Welterweight
1. Tyron Woodley (18-3-1)
With three successful UFC title defenses under his belt now, Woodley has taken to calling out the likes of Georges St. Pierre and Nick Diaz, hoping to cash in with some sort of lucrative fight. With GSP aiming to make history by coming out of retirement to take the middleweight title from Michael Bisping, Woodley may be pressured to defend his UFC crown again, and realistically, he may never get his chance to meet the all-time greatest welterweight, whose return figures to be brief.2. Robbie Lawler (28-11, 1 NC)
It may not earn him a fourth consecutive “Fight of the Year” distinction, but Lawler's oft-delayed, much-anticipated showdown with Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone at UFC 214 was worth the wait. After a year away from the cage following his knockout loss to Tyron Woodley at UFC 201, Lawler was sterling and violent in winning a well-deserved unanimous decision and reminding us that the “Ruthless” one is far from a relic at 170 pounds.3. Demian Maia (25-7)
Maia's title challenge against Tyron Woodley in July went anything but swimmingly for the jiu-jitsu legend. Fortunately for Maia, the UFC schedule is taking the Octagon back to his hometown of Sao Paulo, and the Brazilian will get a chance to get back into the win column, albeit against a dangerous prospect. Maia is expected to take on Colby Covington at UFC Fight Night 119 on Oct. 28.4. Stephen Thompson (13-2-1)
Thompson could not take the UFC welterweight title in his two-fight series with Tyron Woodley, and now he finds himself on the comeback trail following knee surgery. “Wonderboy” is not looking to take any sort of tune-up bout, though. After an organic social media game got fans revved up, the UFC has rubber stamped a Thompson-Jorge Masvidal clash for UFC 217 at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 4.5. Douglas Lima (29-6)
Lima's knockout vengeance to reclaim the Bellator MMA welterweight title from Andrey Koreshkov, coupled with his five-round domination of Lorenz Larkin in June, have re-established the Atlanta-based Brazilian as one of the true welterweight elite. If any doubters remain, “The Phenom” can help to quiet them in his next title defense: Lima will defend his title on Jan. 20 against former UFC title challenger Rory MacDonald in Los Angeles.6. Rory MacDonald (19-4)
The physical toll of his knockout loss in the 2015 “Fight of the Year” with Robbie Lawler had many wondering if MacDonald was already damaged goods. His last UFC fight 11 months later, a lackadaisical five-round loss to Stephen Thompson, led to further speculation. However, a dominant submission win over Paul Daley in May has earned MacDonald a shot at Bellator MMA champ Douglas Lima on Jan. 20 in Los Angeles. A win over “The Phenom” would earn MacDonald a title belt and prove the 28-year-old is anything but done as an elite 170-pounder.7. Rafael dos Anjos (27-9)
There is no shame in losing to Eddie Alvarez or Tony Ferguson, but when dos Anjos announced he was leaving the lightweight division, it just made good sense. He had been looking depleted on the scales for sometime and it was beginning to show in the cage. That was the correct diagnosis: The former UFC champion has been on fire in his first two welterweight bouts, dominating Tarec Saffiedine in June and then completely blowing out Neil Magny in less than four minutes at UFC 215, tapping him via arm-triangle choke.8. Jorge Masvidal (32-12)
Losing a close split decision to Demian Maia in May did nothing to slow Masvidal's hype or trash talking. Having hit his stride at 170 pounds, Masvidal continued incessant public call-outs of notable welterweights until his social media campaign to face former title challenger Stephen Thompson clicked. The exciting Masvidal-Thompson pairing will be featured on the UFC 217 card on Nov. 4 at Madison Square Garden.9. Neil Magny (19-6)
Magny’s shocking hot streak, during which he went 10-1 over an 11-fight stretch in the Octagon, is over. In fact, after his lopsided loss to former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos at UFC 215, the Brooklyn, New York, native has now lost two of his last three bouts. Nonetheless, Magny’s entire modus operandi seems predicated on taking tough fights, and that particular streak does not seem like it will end anytime soon. In his next outing, Many will welcome back former UFC interim welterweight champion Carlos Condit, as they meet at UFC 219 on Dec. 30.10. Kamaru Usman (11-1)
Already 5-0 in the UFC and riding a nine-fight winning streak overall, Usman showed a new wrinkle in his still-developing MMA game at UFC Fight Night 116, decking jiu-jitsu world champion Sergio Moraes into a front flip in less than three minutes. The 29-year-old “Nigerian Nightmare,” one of the UFC's best prospects at 170 pounds, continues to show massive improvement on a fight-to-fight basis.Other Contenders: Donald Cerrone, Colby Covington, Paul Daley, Leon Edwards, Santiago Ponzinibbio.
Continue Reading » Lightweight