Within the last month there have been several fighters debut in new weight classes and emerge as immediate contenders.
No one made a bigger impression in his new division than Lyoto Machida. The former UFC light-heavyweight champion made a perfect middleweight debut, knocking out his friend and training partner Mark Munoz with a perfect head kick in the first round of their main event in Manchester.
Machida became an immediate contender in the 185-pound weight class and is all but guaranteed a title shot if he can get past Gegard Mousasi in February.
The welterweight division has taken a chaotic turn of late and longtime Bellator middleweight champion Hector Lombard made a statement in his divisional debut, knocking out Nate Marquardt in spectacular fashion at UFC 166. His combination of powerful striking, Olympic-level judo and explosive finishing instinct makes him a threat to anyone at 170 pounds. One more win over a top-10 welterweight will have his name firmly in the title conversation.
Speaking of former middleweights, Rousimar Palhares also looked great in his welterweight debut but his poor judgement (read: unsportsmanlike conduct) cost him a massive opportunity. Palhares submitted rising contender Mike Pierce with a beautiful leg lock at UFC Fight Night 29, but held onto the hold after his opponent tapped out and the referee stepped in. His decision to do so, not only damaged Piece’d knee, but it cost Palhares his job. The entire situation is unfortunate because he could have made waves in the division.
Also, Demian Maia took a small step back in his quest to become welterweight champ, as former title contender Jake Shields won a close, competitive, gruelling five-round decision in their main event in Brazil. Dong Hyun-Kim also looked terrific at that event as he brutally knocked out Erick Silva.
Cain Velasquez cemented his spot atop the heavyweight ranks at UFC 166, while Gabriel Gonzaga moved back into the top 10 with his huge knockout of Shawn Jordan at the same event.
At Bellator 106, Michael Chandler and Eddie Alvarez put on another absolute classic as Alvarez edged Chandler with a controversial split decision to win back the belt and avenge a loss from two years ago. Both fighters showed that they are as good as any lightweight in MMA, regardless of which promotion they fight for. Despite Alvarez getting the win, Chandler remains a spot ahead of him at 155 pounds because he should have been awarded three of the five rounds.
Here are sportsnet.ca’s latest mixed martial arts rankings.
Jump to: Pound-for-pound | Canadians | Women
Jump to: Heavyweight | Light heavyweight | Middleweight
Jump to: Welterweight | Lightweight | Featherweight
Jump to: Bantamweight | Flyweight
POUND-FOR-POUND
1. Jose Aldo
He has barely ever in trouble and has outclassed all of his opponents.
2. Georges St-Pierre
In terms of elite, well-rounded MMA skills and game plans, no fighter is better than GSP.
3.Cain Velasquez
Between size and skill, he is the most dangerous fighter in the UFC.
4.Jon Jones
Constantly improving, but not invincible as some previously thought.
5. Anderson Silva
One knockout loss does not diminish his absurd skill set.
6. Anthony Pettis
New UFC lightweight champ is as dynamic as they come.
7. Renan Barao
Elite striking, grappling and finishing instinct have led to a ridiculous unbeaten streak.
8. Demetrious Johnson
The fastest fighter in MMA is extremely well-round.
9. Joseph Benavidez
He is the best fighter in the UFC that has never been champion.
10. Chris Weidman
Still improving but his win over Silva proved he’s dangerous in all areas.
NOTE: Dominick Cruz would be on the list, but due to his inactivity he has been left off the list.
Honourable mention: Benson Henderson, Junior dos Santos, Urijah Faber, Chad Mendes, John Dodson
CANADIAN POUND-FOR-POUND
1. Georges St-Pierre
Johny Hendricks might be his toughest test to date.
2. Rory MacDonald
Big test upcoming in Robbie Lawler.
3. T.J. Grant
May have lost out on chance to fight for a title.
4. Mitch Gagnon
Meets Alex Caceres at UFC Fight Night 33.
5. Jordan Mein
Hasn’t fought since April.
6. Mark Bocek
Forced out of UFC 165 injured.
7. John Makdessi
Knocked out Renee Forte at UFC 165 with precision striking.
8. Ivan Menjivar
Was controlled for much of his UFC 165 bout against Wilson Reis.
9. Yves Jabouin
Won controversial decision over Dustin Pague in Winnipeg.
10. Ryan Jimmo
Injured his leg in a loss to Jimi Manuwa on Oct. 26 in England.
Honourable mention: Claude Patrick, Nick Ring, Antonio Carvalho, Sam Stout, Jesse Ronson, Sean Pierson
FEMALE POUND-FOR-POUND
1. Cristiane Santos
Explosive power, well-rounded offence, great defence. A scary individual.
