411's MMA Rankings 2.07.08: Lightweight Division

Posted by Dustin James on 02.07.2008

Join us as 411 ranks the best Lightweights in MMA! There is a new #1 on top of the list! So, who is it? Is it the new UFC Lightweight Champion BJ Penn? Is it Mitsuhiro Ishida? Or how about JZ Calvancante? Plus, if there is a new #1, how far has Takanori Gomi fallen on the list? All these questions are answered inside, as well as my thoughts on Brock Lesnar's UFC debut........

Welcome back to the one and only MMA rankings at 411mania! This time it's going to be interesting. I can GUARANTEE that we have a new #1 on top of the Lightweight list. Some of you may hate it, and some of you may love it. But either way, he's the man of the moment! So, who is it? I know you could just scroll down and see, but it's sooooooo much better if I build it up! I can tell you who it's not going to be. That person would be Takanori Gomi. Why? Because he has been the reigning #1 Lightweight since I started these here rankings and he has now officially lost his coveted top spot. I think not fighting for a whole year, and having your last fight a disappointing loss to Nick Diaz, which was overturned by Diaz testing positive for cheeba, can cause you to drop in the rankings.

So, who is the new #1? Is it possible that it's the new UFC Lightweight champion, BJ Penn? There's no way we ranked Penn's next opponent Sean Sherk at #1.... is there? How about guys like JZ Calvancante, Mitsuhiro Ishida, Frankie Edgar, or even Roger Huerta? Are they #1? Let's find out.....

But first........

UFC 81 Thoughts

UFC 81 was a PPV that I was looking forward to for a good while, and it didn't disappoint! While Brock Lesnar lost, he still impressed me with his takedown skills and ability to throw those hammers he calls fists. However, I predicted that Brock would take down Mir and then get caught in a submission by Mir.....and while I was leaning towards a triangle or an arm bar, Mir threw on a knee bar and got Lesnar to tap in no time. I feel that if Lesnar can work on his submission defense he could be a serious threat in the heavyweight division. Mir was just too experienced for Lesnar and it showed once Lesnar let his guard down. You think BJJ black belt's are here to play? Dangerous folks people, dangerous folks.

Oh, and speaking of BJJ black belt's.......Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira came out and choked the piss out of Tim Sylvia to capture the UFC Interim Heavyweight Title. This is going to go down as one of my favorite moments of 2008, I can already tell. Let's see more footage of The Maine-iac getting guillotined all year long. Yep, UFC 81 = Good times. The only thing now is, Brock is rumored to be headlining the UFC card in June. If this happens, who will he face? If he is headlining it, the opponent has to be a semi-big name. So who's out there? Cro Cop? Sylvia? It will be interesting to see what happens in the next few months.

Enough with the personal banter...now ON with the rankings:


The Rules of 411's MMA Rankings

- A fighter will not be ranked if he hasn't been active in a year's time.

- 411's MMA Rankings are voted on by the staff of 411mania. Therefore, if you don't like where a fighter is ranked you have to hate the 411 staff as a whole. But we can take it, we are men. But remember that some of us are sensitive and don't like being called names like "Patriots fans".

And that's about it for rules...........



411's Official MMA Rankings

Lightweight Division (155 lbs)




1) Gesias Calvancante (14-1-1)

Last ranking: 10

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Andre Amade - Win via submission (armbar) - K-1 HERO'S 10 - September 17, 2007

- vs. Vitor Ribeiro - Win via TKO (strikes) - K-1 HERO'S 10 - September 17, 2007

- vs. Nam Phan - Win via TKO (strikes) - K-1 HERO'S Dynamite!! USA - June 2, 2007

Next scheduled appearance:

- vs. Shinya Aoki - K-1 Show - March 2008

Comments: And ladies and gentlemen, your new #1 Lightweight in the World according to 411mania, JZ Calvancante! JZ had a tremendous 2007 and if it wasn't for an injury, would have faced Shinya Aoki (currently the #8 Welterweight on 411's Welterweight Rankings) at the Yarennoka show on New Year's Eve. The good news is, that JZ vs. Aoki is back on and the two will fight at the K-1 show in March of 2008. And for those of you who didn't see, JZ made an appearance in the corner of Gleison Tibau at UFC 81 this past Saturday. JZ is on FIRE! Congratulations on earning the top spot.

