411’s Fighter of The Month 01.05.08: December 2008

Posted by  on 01.05.2009

Frank Mir, Rashad Evans, Shinya Aoki, and Miguel Torres all ended the month with gold, while Efrain Escudero and Ryan Bader are the newest “Ultimate Fighters.” We also saw some big wins from Rampage Jackson, Josh Koscheck, and Junie Browning. But who took home December’s Fighter Of The Month?

When UFC 92 was announced, I don't think anybody could have predicted it would end the way it did. We also saw some big action from Fight Night 16, The Ultimate Fighter Finale, WEC 37, and FieLDS Dynamite!! Now it's time for the 411 MMA staff to make their picks for the best performances of the month.

How It Works

Each staff member picks five fighters and ranks them. I'll assign a point value to those rankings. Points are determined as:

1st - 5
2nd - 4
3rd - 3
4th - 2
5th - 1

The fighter with the most points is our Fighter of the Month and then new points are assigned that will go towards Fighter of the Year. Those points are:

1st - 15
2nd - 12
3rd - 9
4th - 6
5th - 3
6th - 1

The Voting

Larry Csonka

1) Frank Mir
Mir was a very easy choice for me this month. I am SO SICK of hearing that "Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira just isn't what he was once upon a time, Mir's win wasn't impressive at all." BULLSHIT. Mir dissected him in round one and knocked him down twice, winning a 10-8 round. He followed that up by FINISHING Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. Yes, Frank Mir was the first man to finish Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. This is a tremendous comeback story, we get the huge rematch with Brock, which will be MANY BUYS, and it is nice to say that Frank Mir IS BACK as a top heavyweight in the world of MMA.

2) Rashad Evans - Rashad Evans not only won the Light Heavyweight Title at UFC 92 with an impressive TKO victory over Forrest Griffin, but he has a legit claim to being the best Light Heavyweight in all of MMA. Rashad is certainly on a roll with very impressive back-to-back victories over Liddell and Griffin.
3) Shinya Aoki - Shinya Aoki defeated Eddie Alvarez at the wacky FieLDS DYNAMITE!! Show. With this victory he wins the WAMMA Lightweight Title, and lays a legit claim to being the #1 Lightweight in MMA.
4) Rampage Jackson - Rampage is back after a sick KO victory over Wandy at UFC 92.
5) Miguel Torres - Another impressive title defense by one of the very best overall fighters today.

Dustin James

1) Frank Mir
Mir did the impossible.....he became the first MMA fighter to ever finish Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and he did it an impressive fashion. Even Mir didn't think he could defeat Big Nog, yet he managed to overcome everything and is once again on top of the UFC's heavyweight division. His upcoming rematch with Brock Lesnar will do huge numbers for the UFC so all-in-all it was a GREAT month to be Frank Mir.

2) Rashad Evans - Rashad continued his hot streak with a sweet win over Forrest Griffin for the UFC Light Heavyweight Title. Watch out world, "Sugar" Rashad is on the prowl.
3) Ryan Bader - Bader defeated Vinny Magalhaes to win "The Ultimate Fighter" season 8's light heavyweight crown. He wins a six-figure deal and the chance to fight on plenty of UFC Fight Night cards for at least the next two years.
4) Efrain Escudero - Escudero defeated Phillpe Nover in what many people would consider a HUGE upset to win "The Ultimate Fighter" season 8's lightweight crown. He also has won a six-figure deal and the chance to fight on plenty of UFC Fight Night cards for at least the next two years.
5) Shinya Aoki - Defeated Eddie Alvarez at the FEG FieLDS Dynamite!! show to become the WAMMA Lightweight Champion. Aoki is now calling out BJ Penn, yet Aoki doesn't want to fight for the UFC. Either way, that fight would be something dreams are made of.

Jonathan Solomon

1) Frank Mir
Could it be anyone else? Hell no! Frank Mir made millions of MMA fans around the globe look like morons. Consider me humbled. There is no other way to put it, he dismantled arguably the greatest heavyweight of all-time. Mir's boxing improved so much, Nogueira had no answer for it. Now Mir sets up possibly the biggest money match-up of the first half of 2009 with Brock Lesnar.

