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Who will be next to crack the Top 10 rankings?
By Dave Doyle, Yahoo! Sports
A mixed martial artist?s time at the top is fleeting.
For proof, take a look at the most recent Yahoo! Sports Top 10 pound-for-pound poll. Then contrast it to the rankings which ran just 12 months ago.
Sure, there are some constants. The same three fighters atop last August?s poll ? Anderson Silva, Georges St. Pierre, and Jose Aldo ? remain there, though Silva and GSP have flip-flopped at No. 1. Also, Frank Edgar has moved up a spot from six to five; and Dominick Cruz from 10 to six.
More From Dave Doyle
Rankings: Evans still not top-10 worthy Aug 11, 2011
AdChoices
Jon Jones has to fit into the rankings somewhere.
(Getty Images)
But half the Top 10 has turned over. Out are Mauricio Rua, Fedor Emelianenko. B.J. Penn, Lyoto Machida and Jake Shields. Taking their place were Jon Jones, Cain Velasquez, Jon Fitch, Gilbert Melendez and Gray Maynard.
Go back another 12 months and the list becomes almost unrecognizable. In Aug. 2009, Silva and St. Pierre were perched at 1-2, but no one else from two years ago is currently ranked, including Mike Brown, Quinton ?Rampage? Jackson, Miguel Torres, Dan Henderson and Brian Bowles.
So what will the Top 10 look like in Aug. 2012? Silva and St. Pierre would have to embark on precipitous declines in order to drop out of the Top 10, and it?s really tough to imagine Jon Jones not being a part of the mix. But if the past two years serve as an indication, we should be in for a turbulent ratings ride.
Who might find their way into the Top 10 between now and next summer? Here are 10 candidates who could reach the elite. They vary from former Top 10 fighters who find themselves a win or two away from a return; those who have perennially lurked in the ?votes for others? category without quite reaching the promised land, and up-and-comers eager to crash the party.
A look at fighters with serious Top-10 potential:
Top tier
Nick Diaz
Weight class: Welterweight
Record: 25-7, 1 no contest
Streak: Won past 10
Next fight: vs. No. 2 Georges St. Pierre, Oct. 29
Diaz?s current win streak is in part due to the fact he?s been the biggest beneficiary of Showtime?s boxing-style promotional model, which at times puts bouts designed to make certain fighters look good ahead of top-flight, even-strength matchups. But there?s also no doubt Diaz is winning with flair, as he boasts a down-and-dirty brawling style, resilience, and a sublime submission game. For these reasons, he?s St. Pierre?s most intriguing opponent in quite some time.
Rashad Evans
Weight class: Light heavyweight
Record: 16-1-1
Streak: Won past 3
Next fight: Evans has been promised a bout against the winner of the Sept. 24 Jon Jones-Quinton Jackson fight.
With just one loss in a seven-and-a-half year career, a UFC light heavyweight title reign to his credit, and victories over four men who have held the 205-lb. title (Chuck Liddell, Forrest Griffin, Quinton Jackson and Tito Ortiz), no fighter currently outside the Top 10 boasts Evans? credentials. A win over Jones would likely vault him into the top five.
Junior Dos Santos
Weight class: Heavyweight
Record: 13-1
Streak: Won past 8
Next fight: vs. No. 7 Cain Velasquez, Nov. 19
Remember when Dos Santos? knockout win over Fabricio Werdum was considered a major upset? If the memory of that 2008 battle is distant, it?s for good reason. The Werdum KO was Dos Santos? American debut and the springboard to seven straight UFC victories. Up next is a title shot against Cain Velasquez. Dos Santos is the heavyweight division?s hardest hitter and he?ll be facing a champ who has been away an entire year with an injury. A win and he?s a no-brainer Top-10 pick.
Solid prospects
Jake Shields
Weight class: Welterweight
Record: 26-5-1
Streak:Lost past 1
Next fight: vs. Jake Ellenberger, Sept. 17
Shields was ranked in the Top 10 for much of the past year. He sits at No. 11 after a lackluster April loss to St. Pierre, which snapped his 15-fight win streak. The UFC has matched Shields against another methodical fighter in Ellenberger. While that suggests the company will put him on the long road back to a title shot, an impressive win in that bout coupled with a No. 10 Gray Maynard loss to Frank Edgar in October would likely put Shields back in.
Dan Henderson
Weight class: Middleweight/light heavyweight
Record: 28-8
Streak:Won 3
Next fight: None scheduled
While his contemporaries fall by the wayside, the Strikeforce light heavyweight champ keeps on motoring. Henderson has lost just once in the past three years, scored a high-profile KO over Fedor Emelianenko in July, and as a contractual free agent could end up back in the UFC. In that case, he may be only a win or two away from Top-10 contention.
Kenny Florian
Weight class: Featherweight
Record: 14-5
Streak:Won past 1
Next fight: vs. No. 3 Jose Aldo, Oct. 8
The knock on Florian, and not without merit, is that he has come up short each time he?s been placed on the biggest stage, including two losses in lightweight title matches. But can ?KenFlo? be denied a spot if he takes the featherweight title from the world?s No. 3 fighter in October?