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2) B.J. Penn (12-4-1)

Last ranking: 5

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Joe Stevenson - Win via submission (rear naked choke) - UFC 80: Rapid Fire - January 19, 2008

- vs. Jens Pulver - Win via submission (rear naked choke) - Ultimate Fighter 5 Finale - June 6, 2007

- vs. Matt Hughes - Loss via TKO (strikes) - UFC 63: Hughes vs. Penn - September 23, 2006

Next scheduled appearance:

- vs. Sean Sherk - May 2008

Comments: Yo Adrian! BJ Penn did it! He captured the UFC Lightweight Title and will now go on to defend it against Sean Sherk at the UFC PPV in May. Dana White also mentioned that if Penn does defeat Sherk in May, he could see Penn moving back up to Welterweight to rematch with Georges St. Pierre. BJ Penn is on a roll right now in the UFC and is currently one of my favorite fighters, and whenever there's a chance to see him fight, I'm up for it. VIVA LA BJ PENN!

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3) Takanori Gomi (27-3)

Last ranking: 1

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Nick Diaz - No contest (originally lost via submission) - PRIDE 33: The Second Coming - February 24, 2007

- vs. Mitsuhiro Ishida - Win via TKO (strikes) - PRIDE Shockwave 2006 - December 31, 2006

- vs. Marcus Aurelio - Win via decision (split) - PRIDE: Bushido 13 - November 5, 2006

Next scheduled appearance:

- vs. Unnamed Opponent - World Victory Road Debut Card - Tokyo - March 5, 2008

Comments: It was an interesting week for once for Takanori Gomi. There was a huge report revealed that a potential deal with the UFC had fallen through. The UFC had wanted to schedule a potential Gomi/Frank Edgar fight but the UFC couldn't come to an agreement with Gomi. Bad news for Gomi? Not so much. It was then revealed that Gomi has now signed a contract with the upstart Japanese promotion, World Victory Road. Not only that, but Gomi is set to fight in the main event of the promotion's debut card which is scheduled for March 5 in Tokyo. He is opponent has yet to be named but this is good news for those of us who wanted to see Gomi back in action.

The bad news about all this? Apparently Gomi was pretty close to signing with the UFC and this is a tremendous let down! Can you imagine all the potential great fights in the UFC for Gomi? He could face Edgar, Roger Huerta, Sherk, Penn, Tyson Griffin, Nate Diaz, the list goes on and on. Hopefully one day we will see Gomi in the Octagon.

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4) Mitsuhiro Ishida (16-3-1)

Last ranking: 8

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Gilbert Melendez - Win via decision (unanimous) - Yarennoka: New Year's Eve 2007 - December 31, 2007

- vs. Takanori Gomi - Loss via TKO (strikes) - PRIDE: Shockwave 2006 - December 31, 2006

- vs. David Bielkheden - Win via decision (unanimous) - PRIDE: Bushido 13 - November 5, 2006

Next scheduled appearance:

- vs. Currently unknown

Comments: Ishida recently became the first fighter to defeat Gilbert Melendez in a somewhat shocking upset. Ishida makes a huge jump in the rankings here and is currently on the minds of a lot of MMA experts. Hopefully he will not take another year off and will quickly jump back into action.

