Turd Ferguson
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Right now, after a period of having difficulty putting cards together due to injuries, the UFC has a great number of possible big time matchups coming up. There are some upcoming matchups that make you wonder how guys fit into the overall grand scheme for a title shot. The title pictures for virtually each division have a number of guys where if you look at the roster, you could make a case for a lot of the guys in the division deserving a title shot.
What I think would be fun and interesting is to go through each division's top fighters, and see if we can come to a consensus as to which division has the most depth.
The Heavyweight Division has Brock Lesnar at the top. However, with his health issues, there is going to be an interim title fight next month between Frank Mir and Shane Carwin, both of which are very credible contenders. This is a tough fight to call, because Mir's been great outside of the second Lesnar fight, and all you have to do is look at his destruction of Nogueira and how he bulked up to destroy Cheick Kongo. Shane Carwin has been unbelievable since coming to the UFC, destroying everything in his path. Cain Velasquez's destruction of Nogueira shows that he is undoubtedly deserving of a title shot as well. Remember that Nogueira was fully healthy for that fight and didn't have a staph infection.
After those four at the top, you have Junior Dos Santos, who is one victory over Gabriel Gonzaga away from proving that he deserves a spot at the top as well. I'm not sure where Nogueira goes after losing to Velasquez, but he's still going to be tough for anyone to take on. Gabriel Gonzaga is still an animal and he'll be taken very seriously again if he can beat Junior Dos Santos. Beating a can or not, Cro Cop is still showing he's a decent fighter who has something left in the gas tank. Cheick Kongo is still a threat, and then you have Stefan Struve, who if he manages to bulk up is going to be incredibly dangerous. At the bottom of the division? Ultimate Fighter winner Roy Nelson and runner-up Brendan Schaub. Kimbo Slice is also out there as an attraction who is improving. Don't forget Pat Barry, either.
The Light Heavyweight Division has two incredible fighters who are going to square off again in Lyoto Machida (who is still undefeated) and Shogun Rua (who is most certainly back). Rashad Evans and Rampage Jackson are going to finally have their showdown in May. It remains to be seen if Rampage stays with the UFC, but if he does, then that division has another title contender. Forrest Griffin looked good against Tito Ortiz, and he takes on Lil' Nog who is so close to being a major player in this division. Thiago Silva had a great effort against Rashad Evans and he's still very dangerous. Randy Couture's fighting like he's 30 as he dismantles his competition so far, and Rich Franklin has yet to make his 205 debut.
Near the bottom of the division, you still have some very talented fighters. Jon Jones with a victory over Brandon Vera will prove he's the real deal once and for all. Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell are UFC legends. Matt Hamill is still no pushover either. K-Soz and Stephan Bonnar are also at the bottom of this division and looking to finish what they started. Luis Cane, despite getting dismantled by Lil Nog is a great prospect, and Ricardo Arona is rumored to be signing with the UFC. Keith Jardine is a fighter who will sneak up on you, and you can't forget about Ryan Bader who is continuing to open eyes as the future of this division.
The Middleweight Division is headed by Anderson Silva, but there are some very talented fighters in this division. There is a lot of depth here right now with three guys who are all in line for title shots. Demian Maia, Vitor Belfort, and Chael Sonnen all can lay claim to a title shot, and they are three very tough middleweights who are going to give Anderson Silva some major problems. I still think that Chael Sonnen can actually beat Silva, as he's shown a susceptibility to getting wrestled and having a hard time with wrestlers. Nate Marquardt is still very much a threat in this division, and he'll work his way back to a title shot. Wanderlei Silva showed with his destruction of Michael Bisping that he's back. Sexyama is such a well-rounded fighter and his fight with Wanderlei should be a lot of fun. Patrick Cote, Alan Belcher, Yushin Okami, and Michael Bisping are all out there too. Not to mention, there are some great middleweight prospects coming up in TUF.
