Blood On The Mat 09.03.09: Ranking The UFC Heavyweights

Posted by  on 09.03.2009

Now that UFC 102 is in the books, the heavyweight landscape of the UFC has shifted once again. 411’s Adam Tool looks up and down the complete company roster to see how the biggest fighters in the UFC stack up!

Welcome back to Blood On The Mat. My name is Adam Tool and it's been an odd week since last we spoke. One highlight of the last seven days was the sheer awesomeness of UFC 102. Other than the Vera fight, this card was full of win from top to bottom. Rather than talk about the whole show, I'd like to focus on one weight class that was fully on display this past Saturday.


It was roughly two years ago that Randy Couture took his UFC Heavyweight Championship and went home. It was eighteen months ago when Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira won the Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship, and Brock Lesnar made his debut against Frank Mir. In the last year these men have faced, and beaten, one another. As a result, Brock is now the man and all others must wait in line.

Four of the eleven fights at UFC 102 featured heavyweights in action. Obviously that includes the epic main event, as Couture and Nogueira gave us a battle that will live on and be talked about for the rest of the company's history. The new blood got their spotlight as well as Todd Duffee's record-setting knockout of Tim Hague made the main card, earning the young fighter plenty of new fans.

Next month will see the premiere of season 10 of "The Ultimate Fighter," which will feature the biggest weight class for just the second time in the show's history. Several more heavyweight fighters will be making their UFC debuts in the months ahead. The next two numbered events feature showcase bouts in the division with serious title implications. And of course, we're all looking forward to Lesnar vs. Carwin in November.

Obviously, business is booming once again in the division that started it all.

With things picking up quickly in the UFC heavyweight ranks, I thought now is as good a time as any to look down the entire roster and see where everybody stands. These rankings are purely subjective (as all rankings are), and in case you can't tell by now I'm only ranking UFC heavyweights. The normal 411 MMA Rankings for the heavyweight division will be up on the site next week.

1. Brock Lesnar - Not only is he the champion of his division, he's the current undisputed champ of PPV buyrates. All four shows that Lesnar has been on have seen a steady increase, with UFC 100 topping out at 1.7 million. His next fight will also feature Tito Ortiz on the card, so the combination of their drawing power could result in another record-setting event for the company.


Yeah, I farted. Who wants to do something about it?

Looking past the business side, Lesnar has definitively staked his spot as the top fighter in his division. His wins over Herring, Couture, and Mir were nothing short of impressive, and there's been noticeable improvements made to his techniques over the last 18 months. However the fact remains that he's still relatively new to the sport, and as such there are plenty of tests left for him to pass. We'll see how he does with an opponent that can match him in size and strength when he collides with Carwin in a few months.

2. Frank Mir - Even though he wasn't involved in the main event, it seems that a lot of the negative talk surrounding Nogueira's win over Couture has been centered on Mir and the idea that Nog's injuries played a much bigger part in his loss to Mir then had been previously assumed. While it's clear that "Minotauro" wasn't 100% last December, we can't overlook the fact that Mir dominated the former PRIDE champion from bell to bell.


Mir tried to laugh it off, but clearly he should have picked another time to talk about the differences between white people and black people.

There's also the fact that he still holds the only win over Lesnar, but since that loss was avenged, obviously Lesnar gets the top spot. We can only wonder where Mir goes from here, but one scenario suggest that if he can pick up a win or two against respectable opponents he could find himself in a rubber match with Lesnar. In any case, for now he remains one of the top guys to beat in the heavyweight division.

3. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira - Over the course of fifteen minutes, Nogueira erased all the bad memories from his first three fights in the UFC. He may have nearly gotten KO'd by Herring, and sure Sylvia was kicking his ass before Nogueira pulled off the choke. We've already talked about the Mir fight, but it was after that performance that nearly everyone questioned the longevity of Nogueira's time in the sport. I'll freely admit to being one of those that speculated on retirement sooner than later.


What has one thumb and just won the best fight of the year? This guy.

Now, in the aftermath of that historic encounter, Nogueira is once again relevant in the heavyweight division. It's fair to say that if his legendary chin is still intact, he poses a significant threat to any of the bigger, stronger fighters currently populating the weight class. At this point I'd love to see Nogueira get a shot at the winner of Lesnar/Carwin, or perhaps a rematch with Mir.