Wild cards
Quinton ?Rampage? Jackson
Weight class: Light heavyweight
Record: 32-8
Streak: Won 2
Next fight: vs. No. 4 Jon Jones, Sept. 24
Yeah, I can hear you scoffing at the notion ?Rampage? will ever see the Top 10 again. But the fact is, since losing the UFC light heavyweight title via decision to Forrest Griffin three years ago, Jackson?s only defeat in five fights has been a decision to Evans, hardly a loss worthy of scorn. Jackson will no doubt be an underdog to Jon Jones next month, but ?Rampage? still has thunder in his fists, and all it could take to vault Jackson back into the Top 10 is one well-timed punch.
Ben Henderson
Weight class: Lightweight
Record: 14-2
Streak: Won past 2
Next fight: None scheduled
The former WEC lightweight champ, known for his varied offense and otherworldly ability to resist opponents? submission attempts, has adapted as well as any ex-WECer to the UFC merger. At UFC 129, he beat Torontonian Mark Bocek in front of 55,000 hometown fans. Then on Aug. 14 he defeated Jim Miller, who previously appeared to be on the fast track to a title shot. Henderson might be best known for being on the wrong end of ?The Showtime Kick? last December against Anthony Pettis, but the Pettis loss was Henderson?s only defeat in four years, a span of 13 fights.
Urijah Faber
Weight class: Light heavyweight
Record: 25-5
Streak: Lost past 1
Next fight: vs. Brian Bowles, Nov. 19
Faber is closer to Top 10 consideration than he might at first glance appear. The former WEC featherweight champ hung with UFC bantamweight champ Dominick Cruz for five rounds in one of the year?s finest bouts at UFC 131. A Faber-Cruz trilogy fight is by far the most marketable bantamweight bout to be made. A win over Bowles would very likely lead to a Cruz rematch, and a win there would no doubt vault Faber back into the Top 10.
Hatsu Hioki
Weight class: Featherweight
Record: 24-4-2
Streak:Won 4
Next fight: vs. George Roop, Oct. 29
No class of MMA fighter seems more overhyped by people who should know better than Japanese fighters who are about to debut in the United States. Remember when we were told Shinya Aoki was going to take America by storm? Or Kid Yamamoto? In this case, though, there actually may be something to all the noise. Hioki has long been Japan?s best featherweight and boasts a pair of wins over Mark Hominick. With a UFC win or two, starting with October?s debut against Roop, he could be in line for a title shot.
Who will be next to crack the Top 10 rankings?
By Dave Doyle, Yahoo! Sports
A mixed martial artist?s time at the top is fleeting.
For proof, take a look at the most recent Yahoo! Sports Top 10 pound-for-pound poll. Then contrast it to the rankings which ran just 12 months ago.
Sure, there are some constants. The same three fighters atop last August?s poll ? Anderson Silva, Georges St. Pierre, and Jose Aldo ? remain there, though Silva and GSP have flip-flopped at No. 1. Also, Frank Edgar has moved up a spot from six to five; and Dominick Cruz from 10 to six.
More From Dave Doyle
Rankings: Evans still not top-10 worthy Aug 11, 2011
AdChoices
Jon Jones has to fit into the rankings somewhere.
(Getty Images)
But half the Top 10 has turned over. Out are Mauricio Rua, Fedor Emelianenko. B.J. Penn, Lyoto Machida and Jake Shields. Taking their place were Jon Jones, Cain Velasquez, Jon Fitch, Gilbert Melendez and Gray Maynard.
Go back another 12 months and the list becomes almost unrecognizable. In Aug. 2009, Silva and St. Pierre were perched at 1-2, but no one else from two years ago is currently ranked, including Mike Brown, Quinton ?Rampage? Jackson, Miguel Torres, Dan Henderson and Brian Bowles.
So what will the Top 10 look like in Aug. 2012? Silva and St. Pierre would have to embark on precipitous declines in order to drop out of the Top 10, and it?s really tough to imagine Jon Jones not being a part of the mix. But if the past two years serve as an indication, we should be in for a turbulent ratings ride.
Who might find their way into the Top 10 between now and next summer? Here are 10 candidates who could reach the elite. They vary from former Top 10 fighters who find themselves a win or two away from a return; those who have perennially lurked in the ?votes for others? category without quite reaching the promised land, and up-and-comers eager to crash the party.
A look at fighters with serious Top-10 potential:
Top tier
Nick Diaz
Weight class: Welterweight
Record: 25-7, 1 no contest
Streak: Won past 10
Next fight: vs. No. 2 Georges St. Pierre, Oct. 29
Diaz?s current win streak is in part due to the fact he?s been the biggest beneficiary of Showtime?s boxing-style promotional model, which at times puts bouts designed to make certain fighters look good ahead of top-flight, even-strength matchups. But there?s also no doubt Diaz is winning with flair, as he boasts a down-and-dirty brawling style, resilience, and a sublime submission game. For these reasons, he?s St. Pierre?s most intriguing opponent in quite some time.
