Sherdog Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings
Light Heavyweight
Jul 9, 2008
1. Forrest Griffin (Pictures) (16-4-0)
He himself will tell you he's not the most skilled or talented guy around, but Forrest Griffin (Pictures)'s drive and determination have paid off in spades as the poster child for the new UFC is now the man to beat at 205 pounds. With his throne capture, Griffin rises from third to take the first spot in these rankings. However, the real emphasis will be on defending his title in arguably the biggest and best weight class in the game with a potential rematch against Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, a showdown with former champ Chuck Liddell (Pictures), an encounter with Lyoto Machida (Pictures), and tons of other challengers on the horizon.
2. Quinton Jackson (Pictures) (28-7-0)
After resurrecting his career and emerging as the top light heavyweight in the sport with his victories over Chuck Liddell (Pictures) and Dan Henderson (Pictures), few thought that Forrest Griffin (Pictures) would pose any problem. No matter what your personal scorecard read, "Rampage" was less-than-stellar and lost his title on the cards. If nothing else, it should make a highly interesting rematch possible. However, Jackson loses his top spot in the Sherdog.com rankings, slipping from first to second.
3. Lyoto
Machida (Pictures) (13-0-0)
With all the talk of immediate rematches and possibly a Forrest Griffin (Pictures)-Chuck Liddell (Pictures) fight, the undefeated Machida has seemingly been lost in the shuffle. While whether he gets the next title shot is uncertain, it would seem that the karate expert will get his crack sooner or later if he continues to dominate in the Octagon. However, with the ascent of Forrest Griffin (Pictures), Machida falls from second to third in these rankings.
4. Chuck Liddell (Pictures) (21-5-0)
After a hugely anticipated clash with Mauricio "Shogun" Rua was nixed, the "Iceman" suffered a nasty hamstring tear, which slashed his clash with undefeated Rashad Evans (Pictures) set for UFC 85 on June 7. Thankfully, the Liddell-Evans bout will still go on, and is reportedly set for Sept. 6 in Atlanta.
After injuring his knee and stumbling in his UFC debut, it seemed "Shogun" had hit rock bottom. Then, with a big fight against Chuck Liddell (Pictures) looming, disaster struck again when Rua injured the same knee that had been surgically repaired just months before. His next battle is not yet in sight.
6. Dan Henderson (Pictures) (22-6-0)
Following his March loss to Anderson Silva, there was much speculation over whether Henderson would continue to campaign as a 185-pounder, or head back to the 205-pound class. It's been decided: Henderson will be staying at middleweight to meet hot Brazilian prospect Rousimar "Toquinho" Palhares at UFC 88 on Sept. 6 in Atlanta.
7. Wanderlei Silva (Pictures) (32-8-1, 1 NC)
After a vintage Silva performance in May when he stampeded over Keith Jardine (Pictures) in 36 seconds, people were left wanting more Silva, ASAP. While they almost got their wish, a bout couldn't be finalized with "The Axe Murderer" for the July 19 UFC "Silva vs. Irvin" card, so fans will have to wait a little bit longer for Silva's return.
8. Keith Jardine (Pictures) (13-4-1)
After knocking off Chuck Liddell (Pictures) last September, Jardine had the opportunity to defeat two of the sport's greatest light heavyweights in history when he entered the Octagon for his May 24 bout with Wanderlei Silva (Pictures). Instead, Jardine was ripped apart, getting brutally dispatched in 36 seconds.
9. Rashad Evans (Pictures) (11-0-1)
Evans slid into the biggest fight of his career, a scheduled June 7 clash with Chuck Liddell (Pictures), before he ended up being removed from the card after injuries to Liddell, and then replacement opponent James Irvin (Pictures). Luckily for Evans, he will get his crack at the former UFC light heavyweight king on Sept. 6 when the UFC heads to Atlanta.
10. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou (Pictures) (5-2-0)
Sokoudjou restored some measure of his hype, handling a quality opponent in Kazuhiro Nakamura (Pictures) and stopping him at the end of the first frame. Although Africa's top mixed martial artist may still continue to fight talk of his 2007 wins being flukes, the UFC's 205-pound division should prove to be the acid test for the Cameroonian.