2. Ronda Rousey
Has a lot to prove against Tate after TUF 18.
3. Cat Zingano
Recovering from knee surgery.
4. Miesha Tate
Will get a second crack at Rousey on Dec. 28 at UFC 168 after TUF 18.
5. Sara McMann
Pulled out of scheduled bout with Kaufman.
6. Sarah Kaufman
Lost controversial split decision to Eye at UFC 166.
7. Jessica Eye
Tough 125-pounder did well in exciting UFC debut against Kaufman.
8. Leslie Smith
Looked great against Jennifer Maia at Invicta FC 6.
9. Alexis Davis
Meets Liz Carmouche next.
10. Michelle Waterson
Invicta FC atomweight champ hasn’t fought since winning belt in April.
Honourable mention: Liz Carmouche, Marloes Coenen, Jessica Andrade, Jessica Aguilar, Joanne Calderwood, Claudia Gadelha, Jessica Penne
HEAVYWEIGHT
1. Cain Velasquez
Dominated JDS again in trilogy bout at UFC 166.
2. Junior dos Santos
Will have to go on big win streak to get another shot at title.
3. Fabricio Werdum
Likely next for Cain.
4. Daniel Cormier
Outclassed Roy Nelson at UFC 166. Looks to drop to light-heavyweight.
5. Antonio Silva
Faces Mark Hunt in Australia.
6. Travis Browne
Scheduled for bout vs. Barnett at UFC 168.
7. Josh Barnett
Looked impressive in win over Mir at UFC 164. See above.
8. Stipe Miocic
Rising contender executed a perfect game plan against Nelson at UFC 161.
9. Frank Mir
In must-win situation against Alistair Overeem at UFC 169.
10. Gabriel Gonzaga
Earned a huge KO of Shawn Jordan at UFC 166.
Honourable mention: Roy Nelson, Ben Rothwell, Alistair Overeem, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Mark Hunt, Stefan Struve
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT
1. Jon Jones
Showed champion’s heart and some holes in his game against Gustafsson.
2. Glover Teixeira
Jones’s next challenger.
3. Alexander Gustafsson
Awaiting next opponent. Was scheduled to meet Lil Nog.
4. Phil Davis
Could be one win from a title shot.
5. Gegard Mousasi
Recovering from injury. Dropping to middleweight to fight Lyoto Machida.
6. Rashad Evans
Meets Sonnen at UFC 167.
7. Dan Henderson
Headlines a Brazil card against Vitor Belfort next.
8. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
Injury troubles have surfaced again.
9. Chael Sonnen
A win over Rashad makes him a contender again.
10. Mauricio Rua
Needs to rebound in a big way after loss to Sonnen.
Honourable mention: Thiago Silva, Ryan Bader, Muhammed Lawal, James Te-Huna
MIDDLEWEIGHT
1. Chris Weidman
Looks to repeat history at UFC 168.
2. Anderson Silva
Wants to avenge loss to Weidman.
3. Ronaldo Souza
He can beat anyone in the division.
4. Vitor Belfort
Meets Hendo at 205 next.
5. Lyoto Machida
Made a spectacular 185-pound debut. Set to face Gegard Mousasi in February.
6. Michael Bisping
Was forced out of a bout with Munoz on Oct. 26 in England.
7. Luke Rockhold
Was forced out of UFC 166.
8. Yushin Okami
Was released by the UFC after loss to Jacare.
9. Mark Munoz
Was caught with a perfect kick by Machida.
10. Alan Belcher
Recovering from eye injury suffered at UFC 159.
Honourable mention: Francis Carmont, Tim Kennedy, Constantinos Philippou, Tim Boetsch, Ronny Markes
WELTERWEIGHT
1. Georges St-Pierre
Fights outside Canada for first time in years at UFC 167.
2. Johny Hendricks
Looks to take GSP’s belt on Nov. 16.
3. Carlos Condit
Looks to end Matt Brown’s win streak at UFC on FOX 9.
4. Rory MacDonald
Win over Lawler could earn him a title shot.
5. Robbie Lawler
A win over MacDonald would likely mean a title shot.
6. Hector Lombard
We’ve got a new contender at 170.
7. Jake Ellenberger
Expected to face Tarec Saffiedine in January.
8. Tarec Saffiedine
Outgoing Strikeforce champ has been battling injuries all year.
9. Matt Brown
Six straight wins earned him a shot against Condit.