2) Rashad Evans - Evans may not be the most exciting fighter in the 205 weight class but there is no doubt, he is the best. The premiere division in MMA and Rashad Evans is the face of it. If you would have told anyone that back in 2006, you would have been punched in the face. Not anymore. Evans took Griffin apart in the third round and took the title, not leaving it up to the judges.
3) Miguel Torres - One of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world showed the dominance that only few champions do. His win over Manny Tapia was a showcase of why Torres is considered among the best. Right now, it looks like nobody can beat him (although I should learn my lesson, see Frank Mir).
4) Shinya Aoki - Aoki fought one of the most successful lightweights of 2008 in Alvarez and made him look like a rookie. Aoki wanted the fight on the ground (which was no shock) and took the fight to the ground. He closed the year with another nasty submission victory.
5) Junie Browning - After all the crap that happened during the TUF8 season, when it came down to it, Browning backed up his mouth. In his first official fight inside the UFC, he looked great. The only questions that exist are whether he can compete with "legit" UFC competition inside the lightweight division. He's a character and thus far, he proved he has skills.

Dan Plunkett

1) Frank Mir
Mir not only did what many didn't expect him to do in beating Nogueira, but he also did what nobody thought he could do in finishing him. He completely destroyed the 2nd best heavyweight ever, and by doing so set up a rematch with Brock Lesnar for the undisputed heavyweight championship, which is a fight that will attract 700,000+ PPV buys.

2) Rashad Evans - Who would have thought in 2005 that The Ultimate Fighter 2 winner, would beat The Ultimate Fighter 1 winner for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship? Very few, if any people is the answer. Rashad impressively stopped Griffin in the third round, cementing his spot (for now at least) as one of, if not the top light heavyweights.
3) Quinton "Rampage" Jackson - For my money, Quinton Jackson is the top light heavyweight once again after knocking out old foe Wanderlei Silva. Next up: Either a rematch with Forrest Griffin, or a title shot against Rashad Evans.
4) Miguel Torres - With his win over Manny Tapia, Torres showed once again why he is one of the best fighters in the world.
5) Shinya Aoki - Aoki became the first ever WAMMA Lightweight Champion with his win over Eddie Alvarez, the win also secures him a spot as one of the top 2 lightweights in MMA.

Ryan Seymour

1) Frank Mir
Frank Mir did what no other man could do and finished "Minotauro" Nogueira by TKO. He showed the world he has improved his striking but more importantly, a lesson that everyone can overcome their demons. Frank Mir looked in shape for this fight, but questions about his cardio weren't answered. They may be answered against Lesnar in 2009, but clearly this was the biggest win in Frank Mir's career.

2) Rashad Evans - The other fighter who captured gold at UFC 92. Evans wasn't quite as dominating as Mir but after two close rounds, Evans overpowered Forrest and was able to get the TKO victory. Evans is really improving his power through his punches and Griffin was added to the list of (T)KO victories that Evans has delivered in his MMA career.
3) Quinton "Rampage" Jackson - Revenge is sweet for Rampage as he erased two KO losses with a brutal KO victory over Wanderlei Silva. Rampage was able to put his personal battles behind him, pushing himself back into the title picture in the light heavyweight division with this brutal win.
4) Shinya Aoki - Aoki was able to submit another good lightweight in Eddie Alvarez, this win would of been comforting for Aoki as Alvarez was initially the fighter who he was going to face in the DREAM lightweight GP.
5) Miguel Torres - Torres showed why he is considered the best bantamweight in the world with a convincing win over Manny Tapia at WEC 37.

Jeremy Lambert

1) Rashad Evans
Stopped Forrest Griffin with vicious ground and pound and became an undefeated UFC Champion. Arguably became the #1 Light Heavyweight in the world with his victory as well.

