FIGHT!’s Heavyweight Rankings have generated a lot of ire among fans who felt that they did not accurately reflect the current realities of the division. But the beauty of our computerized ranking system is that it is results-based so any anomalies get worked out when the top guys fight each other. Two top-tier heavyweights faced each other last night in Las Vegas, and the winner now sits atop FIGHT!’s heavyweight rankings. Undisputed UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar moves from #3 to #1 while Shane Carwin slips from #5 to #7. According to UFC President Dana White, second-ranked Cain Velasquez gets the next crack at Lesnar and the winner of Junior Dos Santos (#8) vs. Roy Nelson (#10) will get the next title shot after that, so expect even more reshuffling of the top 10 before the end of the year.
In the other heavyweight tilts on the card, Brendan Schaub and Chris Tuchscherer faced each other in what was the FIGHT! Rankings qualifying fight for each; Schaub enters our rankings at #25 with the TKO win and Tuchscherer comes in at #51. Jon Madsen ran his UFC record to 3-0 with a win over promotional rookie Karlos Vemola and entered our rankings at #27. Vemola remains unranked.
In the night’s fights at 205, Stephan Bonnar moves from #44 to #22 in our Light Heavyweight Rankings with his win over Kryzstof Soszynski, who falls from #18 to #36. Seth Petruzelli returned to the Octagon with a loss, entering our rankings at #48 after being stopped by unranked Ricardo Romero.
In Middleweight action, Chris Leben clawed his way into the top 10, jumping from #26 to #8 in our Middleweight Rankings with his stoppage of Yoshihiro Akiyama, who drops from #12 to #28 with the loss. Also at middleweight, Kendall Grove gets a nudge from #44 to #41 with a win over previously unranked Goran Reljic, who enters our rankings at #35. Gerald Harris is making moves at 185, jumping from #42 to #29 after slamming David Branch into unconsciousness. Bellator veteran Branch remains unranked.
At welterweight, Chris Lytle jumps from #22 to #12 in our Welterweight Rankings with his crazy double-submission win over Matt Brown, who drops from #34 to #49. In the only other fight at 170, unranked Daniel Roberts defeated Forrest Petz, who falls from #52 to #63.
In what should have been a title eliminator bout, George Sotiropoulos retained his #3 spot in our Lightweight Rankings by beating Kurt Pellegrino, who slides from #8 to #13.
FIGHT! Fans: What do you think about the updated rankings?
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