The 185-pound weight class has basically come full circle for the UFC. It was ruled by legend Evan Tanner for a while, until Rich Franklin bumped him off and then held the belt for a time. Then he ran into the greatest unarmed killing machine ever…
The 185-pound weight class has basically come full circle for the UFC.
It was ruled by legend Evan Tanner for a while, until Rich Franklin bumped him off and then held the belt for a time.
Then he ran into the greatest unarmed killing machine ever conceived in Anderson Silva, who took that belt and has had it ever since.
There have been ups and downs, contenders and pretenders and a division with potential and a division cleaned out during Silva’s six-year reign.
But now, perhaps as much as at any time in history, the top 10 of the division is full of new faces and interesting styles to mix in with (and probably lose to, if we’re being honest) The Spider.
Coming off of UFC 152, here are the top 10 middleweights in the UFC.
Note: With his announced move to 205 pounds, ChaelSonnen is removed from the rankings. Having most recently fought at 205 pounds, VitorBelfort is removed from rankings.
UFC 152 proved that Vitor Belfort was outmatched against Jon Jones from the get go.Physically and mentally, “The Phenom” never seemed ready to challenge the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, despite nearly submitting Jones early in the first round.Jones,…
UFC 152 proved that VitorBelfort was outmatched against Jon Jones from the get go.
Physically and mentally, “The Phenom” never seemed ready to challenge the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, despite nearly submitting Jones early in the first round.
Jones, who could be considered the new phenom, simply made Belfort look pedestrian at best.
Whether on his feet or off his back, the 35-year-old was unable to successfully attack Jones or preserve his own well being.
Here’s what went terribly wrong for Belfort and why Jones looked as dominant as ever.
Matt Hamill made a successful return to MMA with his unanimous decision win at last night’s UFC 152.Coming out of retirement to face Roger Hollett, “The Hammer” didn’t put on much of a show, but still got the job done in this one-sided affair.Let’s tak…
Matt Hamill made a successful return to MMA with his unanimous decision win at last night’s UFC 152.
Coming out of retirement to face Roger Hollett, “The Hammer” didn’t put on much of a show, but still got the job done in this one-sided affair.
Let’s take a look at who might be next for the Ultimate Fighter alum.
Evan Dunham took on TJ Grant at UFC 152 on Saturday night with both fighters taking home “Fight of the Night” honors for their performance.Dunham has stumbled as of late and now has lost three of his last five fights. Although he and Grant gave a good …
Evan Dunham took on TJ Grant at UFC 152 on Saturday night with both fighters taking home “Fight of the Night” honors for their performance.
Dunham has stumbled as of late and now has lost three of his last five fights. Although he and Grant gave a good fight for the fans, it was still a unanimous-decision loss added to his career record.
So where does Dunham go from here?
It’s hard to say with so many lightweight fights coming up over the next few months. One thing is nearly certain—he’ll most likely have to win to avoid being another loss away from losing his spot on the UFC roster.
Dunham has been averaging two fights per year as of late and looks to be on schedule to fight again in January, assuming he will be healthy.
Here are five fights Dunham should take next:
Loser of Thiago Tavares and Dennis Hallman (October 5)
Loser of Rafael dos Anjos and Mark Bocek (November 17)
Winner of Mac Danzig and Takanori Gomi (November 10)
Winner of Jacob Volkmann and Shane Roller (October 5)
Winner of Jeremy Stephens and Yves Edwards (October 5)
Each of these matchups would still provide respectable opponents for Dunham, but they aren’t near the top of the food chain—which is where he would be had he come out on top against Grant.
Dunham is leaning towards the other side of 30, so he has time to make another run up the ladder—it’s just going to start with a mid-tier opponent.
Joe Chacon is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report and a staff writer for Operation Sports. You can follow him on Twitter @JoeChacon.
Coming into UFC 152, Jon Jones was already considered the best fighter in the world.His unorthodox striking, sound wrestling and big frame was always going to be too much for an aging Vitor Belfort.So it should come as no surprise that Jones literally …
Coming into UFC 152, Jon Jones was already considered the best fighter in the world.
His unorthodox striking, sound wrestling and big frame was always going to be too much for an aging VitorBelfort.
So it should come as no surprise that Jones literally picked apart “The Phenom” for four-straight rounds before securing an Americana in the fourth frame.
But, as it is after any fight, we can most certainly take something away from the light heavyweight champion’s victory
With UFC 152 in the books, it’s time to look forward and find out what is next for the biggest winners from Saturday night.Every pay-per-view has clear winners and losers, but sometimes it isn’t as black and white as each fight’s outc…
With UFC 152 in the books, it’s time to look forward and find out what is next for the biggest winners from Saturday night.
Every pay-per-view has clear winners and losers, but sometimes it isn’t as black and white as each fight’s outcome would suggest. Sometimes even in a loss, a star can be prove he is a winner.
Whether these stars won or lost, the following fighters proved their merit Saturday night and have big things in store for their career going forward.
VitorBelfort
It is true that VitorBelfort lost in the main event to Jon Jones, but UFC fans can’t forget that the man jumped weight classes to take this fight on short notice. Considering how close he came to forcing Jones to tap out to an armbar, Belfort was a winner.
At 35 years old, there aren’t too many years left for the MMA veteran, but this performance in the light heavyweight division should give him more credibility heading back to middleweight. Even a loss to Jones has to earn Belfort a shot at the middleweight No. 1 contender spot.
Anderson Silva has run roughshod over the middleweight division for years, and Belfort knows just how tough fighting the Brazilian star can be. With that said, Dana White has to consider Belfort one of the top three contenders in the middleweight division.
Michael Bisping
While MMA fans across the world love the hard-hitting style of Michael Bisping, the star has never fought for a title in the UFC. To say he deserves a shot now would be an understatement.
In a thin middleweight division laid to waste by the title run of Anderson Silva, it should be Bisping that is the No. 1 contender for the championship. While Silva will undoubtedly destroy the British star, Bisping proved he deserves the shot at the belt.
Bisping beat Brian Stann Saturday night at UFC 152 and dominated the whole fight. While Silva would destroy Bisping if he uses the game plan he had against Stann, who else is there in the middleweight division that deserves the No. 1 contenders spot more?
Jon Jones
If fighting is an art form, Jon Jones is turning into the Michelangelo of MMA.
Maybe that’s a bit huge, but Jones is one of the most talented fighters we have ever seen in the sport.
At just 25 years old, the UFC light heavyweight champion still has so much room to grow mentally and physically. For his opponents, the thought of the champion getting any better is terrifying.
After surviving an early scare before beating down Belfort in convincing fashion and finally submitting him in the fourth round, Jones has proven his dominance. The problem is there isn’t much left in the division for Jones to take on.
While the UFC could march out young guys like Phil Davis or Alexander Gustafsson, they would be better off scheduling a fight with ChaelSonnen that would allow for ample training time and pre-fight trash talking.