Dude, I think I can taste colors

4. Shane Carwin - As we inch towards UFC 106's championship main event, there are some that claim that Carwin will pose the most significant threat yet to Brock Lesnar. He's got a background in wrestling (although his credentials pale in comparison to Lesnar), but more importantly he's got solid striking with some big, big power. Lesnar has yet to face someone as big as him, and I'm curious to see how well his chin holds up once it's been hit harder than it ever has before.


Hi there! I'm Cain Velasquez and I'm here to talk to you about living with genital warts

5. Cain Velasquez - He may have just six pro fights on his record, but that's one more than the champion, with no losses to boot. After finishing his first five opponents Velasquez ran into his toughest test yet in the bout with Cheick Kongo. Velasquez won a dominant decision, and even showed his toughness by quickly recovering from some serious shots. He'll have the task of welcoming Ben Rothwell to the UFC in October, and should he win there it's likely that he'll face the champion sometime next year. Win or lose, it's clear that Cain has the skills necessary to be a major player in the heavyweight ranks for years to come.

6. Randy Couture - While he couldn't get the job done against Nogueira, "The Natural" remains one of the company's most beloved fighters. Since returning from retirement Couture has gone 2-2 as a heavyweight, but now the landscape is shifting and the big boys rule the division. Randy has already hinted that he'll be returning to light heavyweight, and I'll be looking forward to the wide range of intriguing match-ups that await him there.

7. Gabriel Gonzaga - As I discussed last week, Gonzaga is consistently dominant against lower-tier opponents while whilting under pressure from upper level guys. He's likely to face off with another big-name opponent in the near future, so here's hoping "Napao" can get the job done. He's too good (and too expensive) to be fighting UFC newcomers on the pre-lims.


Cro Cop gets ready to make the scene with his rather strange posse in tow

8. Mirko Cro Cop - Next month could conceivably represent Cro Cop's last chance with the UFC faithful. After a dismal 1-2 run in his first stint with the company, he made his return earlier this year with a win over the not-so-spectacular Mostapha Al-Turk. Next month he'll face rising star Junior dos Santos, and with a win there Cro Cop could finally start living up to all the hype he's been given by hardcore fans of his heyday in PRIDE.

9. Junior dos Santos - Speaking of dos Santos, he'll obviously have a lot to gain should he beat Cro Cop at UFC 103. After an impressive debut against Fabricio Werdum and a dominant win over Stefan Struve, dos Santos is quickly emerging as a force to be reckoned with amongst the heavyweight ranks. If he continues putting on the kind of impressive performances we've seen from him so far, there's no reason why he couldn't challenge for the title within the next year.


Rashad rests comfortable in the knowledge that he‘ll never be as ugly as the guy sitting next to him

10. Heath Herring - As we reach the end of the top ten, we come to the division's two biggest gatekeepers. Herring is as tough as they come, but he's been a rather dismal 2-3 in his run with the UFC. We haven't seen him since his three round mauling at the hands of Lesnar, and it appears as though he doesn't plan to return to fighting anytime soon. When he does come back though, Herring represents a stern challenge for any fighter that faces him. However it's clear at this point that a run at the title is something that may be too far out of reach for "The Texas Crazy Horse."

11. Cheick Kongo - Kongo could be ranked ahead of Herring, had he not lost their meeting back at UFC 82. Kongo has certainly had more success in the octagon, but other than his win over Cro Cop he's yet to beat any solid competition. There's talk of a potential showdown with Mir later this year, and should Kongo dominant the former champion it's possible he could launch himself right back into the upper levels of the division.

12. Ben Rothwell - Rothwell is likely to be one of the biggest acquisitions from the UFC's new deal with Affliction. He had been ranked in the top ten of most heavyweight rankings prior to his loss against Andrei Arlovski, but other than that fight he's gone undefeated for more than four years. He's not getting an easy fight for his octagon debut, as he'll have to contend with the powerful wrestling skills of Cain Velasquez. A win over the highly-touted prospect would instantly put Rothwell into the spotlight, but we'll have to wait until October to see what happens there.


That‘s right, get in real close. This is what the fans pay to see.

13. Roy Nelson - "Big Country" makes a good showing on the list despite the fact that he's yet to actually join the UFC. Since he was announced as a castmember on the next "TUF," Nelson has been pegged as the odds-on favorite to win the show. Unlike recent tournament winners, Nelson would stand to make an immediate impact upon the division. Obviously he hasn't won the show yet, and there are still plenty of variables waiting to be seen during the next several months (which is part of what makes "TUF" so entertaining). Assuming he wins, look for Nelson to bring his jiu-jitsu skills (and his grotesque gut) to prominence within the UFC.