Rashad Evans
Weight class: Light heavyweight
Record: 16-1-1
Streak: Won past 3
Next fight: Evans has been promised a bout against the winner of the Sept. 24 Jon Jones-Quinton Jackson fight.
With just one loss in a seven-and-a-half year career, a UFC light heavyweight title reign to his credit, and victories over four men who have held the 205-lb. title (Chuck Liddell, Forrest Griffin, Quinton Jackson and Tito Ortiz), no fighter currently outside the Top 10 boasts Evans? credentials. A win over Jones would likely vault him into the top five.
Junior Dos Santos
Weight class: Heavyweight
Record: 13-1
Streak: Won past 8
Next fight: vs. No. 7 Cain Velasquez, Nov. 19
Remember when Dos Santos? knockout win over Fabricio Werdum was considered a major upset? If the memory of that 2008 battle is distant, it?s for good reason. The Werdum KO was Dos Santos? American debut and the springboard to seven straight UFC victories. Up next is a title shot against Cain Velasquez. Dos Santos is the heavyweight division?s hardest hitter and he?ll be facing a champ who has been away an entire year with an injury. A win and he?s a no-brainer Top-10 pick.
Solid prospects
Jake Shields
Weight class: Welterweight
Record: 26-5-1
Streak:Lost past 1
Next fight: vs. Jake Ellenberger, Sept. 17
Shields was ranked in the Top 10 for much of the past year. He sits at No. 11 after a lackluster April loss to St. Pierre, which snapped his 15-fight win streak. The UFC has matched Shields against another methodical fighter in Ellenberger. While that suggests the company will put him on the long road back to a title shot, an impressive win in that bout coupled with a No. 10 Gray Maynard loss to Frank Edgar in October would likely put Shields back in.
Dan Henderson
Weight class: Middleweight/light heavyweight
Record: 28-8
Streak:Won 3
Next fight: None scheduled
While his contemporaries fall by the wayside, the Strikeforce light heavyweight champ keeps on motoring. Henderson has lost just once in the past three years, scored a high-profile KO over Fedor Emelianenko in July, and as a contractual free agent could end up back in the UFC. In that case, he may be only a win or two away from Top-10 contention.
Kenny Florian
Weight class: Featherweight
Record: 14-5
Streak:Won past 1
Next fight: vs. No. 3 Jose Aldo, Oct. 8
The knock on Florian, and not without merit, is that he has come up short each time he?s been placed on the biggest stage, including two losses in lightweight title matches. But can ?KenFlo? be denied a spot if he takes the featherweight title from the world?s No. 3 fighter in October?
Wild cards
Quinton ?Rampage? Jackson
Weight class: Light heavyweight
Record: 32-8
Streak: Won 2
Next fight: vs. No. 4 Jon Jones, Sept. 24
Yeah, I can hear you scoffing at the notion ?Rampage? will ever see the Top 10 again. But the fact is, since losing the UFC light heavyweight title via decision to Forrest Griffin three years ago, Jackson?s only defeat in five fights has been a decision to Evans, hardly a loss worthy of scorn. Jackson will no doubt be an underdog to Jon Jones next month, but ?Rampage? still has thunder in his fists, and all it could take to vault Jackson back into the Top 10 is one well-timed punch.
Ben Henderson
Weight class: Lightweight
Record: 14-2
Streak: Won past 2
Next fight: None scheduled
The former WEC lightweight champ, known for his varied offense and otherworldly ability to resist opponents? submission attempts, has adapted as well as any ex-WECer to the UFC merger. At UFC 129, he beat Torontonian Mark Bocek in front of 55,000 hometown fans. Then on Aug. 14 he defeated Jim Miller, who previously appeared to be on the fast track to a title shot. Henderson might be best known for being on the wrong end of ?The Showtime Kick? last December against Anthony Pettis, but the Pettis loss was Henderson?s only defeat in four years, a span of 13 fights.
Urijah Faber
Weight class: Light heavyweight
Record: 25-5
Streak: Lost past 1
Next fight: vs. Brian Bowles, Nov. 19
Faber is closer to Top 10 consideration than he might at first glance appear. The former WEC featherweight champ hung with UFC bantamweight champ Dominick Cruz for five rounds in one of the year?s finest bouts at UFC 131. A Faber-Cruz trilogy fight is by far the most marketable bantamweight bout to be made. A win over Bowles would very likely lead to a Cruz rematch, and a win there would no doubt vault Faber back into the Top 10.
Hatsu Hioki
Weight class: Featherweight
Record: 24-4-2
Streak:Won 4
Next fight: vs. George Roop, Oct. 29
No class of MMA fighter seems more overhyped by people who should know better than Japanese fighters who are about to debut in the United States. Remember when we were told Shinya Aoki was going to take America by storm? Or Kid Yamamoto? In this case, though, there actually may be something to all the noise. Hioki has long been Japan?s best featherweight and boasts a pair of wins over Mark Hominick. With a UFC win or two, starting with October?s debut against Roop, he could be in line for a title shot.
