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Rankings Spotlight: The Ultimate Fighter’s 10 Best Non-Finalists

(Bader beat him. K-Sos beat him. Lawlor beat him. Now he’s one of the toughest prospects in the light-heavyweight division — proving once again that shaving your head is always a good career move. Photo props to UFC.com)

Not to pee-pee on Tony Ferguson‘s parade, but winning The Ultimate Fighter is no guarantee of success in the UFC. On the other hand, getting eliminated while in the TUF house is no guarantee of failure either. In fact, some of today’s most dangerous UFC contenders are guys who entered the promotion through the reality show, but didn’t even get to fight for the glass trophy. In the wake of Saturday’s TUF 13 Finale, here’s how I’d rank the Top 10 non-finalists from The Ultimate Fighter, based on their current standing in the promotion…

#1: Gray Maynard

On TUF: Was choked out by Nate Diaz in the semi-finals of season 5.
These days: Drew with Frankie Edgar in his first lightweight title challenge in January, but will get another crack at the belt later this year. His pair of title fights against Edgar follow an eight-fight win streak in the Octagon, which included a decision win against Diaz in a rematch last year.

#2: Josh Koscheck

On TUF: Lost a split-decision to Diego Sanchez in the semi-finals of season 1.
These days: A perennial top contender in the welterweight division, Kos will be one of the front-runners for the belt if GSP ever leaves the division; until then, he’ll just have to be content with being “right up there.”

#3: George Sotiropoulos

On TUF: Was K.O.’d by Tommy Speer in the semi-finals of season 6.
These days: Even though he dropped a decision to Dennis Siver in his last fight, his previous seven-fight win streak — which included high-profile wins over Joe Stevenson, Kurt Pellegrino, and Joe Lauzon — established him as a player in the lightweight division. He’ll return to action against Rafael Dos Anjos at UFC 132 next month.

#4: Melvin Guillard

On TUF: Lost a unanimous decision to Josh Burkman in the quarterfinals of season 2.
These days: Speaking of lightweight contenders, the Young Assassin has been on a tear lately. After going 3-0 in 2010, Guillard TKO’d Evan Dunham at “Fight for the Troops 2″ in January, picking up a Knockout of the Night bonus and some much-deserved respect. Next up on Melvin’s to-punch list: Shane Roller at UFC 132.

#5: Matt Mitrione

On TUF: Was submitted by James McSweeney in the quarterfinals of season 10, where he was best known as “the dude with the brain damage.”
These days: He’s done nothing but win since his time on the show, racking up a 4-0 Octagon record with victories over Big Baby, Kimbo, the Mexecutioner, and Tim Hague. Not exactly a who’s-who of heavyweight contenders, but he’s looked great so far. Mitrione’s next opponent will be Christian Morecraft at UFC on Versus 4, later this month.

#6: Matt Hamill

On TUF: Was unable to continue after his unanimous decision win over Mike Nickels in the quarterfinals of season 3.
These days: A constant presence in the light-heavyweight division, although his recent loss to Rampage Jackson doesn’t bode well for his future title prospects.

#7: Chris Leben

On TUF: Was outpointed by Josh Koscheck in the quarterfinals of season 1, then was brought back as an injury replacement, and lost to Kenny Florian by doctor’s stoppage TKO.
These days: Gearing up for a fight against Wanderlei Silva at UFC 132 that could re-establish him as a contender. His last fight ended in a TKO loss to Brian Stann that stopped an impressive three-fight win streak.

#8: Kyle Kingsbury

On TUF: Like Leben, his time on the show resulted in multiple losses. Kingsbury was submitted by Ryan Bader in the elimination round of season 8, brought back as an injury replacement, and then submitted again by Krzysztof Soszynski in the quarterfinals. Kingsbury was given another shot on the finale card against Tom Lawlor, and was defeated by unanimous decision.
These days: Incredibly, the UFC decided to keep Kingsbury around. It turned out to be a wise choice, as “Kingsbu” has gone 4-0 since the TUF 8 Finale, knocking off prospects like Jared Hamman, Ricardo Romero, and (last weekend) Fabio Maldonado.