14. Antoni Hardonk - The Dutch kick boxer has gone 4-3 since joining the UFC three years ago, and he had plenty of momentum after going 3-0 in 2008. A meeting with Cheick Kongo has sent Hardonk back to the pre-lims, but he's still got the kind of power needed to ruin any fighter's night. Since he's coming off a loss already, there's a good chance he'll be fighting for his job when he faces our next fighter…


You're excited? Feel these nipples!

15. Pat Barry - Barry and Hardonk are scheduled to test their kickboxing skills against one another at UFC 104. Barry made an impressive debut with the company last year, but his lack of submission skills was exposed by Tim Hague at UFC 98. He's only been in MMA for a year, so there's plenty of room for him to grow and acquire a more complete game. Unfortunately at just under six feet tall he's likely to have a significant reach disadvantage against most anyone else in the division.

16. Todd Duffee - The hype is already starting to build follow Duffee's explosive debut this past Saturday. He may have set the new official record for fastest KO (while smarter fans know that the real record belongs to Duane "Bang" Ludwig), but that's more of a testament to Hague's knockoutability. Duffee has already told Dana White he wants to fight again soon, so hopefully we'll get a better look at just what this prospect from American Top Team has to offer.

17. Mike Russow - I'll admit when I'm wrong. Last week I said that Russow stood to make the biggest impact out of the debuting heavyweights, and instead he took home a decision win in what has been labeled one of the most boring fights of the night. Russow still has plenty of skills needed to win but he'll need to take his game up a few notches if he's going to compete at the top levels of the sport.


Struve campaigns for a spot in the banner of this column

18. Stefan Struve - The nearly 7 foot Struve came into the UFC with a great record and a fair amount of hype, only to get flattened in less than a minute by Dos Santos. He bounced back with a bloody win over Dennis Stojnic at UFC 99, and will next test himself against the debuting Chase Gormley at UFC 104. With his size and his submission skills it's still very possible that "Skyscraper" could be a major player in the heavyweight ranks.

19. Justin McCully - If we were rankings guys by their nicknames, Justin "The Nsane1" McCully would be dead last. As a fighter, he's just okay. Lackluster decision wins over Hardonk and Eddie Sanchez have done little to inspire, and the losses to Gonzaga and now Russow put him at an even .500 in the octagon. To be honest I'm surprised he still has a job with the company, as I figured he would be cut sometime this week.

20. Chris Tuchscherer - Not only did he have to face Gonzaga in his UFC debut this past weekend, Tuchscherer took the kind of groin shot that makes you cross your legs in sympathy. I would think that the company didn't sign him simply to feed him to Gonzaga, so look for Tuchscherer to face one of the other guys towards the bottom of this list sooner than later.

21. Chase Gormley - On the basis of his 6-0 record, it's fair to say that Gormley could be something special when he joins the UFC. Or he could lose two in a row and get cut. Who knows?

22. Tim Hague - He got to play spoiler against the up-and-coming Barry, but then he gets KTFO in seven seconds by Duffee. His next fight could easily be his last.

23. Mike Wessel - Hasn't fought since losing his UFC debut to Hardonk at UFC 92. As with the last few guys, who knows how long he'll be sticking around the company.

24. Mostapha Al-Turk - While he's 0-2 in the octagon, both of his fights came against upper-level competition (Kongo & Cro Cop). He also did the UFC a solid by taking the Cro Cop fight on short notice. All things considered though, he may be cut by the time this column is published.


Don‘t get too close with that fist boy, you know I get knocked out by a stiff breeze.

25. Kimbo Slice - You know he's going to be in the UFC, whether he wins or loses on "TUF." At this point it remains to be seen if he's a one hit wonder or a significant heavyweight threat. Probably the former.

The UFC's roster page has a few oddball listings as well. For example, you have Mike Ciesnolevicz who has only fought at heavyweight when he made his UFC debut on short notice. Then there are names like Gerard Gordeau, Patrick Smith, and Zane Frazier, none of whom have been seen in the UFC since they were still using single digits to number their events.

Perhaps most puzzling is the profile page for Justin Eilers. While Eilers has not competed in the UFC for more than three years, his inclusion on the website is far more bizarre considering the fact that he was murdered this past December. Apparently the job of UFC webmaster does not require a knowledge of current events.

Since I have no intentions of ending this column on such a downer, here's the best MMA highlight video I've ever seen.




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