MMA Rankings > UFC Lightweight Rankings
UFC Lightweight Division Rankings
A review and ranking of the UFC's 155-pound Lightweight division - August 2009 Update
With the top two fighters in the weight class set to battle it out this coming Saturday night in the main event of UFC 101, the UFC’s lightweight division is abuzz with activity. With the fall of former champions and contenders, and the continued rise of future challengers at a breakneck pace, the belt could be in any one of the Top Ten’s hands by the end of next year.
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Kenny Florian defeated Joe Stevenson at UFC 91 via Rear Naked Choke in Round 1. Florian will take on reigning UFC Lightweight Champion BJ Penn at UFC 101 on August 8, 2009. |
1. BJ Penn – “The Prodigy” was thoroughly handled by the larger, heavier, and better welterweight champion when he took on Georges St-Pierre in January 2009 at UFC 94 in a rematch of their first meeting three years earlier at UFC 58, but before moving up to 170lbs, the Hilo, Hawaii native was in the midst of an impressive run at 155lbs. While he defeated Joe Stevenson for the title and defended successfully against former UFC Lightweight champion Sean Sherk last year, Penn will need an impressive win over Kenny Florian this Saturday in only his second title defense in order to remain in the pound-for-pound discussion.
2. Kenny Florian – Florian’s 11-3 record might not be overly impressive if it wasn’t for the fact that the vast majority of his career has been spent in the deep waters of the UFC’s stacked lightweight division. After suffering a devastating first round TKO at the hands of Diego Sanchez at 185lbs to start his UFC career, Florian has emerged as the top contender to BJ Penn’s belt and the number 2 lightweight fighter in the world, with his last loss coming by way of a five round Unanimous Decision to Sean Sherk three years ago at UFC 64. Florian has won six in a row, finishing all but one of them inside the distance.
3. Gray Maynard – Maynard may not have the fan following and commercial appeal as Diego “Nightmare” Sanchez, but he is undefeated in his professional MMA career and has reeled off four straight wins over top UFC lightweight competition, looking more and more dominant with each fight. With consecutive wins over Frankie Edgar, Rich Clementi, and Jim Miller, Maynard should make some serious noise for a title shot should he emerge from a September scrap with Roger Huerta at UFC Fight Night 19 with a win.
4. Frank Edgar – Certainly one of the brightest young prospects in the lightweight division, Frankie Edgar rebounded from the only loss of his career in April 2008 to Gray Maynard with back to back victories over former top contender Hermes Franca and former lightweight champion Sean Sherk at UFC 98. With impressive victories over nearly half of the top ten lightweights in the UFC, Edgar could be looking at a title shot by the end of 2010 with more two solid wins.
5. Diego Sanchez – It is no secret that Diego Sanchez—a former top five fighter at 170lbs—is the favorite to receive the first shot at the winner of the August 8 title fight between BJ Penn and Kenny Florian. While it is difficult to argue that he deserves the shot over fellow lightweights Gray Maynard or Frankie Edgar, there is no doubt that Sanchez would make a fight with either Florian or Penn extremely marketable. Add in the fact that he is a large, aggressive lightweight who has never been finished in his career, and include his back-to-back wins at 155lbs over former top contender Joe Stevenson and aggressive wrestler Clay Guida, and it is easy to imagine a “Nightmare” reign in the near future.
6. Sean Sherk – Prior to his May 2009 loss to Frankie Edgar, Sean Sherk had only been defeated by three men in his professional career, all three of them current or former UFC champions. His next fight, a UFC 103 battle in September with powerful grappler Gleison Tibau should answer a lot of questions as to his future at 155lbs. 7. Tyson Griffin – With only two losses in his professional career—to Frankie Edgar and Sean Sherk—by way of decision, Tyson Griffin remains one of the most exciting and promising lightweight prospects in the division. A win over former top contender Hermes Franca at UFC 103 in September should place the 25 year old firmly back in the conversation. 8. Joe Stevenson – With forty professional fights at only 27 years of age, Joe “Daddy” Stevenson has seen it all inside the cage. Following a rough 2008-09 season that saw the TUF 2 winner lose three of four consecutive fights, Stevenson bounced back in a big way by going back to his wrestling roots, earning a Unanimous Decision against TUF 5 winner Nate Diaz in June. While he is unlikely to get a title shot in the near future, Stevenson has shown that he could be back in the conversation sooner rather than later. |
9. Clay Guida – Guida was rapidly closing in on a shot at the title after winning three in a row, the most recent coming over TUF winners Mac Danzig and Nate Diaz, before Diego Sanchez spoiled his plans with a three-round beating in June. The decision may have been split, but it was clear who the better man was that night, as Guida was sent back to the drawing board.
10. Spencer Fisher – Following a 1-2 2007 season, Spencer Fisher has won three in a row since June 2008, including victories over Jeremy Stephens, Shannon Gugerty, and Japanese standout Caol Uno. He may be old—33—for a lightweight, but Fisher could be making a serious run for the title by 2010.
Look for updates on our Top Ten UFC Rankings to be up the first week of every month from here on out, exclusively on ProFighting-fans.com.
By Steven T. Kelliher
ProFighting-fans.com Staff Writer
Published August 2009
Photo used with permission from the UFC
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