#9: Matt Wiman

On TUF: Lost a decision to Manny Gamburyan in the quarterfinals of season 5.
These days: Riding a three-fight win streak, including victories over TUF 6 winner Mac Danzig and submission wizard Cole Miller, who also competed on TUF 5. His next fight will be against Dennis Siver at UFC 132. Damn, you noticing a trend here?

#10: George Roop

On TUF: Lost to Phillipe Nover by submission in the semi-finals of season 8.
These days: After dropping from lightweight to featherweight to bantamweight, then returning to featherweight, Roop is settling in at 145 with fantastic results. He’s gone 2-1-1 in his current featherweight campaign, with devastating knockout wins over Chan Sung Jung and Josh Grispi. His draw against Leonard Garcia — which should be considered a moral victory — won WEC 47′s Fight of the Night award.

– Ben Goldstein

In UFC Lightweight Division, Many Contenders but No Clear Next After Maynard

Filed under: UFC, StrikeforceClay Guida beat Anthony Pettis on Saturday night. Of course he did. When it comes to MMA, Guida is an unrelenting energy field that shakes up everything in his path, and while he took a big step forward in his own career, h…

Filed under: UFC, Strikeforce

Clay Guida beat Anthony Pettis on Saturday night. Of course he did. When it comes to MMA, Guida is an unrelenting energy field that shakes up everything in his path, and while he took a big step forward in his own career, he only served to further muck up the waters of the UFC lightweight division. As you probably know, before Saturday, Pettis was the No. 1 contender in waiting, and just needed to get past Guida at the TUF 13 Finale to keep his place in line. As often seems to be the case when fighters risk their shot at gold, he fell short, and now must rebuild his resume while his name falls out of the contenders’ conversation.

In a sport that is constantly looking forward, we always want to know who is next, and right now, that is a question with no answer. The only thing we know is that Gray Maynard is supposed to get the next title opportunity against Frankie Edgar, probably in the late summer or early fall.

But beyond that, it’s anyone’s guess.

Much will depend on what happens between now and Edgar-Maynard III, whenever that might be. For example, Jim Miller is supposed to face Ben Henderson at the UFC on Versus show scheduled for August 14. Miller has won seven straight fights, including two finishes in a row. A win over Henderson would make it difficult to discount his chances, and even harder to say he doesn’t have the current best resume out of all the hopefuls.

Amazingly, the only two career losses of Miller (20-2) came against Edgar and Maynard, respectively, giving the UFC an easy storyline to push regardless of which man wins. But all that, of course, is dependent on Miller himself winning first. Given Henderson’s wrestling prowess and ability to stay out of submissions, that’s no sure thing.

Guida, of course, has his own case to make. He’s now won four in a row with his win over Pettis. While he received some criticism for his somewhat conservative performance in the win, to be fair we must note that Guida had finished three opponents in a row before that.

Now here’s the problem. Even if you say one of those guys is definitively above the other, either of them could lose before a date with the Edgar-Maynard winner ever gets made. As we noted, Miller’s already got an upcoming bout set up, and Guida might also take another fight while he’s waiting for the champ and No. 1 contender to finish off their trilogy. The UFC has cards to fill, and Guida isn’t exactly known for saying no to fights.

We don’t have a specific date for Edgar-Maynard because the champ is still recovering from a back injury, and so we can’t yet assume he’ll be ready to go, even by the fall. No one except Maynard is likely to sit around and wait for him, and even he only for so long. Until then, we’ll be forced to play the speculation game.

Aside from Miller and Guida, things get really interesting. Who else is in the running? Among UFC fighters, you’d have to say that Melvin Guillard — winner of four straight, and six of his last seven — is probably the next closest, while Dennis Siver — 6-1 in his last seven — also has an argument.