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5) Gilbert Melendez (13-1)

Last ranking: 3

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Mitsuhiro Ishida - Loss via decision (unanimous) - Yarennoka: New Year's Even 2007 - December 31, 2007

- vs. Tetsuji Kato - Win via decision (unanimous) - Strikeforce: Playboy Mansion - September 29, 2007

- vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri - Win via decision (unanimous) - PRIDE: Shockwave 2006 - December 31, 2006

Next scheduled appearance:

- vs. Currently unknown

Comments: El Nino suffered the first loss of his career against Mitsuhiro Ishida at the Yarennoka show and was looking to rebound quickly by accepting a fight against Josh Thomson at the March 29th Strikeforce show. However, Thomson has had to pull out of the fight due to a shoulder injury and it is now unknown if a new opponent will be named for Melendez. Hopefully they will schedule a new opponent for El Nino rather quickly as the loss against Ishida has left a bad taste in people's mouths for sure.

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6) Sean Sherk (31-2-1)

Last ranking: 7

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Hermes Franca - Win via decision (unanimous) - UFC 73: Stacked - July 7, 2007

- vs. Kenny Florian - Win via decision (unanimous) - UFC 64: Unstoppable - October 14, 2006

- vs. Nick Diaz - Win via decision - UFC 59: Reality Check - April 15, 2006

Next scheduled appearance:

- vs. BJ Penn - May 2008

Comments: Sherk recently got to watch BJ Penn capture the title that he never lost. Now, Sherk will get his chance to become the undisputed Lightweight Champion when he faces BJ Penn at the UFC PPV in May. This is a fight that I'm eager to see because as big of a fan of BJ Penn as one can be, Sherk could provide a scary match up. He's freakishly strong, but maybe that was due to his pill popping? Either way, look for this fight to be exciting.

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7) Vitor Ribeiro (19-2)

Last ranking: 6

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Gesias Calvancanti - Loss via TKO (strikes) - K-1 HERO'S Tournament Final - September 17, 2007

- vs. Kazuyuki Miyata - Win via submission (arm triangle choke) - K-1 HERO's Middleweight Tournament Opening Round - July 16, 2007

- vs. Ryuki Ueyama - Win via submission (triangle/arm bar) - K-1 HERO's 8 - March 12, 2007

Next scheduled appearance:

- Currently unknown

Comments: Things have been quiet on the Shaolin front since September. Perhaps he is a Miami Dolphins fan and he went into hiding? Either way, tell him the NFL season is over and it's OK to come out and fight again.

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8) Tatsuya Kawajiri (20-4-2)

Last ranking: 4

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Luiz Azeredo - Win via decision (unanimous) - Yarennoka: New Year's Even 2007 - December 31, 2007

- vs. Gilbert Melendez - Loss via decision (unanimous) - PRIDE: Shockwave 2006 - December 31, 2006

- vs. Per Eklund - Win via TKO (strikes) - Shooto: Champion Carnival - October 14, 2006

Next scheduled appearance:

- vs. Currently unknown

Comments: Kawajiri made his return to MMA after a year and earned a decision victory over Luiz Azeredo. This didn't come as much of a surprise to anybody, besides people who were expecting Kawajiri to finish off Azeredo. Now what will Kawajiri do in 2008? Will he sit out the whole year and just fight in December? Or will he look to climb to the top of the Lightweight division? Maybe if you live close to him, you could ask him?

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9) Frank Edgar (8-0)

Last ranking: Unranked

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Spencer Fisher - Win via decision (unanimous) - UFC 78: Validation - November 17, 2007

- vs. Mark Bocek - Win via TKO (strikes) - UFC 73: Stacked - July 7, 2007

- vs. Tyson Griffin - Win via decision (unanimous) - UFC 67: All or Nothing - February 3, 2007

Next scheduled appearance:

- Currently unknown

Comments: Welcome to the top 10 Frankie Edgar! Like I mentioned earlier in the article, it was rumored that Edgar was set to face Takanori Gomi if the UFC could somehow come to an agreement with Gomi. However, due to Gomi signing with a new Japanese MMA promotion, Edgar will have to look elsewhere for a fight. Hmmmm, might I recommend.........

