T-Berg's Top Ten 09.25.09: Week 3 - MMA's Top 10 Rising Talent

Posted by Todd Bergman on 09.25.2009

Shane Carwin, Junior dos Santos, Brett Rogers, or even Gegard Mousasi? 411’s Todd Bergman returns this week to break down MMA’s Top 10 Rising Stars in this edition of T-Berg’s Top 10.

Last week's look at the Top 10 T.U.F. fighters of all time was a success in my book. Most of you felt that Rashad Evans should've been #1 and that's fine, but more on that later. This week, I wanted to do something that I haven't seen on the web at all. I'm going to be taking a look at the best of the best when it comes to rising stars in MMA. It's a slippery slope to breakdown because everyone has their own definition of who and what should be considered a rising star. Again, I'm not one to come up with a huge hypothesis on how these things should be figured out.; however, I will note that the placement of these fighters has a lot to do with significance of upset victories and victories over quality opponents. Damn, that sounds like a formula for picking this, and that‘s not what I want, but let‘s get to the picks.



10. Marius "The Whitemare" Zaromskis

Biggest Win(s): Huge upset of Mach Sakurai followed by a tournament-clinching KO of Jason High in the DREAM Welterweight Grand Prix.

If you caught the tournament, or even the highlights, then you know why Marius is ranked here. His deadly combination of boxing mixed with vintage-Cro Cop head kicks makes him a deadly fighter to face. DREAM isn't exactly known for its Welterweight division, so the recent talent swap deal with Strikeforce makes Marius' future a little brighter. In fighting in America, Marius has all the opportunities to make a bigger name for himself against higher -caliber opponents in the California-based promotion. Marius barely got into the countdown due to his lack of big fights, but, as I mentioned above, the talent swap will only help him get those high profile match ups in the future.



9. Dan "The Outlaw" Hardy

Biggest Win(s): Knocking around Marcus Davis and KO'ing Rory Markham with his magically delicious punches.

Hardy's comments leading up to the fight with Marcus Davis made him a star even before he defeated Davis at UFC 99. Having not lost a fight cleanly since 2006, Hardy is on a meteoric rise to the Top 10 ranked Welterweights worldwide. Once Hardy is given the opportunity to fight in America for the UFC, I'm certain that the crowd will love him. Hardy has great stand up that combines pin-point striking with underrated Muay Thai. "The Outlaw" has a long road ahead of him when it comes to climbing up the UFC Welterweight ladder, but the thought of match ups with the likes of a Chris Lytle or Thiago Alves could further propel Hardy‘s legend. Dan's questionable ground game could cause him problems in the future, but when you can dictate the fight with your fists, who needs a ground game. The continued work with Freddie Roach will have Hardy aiming for the top of anyone's "best of" striking list in no time. While Dan has a tremendous UFC future ahead of him, he doesn't crack the Top 5 based on his questionable losses to Forrest Petz and two losses to David Baron.


8. Brian Bowles

Biggest Win(s): Proved that just because you have a mullet doesn't mean that you're immortal, Miguel Torres.

It's really unfair for Brian Bowles to be ranked this low, but this list is stacked with talent and more deserving fighters. Bowles has made a career out of destroying his opponents while being vastly underrated by many in the MMA community. Not once, but twice, has Bowles proving the critics wrong by upsetting higher-ranked fighters on his way to the WEC's Bantamweight fighters. The first upset victory came against Will Ribeiro at WEC 37 in which Bowles broke the spirit of Ribeiro in the 1st round with his heavy-handed strikes and then finally finishing the highly touted Brazilian striker with a choke in the 3rd round. Obviously, the next victory came against one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world, Miguel Torres. I'm not one to pat myself on the back but I called this one and took a lot of flack from some of 411's finest (that's you Wyatt) in the process. Bowles again proved to be a superior fighter as he destroyed the mullet warrior with some serious ground and pound in the 1st round. The only logical fight for Bowles would be a rematch against Torres, but it appears that the WEC has other plans for the Georgia native. Bowles recently stated that Dominick Cruz would be next and while Cruz did dominate his last opponent, everyone wants to see the rematch between Bowles and Torres. I can't put Bowles in the Top 5 because of the overall weakness of the talent pool that is the WEC's 135lb division.