He himself will tell you he's not the most skilled or talented guy around, but Forrest Griffin (Pictures)'s drive and determination have paid off in spades as the poster child for the new UFC is now the man to beat at 205 pounds. With his throne capture, Griffin rises from third to take the first spot in these rankings. However, the real emphasis will be on defending his title in arguably the biggest and best weight class in the game with a potential rematch against Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, a showdown with former champ Chuck Liddell (Pictures), an encounter with Lyoto Machida (Pictures), and tons of other challengers on the horizon.
2. Quinton Jackson (Pictures) (28-7-0)
After resurrecting his career and emerging as the top light heavyweight in the sport with his victories over Chuck Liddell (Pictures) and Dan Henderson (Pictures), few thought that Forrest Griffin (Pictures) would pose any problem. No matter what your personal scorecard read, "Rampage" was less-than-stellar and lost his title on the cards. If nothing else, it should make a highly interesting rematch possible. However, Jackson loses his top spot in the Sherdog.com rankings, slipping from first to second.
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With all the talk of immediate rematches and possibly a Forrest Griffin (Pictures)-Chuck Liddell (Pictures) fight, the undefeated Machida has seemingly been lost in the shuffle. While whether he gets the next title shot is uncertain, it would seem that the karate expert will get his crack sooner or later if he continues to dominate in the Octagon. However, with the ascent of Forrest Griffin (Pictures), Machida falls from second to third in these rankings.
4. Chuck Liddell (Pictures) (21-5-0)
After a hugely anticipated clash with Mauricio "Shogun" Rua was nixed, the "Iceman" suffered a nasty hamstring tear, which slashed his clash with undefeated Rashad Evans (Pictures) set for UFC 85 on June 7. Thankfully, the Liddell-Evans bout will still go on, and is reportedly set for Sept. 6 in Atlanta.
5. Mauricio Rua (Pictures) (16-3-0)
After injuring his knee and stumbling in his UFC debut, it seemed "Shogun" had hit rock bottom. Then, with a big fight against Chuck Liddell (Pictures) looming, disaster struck again when Rua injured the same knee that had been surgically repaired just months before. His next battle is not yet in sight.
6. Dan Henderson (Pictures) (22-6-0)
Following his March loss to Anderson Silva, there was much speculation over whether Henderson would continue to campaign as a 185-pounder, or head back to the 205-pound class. It's been decided: Henderson will be staying at middleweight to meet hot Brazilian prospect Rousimar "Toquinho" Palhares at UFC 88 on Sept. 6 in Atlanta.
7. Wanderlei Silva (Pictures) (32-8-1, 1 NC)
After a vintage Silva performance in May when he stampeded over Keith Jardine (Pictures) in 36 seconds, people were left wanting more Silva, ASAP. While they almost got their wish, a bout couldn't be finalized with "The Axe Murderer" for the July 19 UFC "Silva vs. Irvin" card, so fans will have to wait a little bit longer for Silva's return.
8. Keith Jardine (Pictures) (13-4-1)
After knocking off Chuck Liddell (Pictures) last September, Jardine had the opportunity to defeat two of the sport's greatest light heavyweights in history when he entered the Octagon for his May 24 bout with Wanderlei Silva (Pictures). Instead, Jardine was ripped apart, getting brutally dispatched in 36 seconds.
9. Rashad Evans (Pictures) (11-0-1)
Evans slid into the biggest fight of his career, a scheduled June 7 clash with Chuck Liddell (Pictures), before he ended up being removed from the card after injuries to Liddell, and then replacement opponent James Irvin (Pictures). Luckily for Evans, he will get his crack at the former UFC light heavyweight king on Sept. 6 when the UFC heads to Atlanta.
10. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou (Pictures) (5-2-0)
Sokoudjou restored some measure of his hype, handling a quality opponent in Kazuhiro Nakamura (Pictures) and stopping him at the end of the first frame. Although Africa's top mixed martial artist may still continue to fight talk of his 2007 wins being flukes, the UFC's 205-pound division should prove to be the acid test for the Cameroonian.
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