Welterweight
1. Johny Hendricks (16-2)
Hendricks battled tooth-and-nail for five rounds with Robbie Lawler at UFC 171, and in the end, the Oklahoman’s determination and conditioning earned him the vacant UFC welterweight title. “Bigg Rigg” has now won seven of eight fights in the last three years, his lone loss coming against absent ruler Georges St. Pierre. The new king does not yet have a top contender, but Hendricks could be in line for a fight with a UFC 171 costar like Tyron Woodley or Hector Lombard, depending on how their upcoming bouts play out.2. Robbie Lawler (23-10, 1 NC)
Two months after coming within minutes of earning the welterweight crown, Lawler reminded everyone why he remains a top contender at 170 pounds. “Ruthless” displayed a diverse and powerful striking arsenal, as he put away Jake Ellenberger via TKO 3:06 into the third round at UFC 173. With the emphatic victory, the American Top Team star should not be far from a return date with reigning champ Johny Hendricks.3. Tyron Woodley (13-2)
Woodley was all aggression in his high-profile showdown with former title challenger Carlos Condit at UFC 171. That aggression paid off in the second round, where a hard leg kick from Woodley buckled Condit’s knee and gave the former University of Missouri stud wrestler a TKO victory. It appears the Strikeforce veteran will need at least one more victory to secure a title shot, however, as he has been tabbed to face Rory MacDonald at UFC 174 in Vancouver.4. Carlos Condit (29-8)
Condit missed out on a December bout with Matt Brown and then was handed an equally tough task in Tyron Woodley at UFC 171. Despite an exciting start to the fight, Condit’s leg gave out after a Woodley low kick midway through the second round, putting an end to any immediate title hopes and giving Condit his third defeat in four fights. “The Natural Born Killer” has since undergone surgery to repair a torn ACL sustained in the bout.5. Hector Lombard (34-4-1, 1 NC)
The blistering speed and powerful punches for which Lombard is known were on full display in the first round of his bout with Jake Shields at UFC 171. As the fight wore on, however, the judo specialist implemented throws, trips and submission defense to outwork Shields in a 15-minute unanimous decision. “Lightning” will next meet Dong Hyun Kim in a pivotal clash at a UFC Fight Night event in Macau on Aug. 23.6. Rory MacDonald (16-2)
MacDonald’s back was against the wall early in his UFC 170 clash with Demian Maia. The Brazilian grounded the Tristar Gym product in the first round and eventually moved to mount. However, MacDonald survived the assault and rallied to capture a unanimous decision thanks to stout takedown defense and a versatile striking arsenal. MacDonald will next face Tyron Woodley at UFC 174 in June.7. Matt Brown (19-11)
A spectacular third-round TKO triumph over Erick Silva at UFC Fight Night in Cincinnati brought “The Immortal’s” winning streak inside the Octagon to seven fights. Brown believes he is ready for a welterweight title shot; at the very least, he should receive a top 10 opponent for his next UFC appearance.8. Ben Askren (12-0)
After a dominant run as Bellator’s welterweight king, Askren’s season of free agency left many scratching their heads. Spurned by Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney and UFC President Dana White, the “Funky” one elected to take his talents to Asia to compete for the One Fighting Championship promotion. Although he was initially expected to receive a title shot in his promotional debut, Askren will instead square off with Bakhtiyar Abbasov in the One FC 16 headliner on May 30.9. Jake Shields (29-7-1, 1 NC)
It did not take the World Series of Fighting long to make Shields an offer after the grappling ace was surprisingly released from his UFC contract in March. Shields was supposed to make his promotional debut against Jon Fitch at WSOF 11, but an injury to the former Strikeforce champion ruined those plans.10. Demian Maia (18-5)
After a 3-0 start in the division, Maia’s 170-pound prospects have cooled of late. First, the Brazilian dropped a grinding affair to Jake Shields in October. Then at UFC 170, Maia was unable to follow up on a strong opening frame and faded down the stretch to fall to Rory MacDonald via unanimous decision. Having lost back-to-back fights for the first time in his career, Maia has some work to do to climb back into the welterweight title picture. That journey begins against Russian newcomer Alexander Yakovlev in in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on May 31.Other Contenders: Jake Ellenberger, Martin Kampmann, Dong Hyun Kim, Douglas Lima, Tarec Saffiedine.
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