2) Frank Mir - Became the first person to ever stop Rodrigo Nogueira and could finally be living up to his athletic potential. Also set up a huge buyrate with the rematch with Brock Lesnar.
3) Quinton Jackson - Knocked Wanderlei Silva out cold getting revenge for the two brutal knockouts Silva gave him years ago. He got his wolf on.
4) Shinya Aoki - Submitted another top Lightweight and arguably became the #2 Lightweight in the world.
5) Miguel Torres - Delivered another impressive performance and solidified himself as one of the top pound for pound fighters in the world.

Scott Kuzcowski

1) Frank Mir
Many people wrote off Frank Mir following his motorcycle crash and several disappointing losses to inferior competition. Since then he's come back to defeat the current UFC Heavyweight Champion and take the Interim Heavyweight Title from a man who not even Fedor could stop. His reemergence at the top of the division should shake things up quite a bit.

2) Rashad Evans - Rashad has been on the hottest streak of any of the light heavyweight fighters in the world. His victory over Forrest was the perfect ending to a great year for the young fighter.
3) Josh Koscheck - Kos proved that video game contract disputes and a brutal loss less than 3 weeks prior would not slow him in his fight with Yoshida. Koscheck won by brutal KO and looks to maintain his position at the top of the UFC welterweight division.
4) Ryan Bader - Ryan defeated a very tough Vinny Magalhaes to take home The Ultimate Fighter title. He also demonstrated a degree of power that should have left an impression on the majority of the division.
5) Efrain Escudero - No one gave Efrain a chance in the finale, but he proved them all wrong and soundly defeated the fighter oft referred to as "the young GSP" in Phillipe Nover.

Adam Tool

1) Rashad Evans
Not to take anything away from the magnitude of Mir's win, but for me Rashad capturing the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship is more significant. The fact of the matter is, he captured UFC gold and still has an undefeated record. This is even more impressive when you consider the fact that he did this in what is arguably the thickest division in the sport. He's not just the champ, in many people's eyes he's also the greatest light heavyweight fighter in the world today.

2) Frank Mir - Which championship win is sweeter? Breaking Tim Sylvia's arm or finishing a fighter that's never been stopped in his illustrious career? I have to believe that it's the latter, and by winning the UFC Interim Heavyweight Championship Frank Mir resumes his place in the upper levels of the heavyweight ranks.
3) Miguel Torres - One of the greatest fighters in the world just keeps on racking up wins and adding to the prestige of the WEC Bantamweight Championship. With fighters and champions like Torres, the WEC is building a company that showcases many of the greatest fighters below 155 lbs. An excellent cap to an outstanding year for this young athlete.
4) Shinya Aoki - Speaking of fighters that have had a great year, let's talk about the "Tobikan Judan." On New Year's Eve Aoki defeated the man he was supposed to face in the finals of the DREAM Lightweight GP. Aoki silenced the growing army of Alvarez fans by submitting him in just 92 seconds. He is now the WAMMA Lightweight Champion and a firm #2 in the lightweight ranks (for me, at least).
5) Quinton "Rampage" Jackson - Revenge is a dish best served cold. As in, out cold.

The Results

Honorable Mention: Ryan Bader

5th Place - Miguel Torres (11 points)

The hardest working man in the bantamweight division defends his belt for the second time.

4th Place - Quinton "Rampage" Jackson (12 points)

"Rampage" settles an old score and puts himself right back into title contention.

3rd Place - Shinya Aoki (13 points)

He finished Eddie Alvarez and secured his place as the best lightweight outside of the UFC.

2nd Place - Rashad Evans (34 points)

The season 2 "TUF" champ climbed to the top of the light heavyweight mountain and won his first UFC title.

Fighter of the Month for December - Frank Mir (39 points)

Became the first man to finish Nogueira, and won the UFC Interim Heavyweight Championship in the process. An amazing performance from the two-time UFC champ.

Fighter Of The Year Standings

Normally this would be the spot where I would post the point totals for the year so far, but I'm holding those back in a cheap ploy to increase anticipation for our Fighter of the Year award. Come back next week to see who made it to the top for 2008!