In the Welterweight Division, sure you have GSP, but this division has a lot of competitors in the pipeline. This division is a lot deeper than people give it credit for. First off, you have Dan Hardy, who is going to give GSP a fight. Then you have Jon Fitch, who next to GSP, is probably the best in the division. His fight with Thiago Alves should be a war, and I can't wait to see who comes out on top there. Sure, both guys got dismantled by GSP, but if they got another shot, you know they'd make adjustments and try to make it more competitive. Paulo Thiago has been incredible since coming to the UFC and is knocking on the door of a title shot. Josh Koscheck is no longer the gatekeeper of this division and he's going to have a real tough time with Paul Daley who has such tremendous knockout power. Matt Hughes and Matt Serra may not ever get another shot at the title, but they'll still be problems for a lot of guys in that division. Anthony Johnson and Ben Saunders are another year or two away from being top contenders in this division. Matt Brown has overcome adversity to be a player in this division as well. Carlos Condit is a former WEC Welterweight Champion who is close to making a name for himself. And Diego Sanchez is coming back to this division, taking on impressive undefeated prospect John Hathaway. Jake Ellenberger, Mike Pierce, and John Howard are all impressive prospects who are continuing to make a name for themselves. Jay Hieron is a free agent and could be UFC bound. Former possible #1 contenders Mike Swick and Martin Kampmann are afterthoughts now. This division is so talented, people just discount it because the best pound for pound fighter today is the champion of the division.
The Lightweight Division may be the weakest of them all, and it's still pretty strong. It's just that BJ Penn is so good that he's pretty much cleaned out the entire division. Kenny Florian, Sean Sherk, Kenny Florian, Diego Sanchez, and Joe Stevenson are a who's who of this division and he's dominated each one of them. Gray Maynard was promised a title shot and got it taken away because BJ would have finished him in the first with the way he fought against Nate Diaz. Frankie Edgar is a great fighter, but he'll probably be no match for BJ as well. Near the bottom of the division are talented fighters in Tyson Griffin, Terry Etim, Jim Miller, and new acquisition Takanori Gomi. George Sotiroupolous may be the biggest threat to BJ right now.
The elite Lightweights are fighting in Japan, and the dream fight of BJ Penn vs. Shinya Aoki may never happen.
Personally, I would rank the divisions as they are right now as:
1.) Heavyweight
2.) Middleweight
3.) Light-Heavyweight
4.) Welterweight
5.) Lightweight
The reason why I ranked Heavyweight and Middleweight ahead of the Light-Heavyweight Division is because there are so many contenders in those divisions, whereas in the Light Heavyweight, after Machida and Shogun, it's hard to find a definitive next in line contender. The Heavyweight Division is the most competitive its ever been, and not too long ago the champion of the division was the drizzling shits in Tim Sylvia.
In the Middleweight Division, you have Anderson Silva, but three guys in line for title shots, and three guys who Silva is going to conceivably have difficulty with.
What do you guys think?
What I think would be fun and interesting is to go through each division's top fighters, and see if we can come to a consensus as to which division has the most depth.
The Heavyweight Division has Brock Lesnar at the top. However, with his health issues, there is going to be an interim title fight next month between Frank Mir and Shane Carwin, both of which are very credible contenders. This is a tough fight to call, because Mir's been great outside of the second Lesnar fight, and all you have to do is look at his destruction of Nogueira and how he bulked up to destroy Cheick Kongo. Shane Carwin has been unbelievable since coming to the UFC, destroying everything in his path. Cain Velasquez's destruction of Nogueira shows that he is undoubtedly deserving of a title shot as well. Remember that Nogueira was fully healthy for that fight and didn't have a staph infection.
After those four at the top, you have Junior Dos Santos, who is one victory over Gabriel Gonzaga away from proving that he deserves a spot at the top as well. I'm not sure where Nogueira goes after losing to Velasquez, but he's still going to be tough for anyone to take on. Gabriel Gonzaga is still an animal and he'll be taken very seriously again if he can beat Junior Dos Santos. Beating a can or not, Cro Cop is still showing he's a decent fighter who has something left in the gas tank. Cheick Kongo is still a threat, and then you have Stefan Struve, who if he manages to bulk up is going to be incredibly dangerous. At the bottom of the division? Ultimate Fighter winner Roy Nelson and runner-up Brendan Schaub. Kimbo Slice is also out there as an attraction who is improving. Don't forget Pat Barry, either.
The Light Heavyweight Division has two incredible fighters who are going to square off again in Lyoto Machida (who is still undefeated) and Shogun Rua (who is most certainly back). Rashad Evans and Rampage Jackson are going to finally have their showdown in May. It remains to be seen if Rampage stays with the UFC, but if he does, then that division has another title contender. Forrest Griffin looked good against Tito Ortiz, and he takes on Lil' Nog who is so close to being a major player in this division. Thiago Silva had a great effort against Rashad Evans and he's still very dangerous. Randy Couture's fighting like he's 30 as he dismantles his competition so far, and Rich Franklin has yet to make his 205 debut.