Other possibilities? How about Strikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez? With its recently announced Nick Diaz vs. Georges St-Pierre, champion vs. champion fight, the UFC opened a Pandora’s box, giving us free reign to speculate about these types of possibilities. If it is the best fight, or the fight people most want to see, the UFC will have no choice but to consider it. Given the depth of the division, it seems less likely than pulling Diaz into the octagon, but it’s not an impossibility.

So, to recap, as it stands in early June, Miller, Guida, Guillard, Siver and Melendez are the five likeliest challengers. But there are far too many variables involved in any decision about who’s next, making any guesswork premature. Instead, we’ll be forced to wait and see how things play out. The opportunity is there for the taking, and Guida just fired the latest shot, so it’s up to the rest of the hopefuls to respond or be left behind. Until then, we get to sit around, debate, and play amateur matchmaker. But that’s half the fun of our sport anyway. The lightweight division is suddenly the wild, wild west, a land of opportunity and possibility. Hitch a ride on your respective war wagon, but come armed with patience. It’s going to be a long and bumpy ride on the way to the gold rush.

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Anthony Pettis: Grab Some Popcorn, It’s Showtime

When the lights dim and the cameras roll on June 4, the MMA world will watch in unison as two of the most exciting lightweights do battle.
Ladies and gentleman, it’s showtime.
Former WEC lightweight champion Anthony “Showtime” Pettis will make his anti…

When the lights dim and the cameras roll on June 4, the MMA world will watch in unison as two of the most exciting lightweights do battle.

Ladies and gentleman, it’s showtime.

Former WEC lightweight champion Anthony “Showtime” Pettis will make his anticipated UFC debut in the main event of Saturday’s TUF 13 Finale card.

He’ll step right into the fire on the big stage against fan favorite and MMA wildman Clay Guida.

Those unfamiliar with Pettis are definitely in for a treat. He is one of the most creative strikers in the world, who seemingly has an affinity for pulling out insane highlight reel maneuvers.

Fans are still drooling over Pettis’ Matrix-like kick in his WEC championship bout against Ben Henderson. Along with making ESPN’s Sportscenter Top Ten, Pettis generated a massive following with his performance.

He was set to challenge the UFC lightweight champion in his debut, but with the January 2010 title bout between Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard ending in a draw, a monkey wrench was thrown into the UFC’s plans for the rising young star.

Instead of waiting around for Edgar and Maynard, Pettis decided to take an extremely risky bout against Guida.

Some fans were upset about the possibility of Pettis missing out on a promised title shot.

An example of a similar situation is UFC featherweight Josh Grispi, who was originally scheduled to be the first to challenge Jose Aldo for his newly-acquired UFC title.

After an injury forced Aldo to pull out of the January bout, Grispi decided to take a fight against Dustin Poirier and ended up blowing his featherweight title shot.

As for Pettis, he made a great decision in taking the bout against Guida. The rematch for Edgar and Maynard was set for UFC 130, but both lightweights have been sidelined with injuries.

If Pettis waited around for the title shot, he could’ve been out of action for at least a year.

Recently, there have been questions surrounding Pettis’ position in the lightweight division. With a division full of guys like Gilbert Melendez, Jim Miller and Melvin Guillard, the title picture can become clouded with uncertainty at times.

UFC President Dana White has already stated that Edgar versus Maynard is still on deck, and if Pettis gets past Guida, he remains at the forefront of the lightweight herd.

“It’s Pettis,” White said according to MMAWeekly when asked about the next person in line for a lightweight title shot.

June will be a big month for MMA, and a bout between Pettis and Guida is a hell of a way to get things started.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Cerrone vs. Danzig Added to UFC 131, Guillard vs. Roller at UFC 132

Filed under: UFC, NewsThe UFC continues to fill up cards in its busy summer season, slotting a pair of lightweight fights for upcoming events in June and July, respectively.