7. Jon "Bones" Jones

Biggest Win(s): Suplexing his way to victory over Stephan Bonnar and choking the shamrocks out of Jake O'Brien.

Jon Jones is a new breed of fighter in MMA. He's long, athletic, quick, and creates strikes on the fly. Little was known about Jones when he made his UFC debut against former IFL talent Andre Gusmao at UFC 87. There were some highlights that came out of that fight, with Jones showing a little bit of his on-the-fly striking. Then came the Stephan Bonnar fight on the UFC 94 Main Card which blew everyone away. Spinning back elbows followed by a textbook WWE German Suplex nearly had Joe Silva crapping his pants ringside. Jones dominated the former The Ultimate Fighter cast member while cementing his own place in the spotlight in the process. Jones' recent victory over Indiana native Jake O'Brien did little to further his career, but it did give the UFC a fight to show on SPIKE TV against Gina Carano. I enjoy "Bones" as a fighter and think the world of him, but his recent decision to train with Greg Jackson perplexes my mind. Jackson already has Rashad Evans and Keith Jardine in his stable of fighters and that limits the possible high caliber opponents that Jones can face along his path to a potential title shot. Jones is scheduled to face The Ultimate Fighter Season 3 cast member Matt Hamill at The Ultmiate Fighter 10 Finale this December.



6. Brett "The Grim" Rogers

Biggest Win(s): Sending Andrei Arlovski into an emo-like tailspin and beating a dude who almost beat Kimbo.

There are several reasons why Brett Rogers didn't make the Top 5. Much of it has to do with the caliber of people that he has fought. Outside of Andrei Arlovski, there isn't much quality. However, Rogers is a great brawler,and I love the moniker that Gus Johnson has given him of "The Modern Day Clubber Lane." It should also be noted that Rogers holds the honor of winning the first MMA fight ever held on network television. While the big money fight between Rogers and Kimbo Slice never happened, Rogers will get the chance to stop the unstoppable Fedor coming up in November. It's really a shame that Rogers is taking this fight because a loss could really set back his career and hurt his credibility. You see, Rogers is being built as a wrecking machine, but if Fedor stops him then he's only awrecking machine if he is not fighting one of the top guys in the world. I would really like to see Rogers fighting a ground specialist simply to see what his ground game might be like, but we don't always get what we want. It's a bad match up for Rogers, but let's see what he can do against Fedor. "The Grim" would've been in the Top 5 but his only quality win came against a depressed Andrei Arlovski. Wins against the guy from a B.E.T. MMA show won't earn you points in my book. I wonder if Rogers still rolls with Big Black security?




5. Frankie "The Answer" Edgar

Biggest Win(s): Taking down the Muscle Shark and dominating Tyson Griffin, Jim Miller, Spencer Fisher, Hermes Franca and Deividas Taurosevicius.

When it comes to UFC Lightweights, you are hard-pressed to find anyone with a better fight history than Frankie Edgar. With wins over former 155lbs champ Sean Sherk and the always-game Tyson Griffin, Edgar is very close to a title shot. If it wasn't for the loss to Gray Maynard, then Edgar might be the next in line to challenge the winner of the Penn/Sanchez fight. With all due respect to Gray Maynard, Edgar was greatly distracted coming into that fight. Frankie was busy planning a wedding and filming an episode of MTV's True Life. All excuses aside, the rematch of Edgar vs. Maynard needs to happen so that the UFC can situation who's next for the winner of Penn vs. Sanchez. I'm really not sure who, outside of Maynard, would be in front of Edgar in the UFC's Lightweight Division. Edgar's next fight will be with surging Kurt Pellegrino at The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale in December. While the fight will give Edgar more exposure, a victory in the fight does nothing for his career. Edgar is most certainly ready for a title shot, and it's a shame that he has to compete against fighters that aren't even remotely on that level.


