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Light Heavyweight

1. Jon Jones (16-1)

In a fight that was more than a year in the making, Jones dominated former training partner Rashad Evans over the course of five rounds to retain his light heavyweight crown at UFC 145. Shortly thereafter, UFC President Dana White announced that “Bones” will face former Strikeforce and Pride Fighting Championships title holder Dan Henderson at an as-yet-to-be determined event.

2. Dan Henderson (29-8)

Who could have guessed that Henderson would be more relevant than ever at age 41? With a four-fight winning streak that includes victories over fellow MMA icons Fedor Emelianenko and Mauricio Rua, “Hendo” is now looked upon as one of the only possible foils to UFC light heavyweight champ Jon Jones. While no date has been put forth, UFC brass has confirmed that a Jones-Henderson title match is in the cards for 2012.

3. Rashad Evans (17-2-1)

Evans become the first person to go the distance with Jon Jones since Stephan Bonnar accomplished the feat in a three-round affair in 2009, but he was unable to solve his opponent’s considerable reach advantage during their 25-minute encounter. Though Evans is not especially large for a light heavyweight, he expressed his desire to remain at 205 pounds during the UFC 145 post-fight press conference.

4. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (20-6)

The former UFC light heavyweight champ is still without a return date following his heartbreaking decision loss to Dan Henderson in November, but change is nonetheless afoot. In February, Rua announced a split from manager Eduardo Alonso and stated that he will return to training with Andre “Dida” Amado in Curitiba, Brazil.

5. Lyoto Machida (17-3)

Things have been quiet for “The Dragon” since his submission loss to Jon Jones at UFC 140. After undergoing surgery on his injured left elbow in January, Machida reportedly resumed training in February. Machida stated an interest in fighting the likes of Dan Henderson and Chael Sonnen in a recent interview with Sherdog.com, but both men are currently booked with other fights.

6. Phil Davis (9-1)

On Jan. 28, Davis returned from a 10-month layoff and went straight into the toughest bout of his nascent career. It also proved his longest outing, as “Mr. Wonderful” was outclassed across 25 minutes by former UFC champ Rashad Evans en route to a unanimous decision loss.

7. Alexander Gustafsson (14-1)

Sweden’s top MMA export didn’t miss the biggest opportunity of his young career: April 14 at UFC on Fuel TV 2, the 25-year-old “Mauler” dominated Thiago Silva for three rounds before a partisan crowd in Stockholm. While it still may be too early for a shot at the UFC title, Gustafsson has undeniably positioned himself near the top of the 205-pound class.

8. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (20-5)

Injury derailed Nogueira’s second UFC main event, which was to come against Swedish up-and-comer Alexander Gustafsson on April 14. Instead, “Lil Nog” opted for surgery for an injured patella and watch from the sidelines as Gustafsson went out and cruised past Thiago Silva.

9. Ryan Bader (14-2)

Bader grinded out the biggest win of his career on Feb. 26, a unanimous decision victory over Quinton “Rampage” Jackson in his foe’s old stomping grounds of Saitama, Japan. The 28-year-old wrestler from Arizona State is now 2-0 since his shocking loss to Tito Ortiz, with wins over Jackson and Jason Brilz.

10. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (32-10)

What might have been a grand homecoming for the onetime Pride star turned out to be a one-sided drubbing, as Jackson fell to Ryan Bader via unanimous decision Feb. 26 in Saitama, Japan. Just one week later, Rampage took to Twitter and declared himself finished with the UFC -- which, according to him, stands for “U Fight Cheap” -- though he plans to continue fighting.

Other contenders:

Rafael Cavalcante, Forrest Griffin, Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal, Vladimir Matyushenko, Gegard Mousasi.

Continue Reading » MMA Middleweight Rankings