At UFC 131, Donald Cerrone will look for his fourth straight win in a match a…

Filed under: UFC, News

The UFC continues to fill up cards in its busy summer season, slotting a pair of lightweight fights for upcoming events in June and July, respectively.

At UFC 131, Donald Cerrone will look for his fourth straight win in a match against former Ultimate Fighter winner Mac Danzig, while UFC 132 will feature surging Melvin Guillard against Shane Roller. The verbal agreements were announced on UFC.com.

Cesar Gracie Says What’s Next for Nick Diaz, Responds to Melvin Guillard

Filed under: MMA Videos, Strikeforce, FanHouse Exclusive, Videos

SAN JOSE, Calif. — MMA Fighting spoke to Nick Diaz‘s trainer and manager Cesar Gracie about Diaz’s win over Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos, what happened at the end of the fight with a group of fans in attendance, the chances of Diaz boxing Fernando Vargas next, Roger Gracie’s performance and his response to Melvin Guillard‘s recent comments about him.

Filed under: MMA Videos, Strikeforce, FanHouse Exclusive, Videos

10 QUESTIONS WITH JEREMY STEPHENS

By Joyce Lynda Valdes

At just 24 years old, Jeremy Stephens is a long-serving Lightweight in the UFC. Each year thousands of UFC hopefuls pin their dreams on getting cast in the Spike TV reality series, The Ultimate Fighter to jumpstart their careers in the biggest MMA promotion, but Stephens who started his amateur MMA career […]

By Joyce Lynda Valdes

At just 24 years old, Jeremy Stephens is a long-serving Lightweight in the UFC. Each year thousands of UFC hopefuls pin their dreams on getting cast in the Spike TV reality series, The Ultimate Fighter to jumpstart their careers in the biggest MMA promotion, but Stephens who started his amateur MMA career at the age of 16 was able to bypass casting directors by grabbing the attention of the promotion with his then impressive 13-1-0 record and earned himself a shot in the big league. Stephens lost his UFC debut to Din Thomas and briefly fought once more in a smaller promotion, which lead him right back to the UFC where he remains today with a now 19-6-0 record. Stephens has shown Knock Out power that has earned him 3 KO of the Night bonuses but has also found himself happily swimming in the middle of the pack as he calculatingly forges his way to his next goal as a Top 10 contender. Stephens most recent victory over Marcus Davis has gained him more spotlight attention on his punching prowess but has also prompted him to request some downtime to perfect his game. We caught up with Jeremy Stephens as he’s taking advantage of his time-off and asked him to answer a few of our pressing questions in his own written words…

1. First of all, congratulations on your KO of the Night win over Marcus Davis! How does it feel to get a guy kicked out of the UFC? Just joking…but I do wonder what the fighter thinks when he is the last person to beat another fighter who is subsequently released from their contract…
JS: It depends how you look at it, as he would have rather been on my end of this. But, I do not get a good feeling helping anyone get their walking papers. At the same time, we all know the prices you pay when you lose, so it is what it is. I do like Marcus and wish the best for him though.

2. You appeared to be in some trouble in the first two rounds with Davis. Going into a third round, where you fear you’ve lost the first two rounds, what goes on in your head? How do you turn it around to finish a fight and not let it go to decision?
JS: I know I for sure lost the first, and the 2nd could have gone either way. So I knew what I had to do going into the 3rd, which was actually the game plan. The only part of the game plan that didn’t go as planned, was getting rocked in the 1st, and Marcus to be as strong as he was. Marcus has some grown man strength, and [is] one of the strongest guys I have ever fought.
What goes through my head? That I’m down, and I’m not letting him take this fight from me. I trained too hard for this, and he can’t handle the pressure I’m about to bring to him. I’ll take whatever he gives me, but I’m going to knock his head into the cheap seats. That’s what I think going into the 3rd round with anyone when I’m down.