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10) Roger Huerta (20-1-1)

Last ranking: Unranked

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Clay Guida - Win via submission (rear naked choke) - UFC: The Ultimate Fighter Finale 6 - December 8, 2007

- vs. Alberto Crane - Win via TKO (strikes) - UFC 74: Respect - August 25, 2007

- vs. Doug Evans - Win via TKO (strikes) - UFC: The Ultimate Fighter Finale 5 - July 23, 2007

Next scheduled appearance:

- Currently unknown

Comments: ..........Roger Huerta? I'd love to see a Huerta/Edgar fight, and I mean......who wouldn't? Huerta is currently one of the UFC's hottest names and the UFC will continue to showcase Huerta whenever possible. Now, it's up to Huerta to start asking for tougher competition in the UFC so we can really see what he is made of.

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On The Bubble:


Hayato Sakurai (31-7-2)

Last ranking: 2

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Hidehiko Hasegawa - Win via Decision (unanimous) - Yarennoka: New Year's Eve 2007 - December 31, 2007

- vs. Mac Danzig - Win via KO (punch) - PRIDE 33: The Second Coming - February 24, 2007

- vs. Luciano Azevedo - Win via TKO (doctor stoppage) - PRIDE: Bushido 12 - August 26, 2006

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Tyson Griffin (11-1)

Last ranking: Unranked

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Gleison Tibau - Win via decision (unanimous) - UFC 81: Breaking Point - February 2, 2008

- vs. Thiago Tavares - Win via decision (unanimous) - UFC 76: Knockout - September 22, 2007

- vs. Clay Guida - Win via decision (split) - UFC 72: Victory - June 18, 2007

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Joachim Hansen (16-6-1)

Last ranking: Unranked

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Kazuyuki Miyata - Win via submission (rear naked choke) K1: Premium 2007 Dynamite!! - December 31, 2007

- vs. Eiji Mitsuoka - Loss via decision (majority) - Shooto: Back To Our Roots 6 - November 8, 2007

- vs. Jason Ireland - Win via submission (arm bar) - PRIDE 33: The Second Coming - February 24, 2007

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Rob McCullough (15-3)

Last ranking: Unranked

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Richard Crunkilton - Win via TKO (punches) - WEC 30: Las Vegas - September 5, 2007

- vs. Kit Cope - Win via submission (strikes) - WEC 25: Las Vegas - January 20, 2007

- vs. Harris Sarmiento - Win via decision (unanimous) - WFA: King of the Streets - July 22, 2006

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Joe Stevenson (28-8)

Last ranking: 9

Last 3 fights:

- vs. BJ Penn - Loss via submission (rear naked choke) - UFC 80: Rapid Fire - January 19, 2008

- vs. Kurt Pellegrino - Win via decision (unanimous) - UFC 74: Respect - August 25, 2007

- vs. Melvin Guillard - Win via submission (guillotine choke) - UFC Fight Night 9 - April 5, 2007

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Kenny Florian (7-3)

Last ranking: Unranked

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Din Thomas - Win via submission (rear naked choke) - UFC: Fight Night 11 - September 19, 2007

- vs. Alvin Robinson - Win via submission (strikes) - UFC 73: Stacked - July 7, 2007

- vs. Dokonjonosuke Mishima - Win via submission (rear naked choke) - UFC: Fight Night 9 - April 5, 2007

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KJ Noons (6-2)

Last ranking: Unranked

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Nick Diaz - Win via TKO (cuts) - EliteXC: Renegade - November 10, 2007

- vs. James Edson Berto - Win via KO (knee) - EliteXC: ShoXC - July 27, 2007

- vs. Charles Bennett - Loss via KO (punch) - EliteXC: Destiny - February 10, 2007

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Takashi Nakakura (9-2-1)

Last ranking: Unranked

Last 3 fights:

- vs. Yusuke Endo - Win via decision (unanimous) - Shooto: Back To Our Roots 6 - November 8, 2007

- vs. Jani Lax - Win via submission (achilles lock) - Shooto: Back To Our Roots 4 - July 15, 2007

- vs. Mizuto Hirota - Win via decision (unanimous) - Shooto: Back To Our Roots 1 - February 17, 2007