considerin…
In a recent interview with Fighters Only, UFC president Dana White revealed that the next time Michael Bisping steps through the doors of the Octagon to compete, he will be staring across the cage at a top five opponent.
Considering the options, it’s a pretty safe bet that said opponent will be the loser of the UFC 122 bout between Yushin Okami and Nate Marquardt.
Let’s look at the simple deductive reasoning we used that helped us come to our conclusion:
(Ramon says his head isn’t big; every hat he owns is simply too small.)
Brazilians always seem to take the glass is half full approach to life, so it shouldn’t surprise us that Anderson Silva’s Brazilian jiu-jitsu coach, Ramon Lemos sees a bright side …
(Ramon says his head isn’t big; every hat he owns is simply too small.)
Lemos told Tatame recently that Sonnen’s infraction only proves how good his fighter really is.
"I was very happy because he was on top of us for 23 minutes, on his best position, and Anderson submitted him, won the fight and kept the belt… Then you see that the guy had used things, so he had better conditioning than a regular athlete… It’s wonderful for us," Lemos said. "That proves that Anderson Silva is the best of t he world, without any doubts."
Considering that Sonnen, whether or not he had any help from PEDs, is the only fighter to ever dominate Silva the way that the Oregon Republican did in August, it’s no surprise that Ramos is in agreement that the one year suspension Chael was handed down by the California State Athletic Commission last month was just. He also is of the opinion that when Sonnen does come back from his suspension that he should be forced to work his way back up from the bottom of the UFC’s middleweight division.
Since Silva only has a handful of fights remaining on his current UFC contract and has expressed a desire to retire in the next year or two, unless Sonnen wins his appeal, it’s unlikely the pair will ever get a second match.
"I’m in favor of rematches for the fans, the show, the event, the whole media… But, as a professional and athlete, and now as Anderson Silva’s coach on Atos, I consider a rematch a bad thing and it doesn’t worth. Because, if the guy had loss on the judges’ call, it’d be ok. But he stayed for 23 minutes, and that means five rounds, on his best position, which is to takedown and punch from the top, and he couldn’t define the fight, and he lost," Lemos said. "There’s no need to know if he had taken extra medicines or not. You can’t have a rematch on those conditions. He has to be punished and stay a year off and then come back for the end of the line and wait for his call to fight Anderson Silva again."
When it comes to pound-for-pound rankings, the biggest question is always how to deal with heavyweights. Some people think a pound-for-pound list should never include any heavyweight champions at all. Others say if you’re the heavyweight champ, you belong in the Top 10, just as the champions at bantamweight, featherweight, lightweight, welterweight, middleweight and light heavyweight belong.
(Belfort has no problem with Brazilian on Brazilian crime.)
In a recent interview with