3. You’re in probably the most stacked division of the UFC. Do you feel comfortable at the pace you’ve come up in the ranks or does the overload of talent make things a bit uneasy? And is that a good thing to keep you on your toes?
JS: I feel great where I’m at. I improve every single day, and each fight I change things up. I asked for time off after UFC 125, so I can add a lot more to my game. So come my next fight, things will be different. I’m just taking it one fight at a time, getting better, and earning my shot at the top 10, top 5, then the title, which I will get to.

4. You’re a young guy and yet a veteran of the UFC, having fought in the promotion since 2007. You’ve had eleven UFC fights, three KO of the Night and one Fight of the Night wins. Do you still feel like a young 24 year old guy or do you look at someone like Anthony Pettis who is just 1 year younger but he’s also just starting out with UFC and think, here’s a young guy with a lot to learn, as Clay Guida has recently stated, he plans to show Pettis “what the UFC is all about…”
JS: Like I said about getting better each day, I also do in my personal life. I’ve been through too much adversity to let this stuff go to my head. I’m very mentally strong, and do what I gotta do to be a better person with a better, day in, day out! You’re only as old or young as you allow yourself to be.

5. You’re in a pretty good position for lining up your next fight, so; whom in particular are you eyeing next?
JS: I’m not eyeing anyone. I just want a fight that will put me in the top 10. Then I want a fight that will put me in the top 5, and eventually in the title picture. I’d like to see Melvin get that title, and so we can eventually run that fight back (that I won), and live up to the hype. I really like how Melvin has fought since, so maybe….
But I’m not stuck on Melvin by any means, I just want the fights to me at the top.

6. Another difficult part of being in such a stacked division as the UFC Lightweights, is the frequency of fights you get called for. Have you been contacted regarding your next opportunity in the Octagon?
JS: No, I asked for time off. I talked to my coaches, management, the UFC, and it was all agreed. So I’m in the works to bring a lot more into my game. I will be back in action, most likely in June/July.

7. With the addition of the 135 and 145lb divisions now in the UFC, would you consider moving down a weight class or two? Has the thought crossed your mind?
JS: Nope. I love where I’m at, and have no reason at all to even think about this.

8. Speaking of how young you are… I spoke with a longtime friend of yours, Tequila Cazadores Spokes Model, Emily Miller who attended middle school with you. She says she recalls you getting in a few fights at the skating rink. MMA is still a relatively young sport. How did you become aware of it growing up? And what motivated you to become a professional MMA fighter? Was the skating rink that hardcore?
JS: Like I said, I went through a lot of adversity growing up. I’ve been through and seen more then most will never experience. It’s not a bad thing, because it has made me who I am, and I wouldn’t take it back for anything. Yes, I have always liked to fight/wrestle since i was a kid. I was a teenager, got talked into going to a “sign up and fight” in a local bar. I got some quick wins, great KO’s, and have been hooked ever since.
BTW- Emily is great. She has been there since the beginning. What I don’t remember, she could probably tell you.

9. Obviously some of the big MMA news right now is Dos Santos and Lesnar heading in to coach this season of TUF 13. Do you think that TUF is a very beneficial show to be on at least from a marketing aspect, would it have been helpful for you to appear on the show rather than sign straight with the UFC?
JS: It depends on which fighter, but I think any/all fighters would benefit from being on the show. So yes, I would for sure have benefited from being on TUF. I have a lot of personality that would be good for TV, haha. It’s more then fighting, and shows your character. It’s great for the sport, and I’m glad to seeing it do so good. I hope it just gets bigger and better! Lesnar vs Dos Santos is genius, especially right before the UFC goes to Brazil.

10. You’ve got some impressive punching power… Is there anyone you’d like to knock out just for your own personal amusement?
JS: I want to knock out every single fighter that stands across from me in competition. There is no other feeling that compares, and it’s exactly what the fans want!