4. Luis "Banha" Arthur Cane

Biggest Win(s): Taming the "African Assassin" and punishing the Punisher

Is it a stretch to put Luis Cane this high on the list? I don't think so. In his four UFC fights, you would be hard pressed to many fighters who have been this impressive. Cane's UFC run started a little shaky when he was DQ'ed for kneeing James Irvin while he was on the ground. Prior to the knee, Cane destroyed Irvin with his Muay Thai. Was it Irvin wanting an easy out? That's your call to make. Following the disappointing finish to that fight, Cane rebounded with the smashing of Jason Lambert and then the squashing of Soku. Questions about Cane's cardio and overall striking defense were answered with the stoppage of Soku. Luis has a very pivotal match up with Lil Nog at UFC 106 in November, especially since the recent news that Rampage Jackson has "retired." This opens up a great deal of opportunity for the heavy-handed Brazilian. That fight with Nog will again be a test for Luis and his chance to further prove to the masses as to why he deserves to be called one of the best rising stars in MMA.



3. Gegard "The Dreamcatcher" Mousasi

Biggest Win(s): Submitting Denis Kang before he was considered less than stellar and his brilliant American debut slaughter of Babalu.

There were a lot of questions about the credibility of Mousasi coming into the Strikeforce Light Heavyweight title fight against Babalu. A good amount of people thought that Mousasi was still very green and benefited from one-sided match ups during his time in the DREAM Middleweight GP. Well, Gegard completely smashed all of those negative thoughts in his one-minute beating of the former UFC title challenger. It's crazy that Mousasi doesn't get more respect within the MMA community considering that Mousasi has beaten a lot of quality fighters throughout his MMA career. Mousasi hasn't tasted defeat since 2006 and has only lost twice in his career. There really is no weakness in his game. If you want to go to the mat then Gegard's Sambo, mixed with BJJ, is a lethal combination. If you want to stand up then Mousasi's boxing, mixed with brutal kick boxing, will end your night early. Much like his Red Devil teammate Fedor, Mousasi shows little to no emotion and at only 24 years old, it's scary to think how good this guy could possibly be. Even a potential mistake of moving up in weight has proven to be nothing for Mousasi. I would really love to see "The Dreamcatcher" make his way to the UFC at some point, but fans will have to be patient as the hot prospect heals a shoulder injury that he suffered in that ridiculous exhibition bout with Fedor.



2. Junior dos Santos

Biggest Win(s): An ear-wiggling KO of Werdum and making Cro Cop wish that he was back fighting cans in DREAM

I originally ranked Mousasi ahead of dos Santos here, but after last weekend's one-sided ass kicking that Junior laid on Cro Cop, I've got to rank him here. Dos Santos proved everything true that I've been saying since watching him fight live in Chicago at UFC 90. I told my wife at the weigh-ins that Junior looked like a monster and he would shock everyone at UFC 90. From there dos Santos took out Stefan Struve and then the above mentioned beating of the former PRIDE Open Weight Grand Prix Champion. Junior won't get a lot of press because he's not a former pro wrestler, but he most certainly deserves it. I would like to think that he is at least one fight away from challenging for the title, but then again you never truly know what is going on in Joe Silva's mind. Critics of dos Santos say that we haven't seen the ground game of the Team Nogueira product, but what does that matter when he can destroy you with his strikes. You would assume that since he practices every single day with Big and Lil' Nog that he can hold his own on the ground. If, for some reason, a title shot isn't in his future, then I would really like to see Junior take on the loser of the upcoming Carwin/Lesnar fight to help build more credibility for the free-swinging Brazilian.



1. Shane Carwin

Biggest Win(s): This subtle UFC debut smashing of Christian Wellisch and then the earth shattering KO of Gabe Gonzaga

There's no debate in selecting Carwin as the top pick here. He's a feared striker whose wrestling game still hasn't been tested. All of that will change when Carwin faces UFC Heavyweight Champ Brock Lesnar at UFC 106 in December. Carwin's stock has skyrocketed since his upset win over Rex Richards at Art Of War 4 in October of 2007; a win that was so impressive that it earned him a spot in the UFC. Carwin has made the best of his opportunities since joining the UFC to the tune of a 3-0 record with none of his fights going past the 1st round. It's also pretty scary to think that Carwin still doesn't train full time given all the success that he has had in the Octagon. Whether or not you believe that Carwin can beat Lesnar is one thing, but no one should question Carwin's punching power because it is a game changer.

That brings this Top 10 list to a close. Let me know below what you loved and hated. Next week, I will return with a Top 10 look at MMA's Best Personalities. Do you have any suggestions on who should make that list or do you have any ideas of what topics I should cover in the future? Feel free to let me know down below in the comment box or via e-mail. Remember to support your local MMA and keep your tapping hand strong.