We haven’t visited the MMA pound for pound rankings since June, and a whole lot has changed. Three fighters have dropped out of the rankings, including two very high profile ones. B.J. Penn falls out after a stunning upset at the hands of Frankie Edgar, and Fedor Emelianenko, a mainstay in the Top 3 for years, is now unranked after an incomprehensible loss to Fabricio Werdum. Here’s how their departures have changed the Top 10 (previous rankings are in brackets):
1. Georges St. Pierre (1) - This one is a no-brainer. GSP will stay at the top of these rankings until he proves that he doesn’t belong there anymore, and he certainly hasn’t done that. He hasn’t fought since March, but in that win over Dan Hardy he yet again showed just how much better he is than the rest of his weight class. Josh Koscheck is next up, but I don’t see him being any more of a challenge than he was the first time they met. Anything can happen in MMA, but I wouldn’t be surprised if St. Pierre held this spot for a long, long time.
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2. Anderson Silva (3) - On pure skill level Silva should probably top this list. He just doesn’t really seem interested in making the most of that skill, though, For a guy who fights as well as he does he sure doesn’t look like he likes fighting very much. Chael Sonnen is his next opponent, and I’m really hoping that we finally get a glimpse of everything The Spider is capable of.
3. Jose Aldo (5) - There is nothing more fun than watching featherweights - they are relentless and ruthless. Aldo is firmly and convincingly on the top of the heap in that weight class right now. It would have been impressive to beat Urijah Faber no matter how it happened, but the fact that Aldo so soundly crushed him was stunning. Aldo is very, very good. If he keeps winning then the UFC has to start thinking about adding featherweights to their cards.
4. Frankie Edgar (8) - I’m giving Edgar a lot of credit here for winning a fight which no one, including me, thought he had much of a chance in. His stay in these rankings could be short lived, though. Really, this spot is just a placeholder for the winner of of Edgar’s August rematch with B.J. Penn. It’s like Edgar is holding an interim title, and he needs to beat the former champ again to earn the real deal.
5. Mauricio Rua (unranked) - Rua could have pouted after a controversial decision against Lyoto Machida cost him the UFC light heavyweight title last October. Instead, he got angry and did something about it. His first round knockout of Machida at UFC 113 was as surprising as it was impressive. Now a title belt against Rashad Evans looms, but likely not until next year as Rua recovers from knee surgery.
6. Jake Shields (unranked) - With the loss by Emelianenko, Shields becomes the best fighter in a UFC weight class outside of the UFC. That won’t be the case for long, though. Riding a 14-match win streak, Shields has been released by Strikeforce, and will likely sign with the UFC any day now. He’d be the best opponent Anderson Silva has faced in a while.
7. Rashad Evans (unranked) - Evans came out on top of a tough fight against Rampage Jackson, and now is the top contender at light heavyweight. He has bounced back well from his loss to Lyoto Machida, and is the top No. 1 contender in the UFC right now.
8. Brock Lesnar (8) - What Lesnar did in that last match was incredible. After a year off and serious health issues - not to mention a shortage of experience to draw from - a lot of fighters would have crumpled after receiving a beating like Lesnar did in the first round of his fight against Shane Carwin. Instead, Lesnar regrouped, set the tone early in the second round, earned the take out, and showed real development as a fighter in earning a submission. Lesnar has scary physical tools, he can obviously take a punch, and he clearly wants to get better. That’s a dangerous combination.
9. Jon Fitch (7) - There is a big gap between Georges St. Pierre and every other welterweight on the planet, but Fitch is No. 2 - even if he can’t seem to earn another title shot. His lone blemish in a 13-fight UFC career is a loss by decision to St. Pierre in 2008. No shame in that. Fitch has won four times since, and he’ll have another chance to prove himself and earn a shot against Thiago Alves at UFC 117 in August.
10. Lyoto Machida (4) - With all of the fighters dropping out of the rankings and all the uncertainty in several weight classes, Machida gets into this spot almost by default. His loss to Rua was decisive, but t was the first of his career, and he’s still a very feared fighter in the toughest weight class UFC has right now. He’ll need a decisive win next time out to stay in the rankings, but for now he gets the final spot.