10. Jake Shields
Edged Maia in Brazil.
Still a threat in the division.
NOTE: Nick Diaz would be in the top 10 though he says he is currently retired.
Honourable mention: Demian Maia, Dong Hyun Kim, Rousimar Palhares, Martin Kampmann, Tyron Woodley, Ben Askren, Thiago Alves, Rick Story
LIGHTWEIGHT
1. Anthony Pettis
His first title challenger will be Thomson
2. Benson Henderson
Suffered his first UFC loss against Pettis.
3. Michael Chandler
Lost a controversial split decision to Alvarez in Bellator 106 classic.
4. Eddie Alvarez
Avenged his loss to Chandler and regained his belt, though many felt he lost.
5. TJ Grant
Will have to wait for title shot.
6. Gilbert Melendez
Beat Diego Sanchez in classic at UFC 166.
7. Josh Thomson
Will look to take Pettis’ belt at UFC on FOX 9.
8. Khabib Nurmagomedov
His win over Healy at UFC 165 put him in title shot conversation.
9. Gray Maynard
TJ Grant made him look silly at UFC 160.
10. Rafael dos Anjos
Has won five straight and just beat Donald Cerrone.
Honourable mention: Pat Healy, Evan Dunham, Gleison Tibau, Nate Diaz, Donald Cerrone, Jim Miller, Jorge Masvidal, Jamie Varner, Edson Barboza, Melvin Guillard
FEATHERWEIGHT
1. Jose Aldo
Meet Lamas at UFC 169.
2. Chad Mendes
Completely outclassed Clay Guida at UFC 164; meets Nik Lentz next.
3. Ricardo Lamas
Finally gets his deserved title shot.
4. Chan Sung Jung
Likely will be on the shelf a long time after UFC 163 loss to Aldo.
5. Cub Swanson
Finished Siver impressively at UFC 162.
6. Frankie Edgar
Coaches TUF 19 against B.J. Penn.
7. Dustin Poirier
Faces Diego Brandao at UFC 168.
8. Eric Koch
Was outclassed by Poirier.
9. Nik Lentz
Unbeaten at featherweight.
10. Pat Curran
He lost his title at Bellator 106, but he just didn’t look right against Daniel Straus.
Honourable mention: Dennis Siver, Patricio Friere, Hacran Dias, Hatsu Hioki, Daniel Straus, Rani Yahya
BANTAMWEIGHT
1. Renan Barao
Looks to unify his belt with Cruz’s at UFC 169.
2. Urijah Faber
Meets McDonald next.
3. Michael McDonald
Submitted Pickett brilliantly at UFC Fight Night 26. See above.
4. Raphael Assuncao
Looked great in decision win over Dillashaw.
5. T.J. Dillashaw
Some thought he beat Assuncao.
6. Eddie Wineland
Looked solid against Barao before getting caught.
7. Yuri Alcantara
Looked good early against Faber.
8. Brad Pickett
Was tapped by McDonald.
9. Eduardo Dantas
The Bellator champ is one of the best young fighters out there.
10. Bibiano Fernandes
Beat Soo Chul Kim at ONE FC 11.
NOTE: Dominick Cruz would be No. 1 on the list, but due to his inactivity he has been excluded.
Honourable mention: Mitch Gagnon, Mike Easton, Ivan Menjivar, George Roop, Scott Jorgensen, Takeya Mizugaki, Erik Perez
FLYWEIGHT
1. Demetrious Johnson
Looks for second win over Benavidez.
2. Joseph Benavidez
Earned a rematch with Mighty Mouse.
3. John Dodson
KO’d Montague brilliantly.
4. Ian McCall
Had to pull out of a fight with Scott Jorgensen.
5. John Moraga
Gave Johnson a tough test in title tilt.
6. Darrell Montague
Got caught at UFC 166.
7. Jussier da Silva
Looks to bounce back from loss to Benavidez.
8. Tim Elliott
Meets Ali Bagautinov at UFC 167.
9. John Lineker
Has looked fantastic of late; stopped Phil Harris in England; he must make weight.
10. Louis Gaudinot
Lost to Elliott at UFC 164 after long layoff.
Honourable mention: Ali Bagautinov, Chris Cariaso, Ulysses Gomez, Jose Maria Tome, Mamoru Yamaguchi, Rambaa Somdet, Yasuhiro Urushitani
MMA rankings are subjective, and ultimately have no real bearing on how fights should or do play out, but they inevitably get fans talking about the sport and its best fighters. Send your thoughts and arguments to @MikeyJ_MMA.