Sherdog Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

Welterweight

1. Georges St. Pierre (20-2)
With Josh Koscheck’s May 8 win over Paul Daley, St. Pierre’s next title defense was set. Before he squares off with Koscheck in a rematch of their August 2007 encounter, the pair will square off as opposing coaches on the 12th season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” strengthened by a convenient and apparent good guy-bad guy dynamic.

2. Jon Fitch (22-3, 1 NC)
Once again, the MMA world will be forced to wait just a tad longer for the long-awaited rematch between Fitch and Thiago Alves. After two postponements, the pair was scheduled to meet at UFC 115, but the bout has now been shifted to UFC 117 on Aug. 7 in Oakland, Calif. Keep your fingers crossed.

3. Thiago Alves (16-6)
In yet another delay of Alves’ anticipated rematch with Jon Fitch, the bout was moved from UFC 115 in June to the UFC 117 show on Aug. 7 in Oakland, Calif. UFC President Dana White pledges the extra weeks were given to ensure that Alves -- whose March MRI revealed a brain irregularity and nixed a bout with Fitch at UFC 111 -- was 100 percent healthy.

4. Dan Hardy (23-7, 1 NC)
Hardy lost all five rounds of his March 27 title matchup against Georges St. Pierre. Despite a nasty armbar and kimura from “Rush,” Hardy was bloody but unbowed in defeat and perhaps extracted a measure of respect from a previously skeptical public regarding his status in the welterweight division.

5. Paulo Thiago (13-1)
Thiago entered his UFC 109 bout with Mike Swick, once again, as an underdog. Once again, he blew away an American Kickboxing Academy product, choking Swick out cold in the second round to prove definitively that his victory over Josh Koscheck was no fluke. Next comes a UFC 115 matchup with Martin Kampmann.

6. Josh Koscheck (15-4)
With high stakes up for grabs -- a UFC welterweight title shot and a coaching stint opposite Georges St. Pierre on “The Ultimate Fighter 12” -- Koscheck dominated Paul Daley for 15 minutes on the floor en route to a unanimous decision victory at UFC 113. After blocking a post-fight sucker punch from Daley and taunting the Montreal crowd, Koscheck cemented himself as one of MMA’s premiere heels and set in place the groundwork for the build-up to his rematch with St. Pierre.

7. Paul Daley (23-9-2)
Things went from bad to worse very, very quickly for Daley. At UFC 113, “Semtex” was dominated from bell-to-bell by Josh Koscheck. Following the final bell, he made the idiotic decision to attempt to sucker punch his foe. His stunt earned him a pink slip from the UFC, with boss Dana White claiming he would never again welcome Daley back into the Octagon. The Brit may surface this summer for Impact FC in Australia.

8. Mike Swick (14-4)
Coming off a disappointing decision loss to Dan Hardy in November, Swick’s bout with Paulo Thiago at UFC 109 left him in even worse shape. He was choked unconscious in the second round and pushed further back in the UFC welterweight title picture.

9. Nick Diaz (21-7, 1 ND)
Diaz might be facing punishment of some kind due to his involvement with the Strikeforce melee on April 17 in Nashville, Tenn. However, the Strikeforce welterweight champion remains scheduled for international duty, as he will meet Hayato “Mach” Sakurai at Dream 14 on May 29 in Saitama, Japan.

10. Martin Kampmann (16-3)
Kampmann was scheduled to get back in the saddle against rising contender Ben Saunders at UFC 111 on March 27. However, a nasty gash on his forehead kept the Dane from the bout. Kampmann will instead meet Paulo Thiago at UFC 115.

Other contenders: Carlos Condit, Jay Hieron, Dan Hornbuckle, Matt Hughes, Marius Zaromskis.