Sherdog Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings
Welterweight
Aug 13, 2008
Welterweight
1. Georges St. Pierre (Pictures) (17-2-0)
Against the unquestioned top contender in the division, Georges St. Pierre (Pictures) delivered arguably the finest performance of his career and smashed Jon Fitch (Pictures) over 25 lopsided minutes. With the victory in the books, there's still a major bout with Thiago Alves (Pictures) looming if Alves can beat Diego Sanchez (Pictures) on Oct. 25. But first, "Rush" will renew his rivalry with B.J. Penn (Pictures) in the second chapter to their contentious March 2006 affair.
2. Josh Koscheck (Pictures) (11-2-0)
With no shortage of top welterweight talent, a quality matchup will likely find Koscheck before 2008 is out. In the meantime, with his teammate Jon Fitch (Pictures)'s lopsided loss to Georges St. Pierre (Pictures), Koscheck slides into the two spot as Fitch tumbles.
3. Jon Fitch
(Pictures) (17-3-0, 1 NC)
Although Fitch couldn't hold a competitive candle to Georges St. Pierre (Pictures) in their Aug. 9 bout, he likely gained a different measure of respect with the guts he demonstrated in making it all five rounds under heavy fire. However, with the one-sided loss, Fitch slides one spot from second to third.
4. Diego Sanchez (Pictures) (19-2-0)
If Sanchez needed an impressive performance on June 21 to put himself back into contention at 170 pounds, he got it. He showed off vastly improved standup en route to his sensational third-round stoppage of a tough Luigi Fioravanti (Pictures). Things only pick up from here, though, as the "Nightmare" is penciled in to meet Brazilian dynamo Thiago Alves (Pictures) at UFC 90 on Oct. 25 in Chicago.
Though his failure to make weight tainted his win over former champion Matt Hughes (Pictures) on June 7 in London, Alves will have the chance to make an even louder case for a title shot when he meets Diego Sanchez (Pictures) on Oct. 25 in Chicago in what should be an all-action bout.
6. Jake Shields (Pictures) (21-4-1)
After politics and mishaps prevented Shields from fighting for EliteXC's welterweight title on several occasions, the 29-year-old Cesar Gracie (Pictures) product finally got a chance to vie for the title on July 26 against another standout welterweight in Nick Thompson (Pictures). The result? A 63-second submission and a new piece of hardware for Shields, who won his 10th straight bout. With his dominant display, Shields rises from seventh to sixth.
7. Matt Hughes (Pictures) (42-7-0)
Already in the twilight of his career, Hughes was turned into a highlight reel at the hands of another young, up-and-coming welterweight in Thiago Alves (Pictures). Although some have called for the longtime welterweight king to retire, a grudge match with Matt Serra (Pictures) is likely next up for Hughes, who continues to recuperate from a knee injury. With the victory of Jake Shields (Pictures), Hughes slides from sixth to seventh.
8. Matt Serra (Pictures) (9-5-0)
The slipper dropped for Serra, who was destroyed in his rematch with St. Pierre in April. He might not be done in big bouts, though, as the potential for a clash with Matt Hughes (Pictures) seems likely in the near future.
9. Karo Parisyan (Pictures) (18-5-0)
After his deflating loss to Thiago Alves (Pictures) in April, Parisyan begins his odyssey toward a welterweight title shot once again on Sept. 6. However, he has been afforded no easy launching pad for his campaign, as he meets streaking Japanese judoka Yoshiyuki Yoshida (Pictures) on the main card of UFC 88 in Atlanta.
10. Carlos Condit (Pictures) (23-4-0)
In another great WEC main event, Condit survived a life-and-death affair with an incredibly game Hiromitsu Miura (Pictures) to take a fourth-round stoppage in their taxing WEC title bout. While Condit's struggles may have tempered the enthusiasm for him to head to the UFC, welterweight challenges within the WEC seem all but exhausted for the 24-year-old New Mexico native.
