Sherdog Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

Flyweight
1. Jussier da Silva (3-0)
The little-known little man out of Natal, Brazil made a big impression in his biggest fight to date, taking a well-appointed unanimous decision over Shooto world champion Shinichi "BJ" Kojima on July 19. The logical step would be for the International Shooto Commission to sanction a rematch with Kojima's title on the line for later this year.

2. Shinichi Kojima (10-4-5)
The Shooto world champion continued his career-long streak of consistent inconsistency, dropping a unanimous verdict to Brazilian Jussier da Silva in a non-title bout on July 19. Whether Kojima will get a do-over with a title on the line remains to be seen.

3. Yuki Shojo (8-5-2)
He fought valiantly, but there was little for Shojo to do in his March 20 Shooto world title challenge against Shinichi "BJ" Kojima. The champion was in rare form, dominating Shojo before choking him out cold in the third frame.

4. Yasuhiro Urushitani (15-4-6)
Quickly looking to atone for his shocking September loss to Shojo, Urushitani got back into action and picked up an easy victory on Nov. 8, hacking open an overmatched Kiyotaka Shimizu for a first-round stoppage at Cage Force.

5. Ryuichi Miki (9-2-3)
The 26-year-old Miki continued his ascent in the flyweight division on April 10, as he put a 15-minute, lopsided beating on veteran Junji Ikoma. This figures to move Miki along toward a potential Shooto 123-pound title challenge.

6. Rambaa Somdet (6-2)
Shooto's "Revolutionary Exchanges 3" on Nov. 23 will mark Somdet's return to the ring after a yearlong, injury-filled absence. No opponent has been slated for Somdet, nor is it clear if the bout will be at 115 or 123 pounds, but it is nice to see the flamboyant Thai back in action.

7. Masaaki Sugawara (8-3-1)
Sugawara was in typically exciting form on July 19, when he took a first-round stoppage over tough veteran Yasuhiro Akagi. Next on the slate will be former bantamweight Hiroyuki Tanaka, who will make his flyweight debut against Sugawara on Sept. 20.

8. Alexis Vila (5-0)
Arguably the hottest prospect in the flyweight division, the 1996 Olympic freestyle wrestling bronze medalist racked up his fifth career win in February, corking Ben Nguyen in the second round.

9. Mitsuhisa Sunabe (10-5-3)
Pancrase finally put its flyweight title up for grabs on June 7, and Mitsuhise Sunabe snatched it with a single brutal punch, clobbering Takuya Eizumi in the first round. Sunabe will be back in action on Pancrase on Oct. 25 against a yet-to-be-named opponent.

10. Jesse Taitano (5-4-2)
One of Guam's finest talents, Taitano was a favorite heading into his 119-pound catch-weight bout with strawweight Noboru "Shinpei" Tahara on Aug. 9, but the much-improved Tahara took the final two rounds and a unanimous verdict over "The Spiderman."

Other contenders: John Dodson, Isao Hirose, Junji Ikoma, Pat Runez, Sam Thao.