MMA Rankings > MMA Heavyweight Rankings
MMA Heavyweight Rankings
A review and ranking of MMA Heavyweights - June 2010 Update
With UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar back in action in July and Fedor Emelianenko in late June, the MMA Heavyweight Rankings could potentially shift significantly. With Fedor continuing to be spoken of as the best pound for pound fighter in MMA, there's little doubt that he remains atop the Heavyweight Rankings, but the middle of these rankings have had plenty of opportunities to move around with Shane Carwin, Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos all climbing the ladder into heavyweight prominence.
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Cain Velasquez (right) continues to climb the MMA heavyweight rankings with wins over Ben Rothwell at UFC 104 and Minotauro Nogueria at UFC 110 to run his perfect MMA record to 8-0 (6-0 UFC). |
1. Fedor Emelianenko (31-1-1) – Many question whether Fedor still belongs at the top of the Heavyweight Rankings, but until he loses, he is the best. Fedor hasn’t lost in an incredible 29 consecutive bouts. In his most recent bout last November, “The Last Emperor” shook off an early barrage of punches from Brett Rogers and landed one big punch that was good enough for a 2nd round TKO victory, his first in the Strikeforce organization. Up next is BJJ specialist Fabricio Werdum on June 26 at Strikeforce: Fedor vs Werdum, an event that will be televised on Showtime.
2. Brock Lesnar (4-1) – Finally recovered from a nasty case of diverticulitis, Lesnar is back and ready to defend his UFC Heavyweight title against Interim Heavyweight Champ Shane Carwin on July 3rd atop the UFC 116 fight card. Lesnar has tabbed Randy Couture as a training partner for this particular bout, a good idea considering Carwin has the most power of any of his opponents to date. This will be Lesnar’s second title defense; he unified the titles at UFC 100 with his 2nd round TKO of Frank Mir.
3. Cain Velasquez (8-0) – The former Arizona State wrestling standout and current American Kickboxing Academy fighter is garnering more and more attention each time he finishes an opponent inside the octagon. His list of finished opponents continues to get more impressive as well. He easily defeated MMA legend Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 110 in February by earning a 1st round KO over the Brazilian star. He looks to be ready right now for a title shot, however the line is long and he will probably have to wait until after UFC 116 to find out his next opponent.
4. Shane Carwin (12-0) – The Greg Jackson-trained heavyweight is now the UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion after he won his UFC 111 title bout against Frank Mir this March. Carwin has compiled seven KO’s and five submissions, accounting for all of his victories. His upcoming UFC 116 bout in July should stand as the stiffest challenge of his young career, as the MMA world will be able to find out what level Carwin really is at. His bout with Lesnar will again, unify the UFC Heavyweight Title.
5. Junior dos Santos (11-1) – The 25 year-old Brazilian continues to prove his worth in the most competitive of the UFC weight divisions. He has already picked up five victories inside the octagon, and two have been this year. He defeated Gilbert Yvel at UFC 108 in January via 1st round TKO, and then defeated Gabriel Gonzaga at UFC Live on VS. in March, again via 1st round KO. He has demonstrated that he also is ready for a title shot; however he must get in line. He is scheduled to fight Roy Nelson on the UFC 117 fight card in August in the meantime. A victory over Nelson and it will be hard to deny him that title shot.
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6. Alistair Overeem (33-11-1) – Overeem has finally defended his Strikeforce Heavyweight Title when he earned a 1st round TKO against Brett Rogers earlier last month. The victory over Rogers marked the ninth straight bout that “The Demolition Man” has not been defeated. He continues to call out Fedor Emelianenko after his fights, and maybe it will happen in the near future, however he has a DREAM 15 bout against an unnamed opponent on July 10th to take care of first. 7. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (32-6-1) – “Minotauro,” the former Interim UFC Heavyweight Champion, has hit somewhat of a rough patch in his career. Nogueira has dropped two of his last three bouts including a February UFC 110 1st round KO loss against Cain Velasquez. He will have to put together a couple of impressive victories in order to reach top contender status once again. He is currently not scheduled on a fight card, although he should be back in action this fall. 8. Frank Mir (13-5) – Although Mir has dropped two of his last three, he remains a dangerous opponent nonetheless. In his most recent bout at UFC 111 this past March, Mir was overwhelmed by Shane Carwin losing by 1st round KO. Mir has won eleven bouts inside the octagon throughout his career, including his most recent victory at UFC 107 last December over Cheick Kongo. He has thrown around the possibility of trying to drop down in weight and fight as a light heavyweight, although that is not likely. |
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9. Fabricio Werdum (13-4-1) – After calling out Fedor in his latest victory, “Vai Cavalo” got his wish and will face the #1 ranked Heavyweight on June 26 th for Strikeforce. Since his break-up with the UFC in late-2008, Werdum has won back-to-back bouts for Strikeforce to earn that position. He submitted Mike Kyle last August and then earned a unanimous decision over Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva this past November to earn his fight with Fedor. A victory over Fedor would not only shock the world, but also most likely earn him a shot at the title against Alistair Overeem.
10. Mirko "Cro Cop" Filopovic (27-7-2-1) – “Cro Cop” creeps into the top ten after his recent performance at UFC 115 in Vancouver, Canada. He fought back from two early knockdowns against Pat Barry and exploded on the former kickboxer by landing strikes at will. He finally dropped Barry and submitted him in the 3rd round of their co-main event. Filipovic has now put together back-to-back finishes inside of the octagon. Rumors have Filipovic pondering retirement; however, many others believe that he has a lot left to offer the UFC Heavyweight division. Either way, Filipovic will go down as one of the best strikers in MMA history.
By Nick Russell
ProFighting-fans.com Senior MMA Staff Writer
Published June 2010
Photo used with permission from the UFC