1. Georges St. Pierre (Pictures) (17-2-0)
Against the unquestioned top contender in the division, Georges St. Pierre (Pictures) delivered arguably the finest performance of his career and smashed Jon Fitch (Pictures) over 25 lopsided minutes. With the victory in the books, there's still a major bout with Thiago Alves (Pictures) looming if Alves can beat Diego Sanchez (Pictures) on Oct. 25. But first, "Rush" will renew his rivalry with B.J. Penn (Pictures) in the second chapter to their contentious March 2006 affair.
2. Josh Koscheck (Pictures) (11-2-0)
With no shortage of top welterweight talent, a quality matchup will likely find Koscheck before 2008 is out. In the meantime, with his teammate Jon Fitch (Pictures)'s lopsided loss to Georges St. Pierre (Pictures), Koscheck slides into the two spot as Fitch tumbles.
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Although Fitch couldn't hold a competitive candle to Georges St. Pierre (Pictures) in their Aug. 9 bout, he likely gained a different measure of respect with the guts he demonstrated in making it all five rounds under heavy fire. However, with the one-sided loss, Fitch slides one spot from second to third.
4. Diego Sanchez (Pictures) (19-2-0)
If Sanchez needed an impressive performance on June 21 to put himself back into contention at 170 pounds, he got it. He showed off vastly improved standup en route to his sensational third-round stoppage of a tough Luigi Fioravanti (Pictures). Things only pick up from here, though, as the "Nightmare" is penciled in to meet Brazilian dynamo Thiago Alves (Pictures) at UFC 90 on Oct. 25 in Chicago.
5. Thiago Alves
(Pictures) (15-3-0)
Though his failure to make weight tainted his win over former champion Matt Hughes (Pictures) on June 7 in London, Alves will have the chance to make an even louder case for a title shot when he meets Diego Sanchez (Pictures) on Oct. 25 in Chicago in what should be an all-action bout.
6. Jake Shields (Pictures) (21-4-1)
After politics and mishaps prevented Shields from fighting for EliteXC's welterweight title on several occasions, the 29-year-old Cesar Gracie (Pictures) product finally got a chance to vie for the title on July 26 against another standout welterweight in Nick Thompson (Pictures). The result? A 63-second submission and a new piece of hardware for Shields, who won his 10th straight bout. With his dominant display, Shields rises from seventh to sixth.
7. Matt Hughes (Pictures) (42-7-0)
Already in the twilight of his career, Hughes was turned into a highlight reel at the hands of another young, up-and-coming welterweight in Thiago Alves (Pictures). Although some have called for the longtime welterweight king to retire, a grudge match with Matt Serra (Pictures) is likely next up for Hughes, who continues to recuperate from a knee injury. With the victory of Jake Shields (Pictures), Hughes slides from sixth to seventh.
8. Matt Serra (Pictures) (9-5-0)
The slipper dropped for Serra, who was destroyed in his rematch with St. Pierre in April. He might not be done in big bouts, though, as the potential for a clash with Matt Hughes (Pictures) seems likely in the near future.
9. Karo Parisyan (Pictures) (18-5-0)
After his deflating loss to Thiago Alves (Pictures) in April, Parisyan begins his odyssey toward a welterweight title shot once again on Sept. 6. However, he has been afforded no easy launching pad for his campaign, as he meets streaking Japanese judoka Yoshiyuki Yoshida (Pictures) on the main card of UFC 88 in Atlanta.
10. Carlos Condit (Pictures) (23-4-0)
In another great WEC main event, Condit survived a life-and-death affair with an incredibly game Hiromitsu Miura (Pictures) to take a fourth-round stoppage in their taxing WEC title bout. While Condit's struggles may have tempered the enthusiasm for him to head to the UFC, welterweight challenges within the WEC seem all but exhausted for the 24-year-old New Mexico native.
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