Sherdog Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

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Light Heavyweight

1. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (19-4)
“Shogun” expected to tangle with former UFC champion Rashad Evans in the first defense of his light heavyweight title on March 19. However, a knee injury to Evans means that Rua will instead meet star prospect Jon Jones at UFC 128 in a fight that quickly excited and ignited the MMA public.

2. Rashad Evans (15-1-1)
In a cruel bit of coincidence, Evans’ decision to wait for UFC champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua’s knee to heal before fighting him for the 205-pound crown culminated in his own knee injury. The blow forced Evans out of their March 19 clash. Evans’ title shot will now go to his teammate at Jackson’s Mixed Martial Arts, Jon Jones.

3. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (31-8)
“Rampage” was originally set to face Thiago Silva at UFC 130 in May. However, with Silva’s status still up in the air pending reported commission clearance from his last bout at UFC 125, Zuffa has erred on the side of caution. “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 3 alum Matt Hamill has been installed as Jackson’s tentative opponent -- a move “Rampage” himself has critiqued on Twitter.

4. Lyoto Machida (16-2)
It was not long ago that many thought Machida was simply unbeatable at 205 pounds. Two losses later, Machida heads into a bout with MMA legend Randy Couture at UFC 129 on April 30 in Toronto, with many fans having completely forgotten the kind of dominance that was expected for “The Dragon.”

5. Jon Jones (12-1)
In a UFC 126 fight many tabbed as a considerable test, Jones continued his habit of abusing good fighters, as he hustled the previously unbeaten Ryan Bader on the floor before locking up a fight-ending guillotine late in round two. A knee injury suffered by teammate Rashad Evans has opened the door for Jones to vie for the UFC light heavyweight crown against Mauricio “Shogun” Rua on March 19 at UFC 128.

6. Forrest Griffin (18-6)
In his first action in 15 months, Griffin was not perfect. However, the former UFC light heavyweight champion used top control and rangy striking to earn a unanimous decision victory over former middleweight titleholder Rich Franklin at UFC 126. The performance netted a strong win and put him back in the consciousness of the MMA public.

7. Ryan Bader (12-1)
In a matchup of preeminent 205-pound prospects, Bader was definitively the lesser when he met Jon Jones at UFC 126. For the better part of two rounds, he was dominated by Jones, who forced “Darth” Bader to tap to a guillotine late in the second stanza.

8. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (19-4)
Coming off of a tough decision loss to Ryan Bader in September, Nogueira will find himself in a more manageable bounce-back fight. “Minotoro” will take on former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz, winless in more than four years, at UFC Fight Night 24 on March 26 in Seattle.

9. Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante (10-2)
“Feijao” surprised onlookers by thumping Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal in August to take the Strikeforce light heavyweight title. Now, the Brazilian will make his first title defense on March 5, when he takes on former two-division Pride Fighting Championships titleholder Dan Henderson in Columbus, Ohio.

10. Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal (7-1)
“King Mo” had his crown taken by Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante on Aug. 21 in Houston. A slow start and an overreliance on his stand-up skills saw Lawal play right into Cavalcante’s game. It resulted in his being stopped just 74 seconds into the third round, as he suffered the first loss of his MMA career. Now, Lawal continues to mend from knee surgery that should keep him out for the first quarter of 2011.

Other contenders: Rich Franklin, Matt Hamill, Vladimir Matyushenko, Gegard Mousasi, Thiago Silva.

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