Near the bottom of the division, you still have some very talented fighters. Jon Jones with a victory over Brandon Vera will prove he's the real deal once and for all. Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell are UFC legends. Matt Hamill is still no pushover either. K-Soz and Stephan Bonnar are also at the bottom of this division and looking to finish what they started. Luis Cane, despite getting dismantled by Lil Nog is a great prospect, and Ricardo Arona is rumored to be signing with the UFC. Keith Jardine is a fighter who will sneak up on you, and you can't forget about Ryan Bader who is continuing to open eyes as the future of this division.
The Middleweight Division is headed by Anderson Silva, but there are some very talented fighters in this division. There is a lot of depth here right now with three guys who are all in line for title shots. Demian Maia, Vitor Belfort, and Chael Sonnen all can lay claim to a title shot, and they are three very tough middleweights who are going to give Anderson Silva some major problems. I still think that Chael Sonnen can actually beat Silva, as he's shown a susceptibility to getting wrestled and having a hard time with wrestlers. Nate Marquardt is still very much a threat in this division, and he'll work his way back to a title shot. Wanderlei Silva showed with his destruction of Michael Bisping that he's back. Sexyama is such a well-rounded fighter and his fight with Wanderlei should be a lot of fun. Patrick Cote, Alan Belcher, Yushin Okami, and Michael Bisping are all out there too. Not to mention, there are some great middleweight prospects coming up in TUF.
In the Welterweight Division, sure you have GSP, but this division has a lot of competitors in the pipeline. This division is a lot deeper than people give it credit for. First off, you have Dan Hardy, who is going to give GSP a fight. Then you have Jon Fitch, who next to GSP, is probably the best in the division. His fight with Thiago Alves should be a war, and I can't wait to see who comes out on top there. Sure, both guys got dismantled by GSP, but if they got another shot, you know they'd make adjustments and try to make it more competitive. Paulo Thiago has been incredible since coming to the UFC and is knocking on the door of a title shot. Josh Koscheck is no longer the gatekeeper of this division and he's going to have a real tough time with Paul Daley who has such tremendous knockout power. Matt Hughes and Matt Serra may not ever get another shot at the title, but they'll still be problems for a lot of guys in that division. Anthony Johnson and Ben Saunders are another year or two away from being top contenders in this division. Matt Brown has overcome adversity to be a player in this division as well. Carlos Condit is a former WEC Welterweight Champion who is close to making a name for himself. And Diego Sanchez is coming back to this division, taking on impressive undefeated prospect John Hathaway. Jake Ellenberger, Mike Pierce, and John Howard are all impressive prospects who are continuing to make a name for themselves. Jay Hieron is a free agent and could be UFC bound. Former possible #1 contenders Mike Swick and Martin Kampmann are afterthoughts now. This division is so talented, people just discount it because the best pound for pound fighter today is the champion of the division.
The Lightweight Division may be the weakest of them all, and it's still pretty strong. It's just that BJ Penn is so good that he's pretty much cleaned out the entire division. Kenny Florian, Sean Sherk, Kenny Florian, Diego Sanchez, and Joe Stevenson are a who's who of this division and he's dominated each one of them. Gray Maynard was promised a title shot and got it taken away because BJ would have finished him in the first with the way he fought against Nate Diaz. Frankie Edgar is a great fighter, but he'll probably be no match for BJ as well. Near the bottom of the division are talented fighters in Tyson Griffin, Terry Etim, Jim Miller, and new acquisition Takanori Gomi. George Sotiroupolous may be the biggest threat to BJ right now.
The elite Lightweights are fighting in Japan, and the dream fight of BJ Penn vs. Shinya Aoki may never happen.
Personally, I would rank the divisions as they are right now as:
1.) Heavyweight
2.) Middleweight
3.) Light-Heavyweight
4.) Welterweight
5.) Lightweight
The reason why I ranked Heavyweight and Middleweight ahead of the Light-Heavyweight Division is because there are so many contenders in those divisions, whereas in the Light Heavyweight, after Machida and Shogun, it's hard to find a definitive next in line contender. The Heavyweight Division is the most competitive its ever been, and not too long ago the champion of the division was the drizzling shits in Tim Sylvia.
In the Middleweight Division, you have Anderson Silva, but three guys in line for title shots, and three guys who Silva is going to conceivably have difficulty with.
What do you guys think?
