My next MMA weight class to break down is the light heavyweight division.
Music to listen to: Right in Two by Tool
This class has usually been the division that brings the most casual fans into the fold because many people can relate to being in this weight division. The heavyweights are considered freaks of body nature and the “smaller” classes such as lightweight and even welterweight consist of men that have a physical physique that most fans can only dream of achieving.
However, luminaries such as Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture, Tito Ortiz, Frank Shamrock, Dan Henderson, Wanderlei Silva and a host of others made the light heavyweight division and to a lesser extent the middleweight division if you include the former promotion Pride’s definition of the 205 weight class, the most intriguing in the entire sport.
Now as we head into 2011, we see a mix of Americans and Brazilians in the top-10 that could beat either one of each other in a fight and it wouldn’t be considered a MAJOR upset, at least among the top seven or eight fighters.
1- Mauricio “Shogun” Rua: Knee injuries have hindered the efforts of one of the most explosive light heavyweight fighters in history. He earned the UFC crown by defeating Lyota Machida in May, which was also his last fight. Shogun also has victories over Chuck Liddell, Mark Coleman, Alistar Overeem, Rampage Jackson and a host of others. Just when fans were starting to see a fully healthy Shogun in action as displayed in the Machida fight, he has to get another knee surgery. He plans to return in action to defend his belt against Rashad Evans in March. Lets all hope he can stay healthy for the time being.
2- Rashad Evans: Here’s where the discussion gets interesting. You may make the argument that Machida should be here because he defeated Evans. However, what do you do about Rampage who just beat Machida…and than what about Forrest Griffin who defeated Rampage…you get the idea. My feeling is that Evans at this moment is better than any other light heavy in the world outside of Shogun.
3- Quinton “Rampage” Jackson: He didn’t look impressive in his defeat of Machida in November but it was a win. Personally, I had the fight as a draw using a half-point system but that’s another story for another day. Under the current rules, I had Rampage with a win two rounds to one. Rampage seemed to be motivated by the Machida fight and while he’s not back to the top form he showed in his early UFC contests, particularly his wins over Liddell and Henderson, it was a start.
4- Lyoto Machida: While pundits who have proclaimed that the Dragon has been figured out, I don’t see this as the case. I think what has happened is that his passive/semi-aggressive style has become difficult to cultivate an MMA fan base that has become used to expecting two men to swing punches and kicks aggressively as a sign of good fighting. This in a way has subconsciously entered the minds of judges who in essence awarded Rampage the fight because he was aggressive against Machida. The end result is that Machida has lost two consecutive fights to top-five men in his division.
5- Jon Jones: Here is another fighter who has become difficult to gage in the weight class. Jones is my highest non-ever champion fighter and therefore may be looked at as too high in my rankings. His most impressive win was probably an overrated Brandon Vera and the rest of his win list is not as great to match the hype the 23-year old has received. However, his physical skills, particularly wrestling and continued maturation place him in this spot. If Jones gets past Ryan Bader at UFC 126 in February, a contest against one of the four men ranked ahead of him who isn’t the champ would be acceptable before a title shot.
6- Ryan Bader: For all of the deserved hype that Jones has gotten, Bader is not only undefeated, unlike his opponent in February, but holds a victory over the best opponent that either man has faced, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, in September. Bader has the standup skills as well as the wrestling base to give any fighter trouble, especially Jones.
7- Forrest Griffin: He has a huge fan base, always fights hard, outstanding personality for the UFC to market and gives maximum effort, however, Griffin is 2-2 in his last four fights and hasn’t been in the octagon since November of 2009. The inactivity and inconsistent record places him in this spot. For each impressive victory over Shogun and title-winning performance against Rampage, I think of underwhelming losses to Evans, Anderson Silva and even Keith Jardine. A victory over Rich Franklin in February would be a positive step for Griffin.
8- Rafael Cavalcante: Feijao won the Strikeforce light heavy title over Mo Lawal in August in impressive fashion and will most likely have to have his first title defense against Henderson in early 2011.
9- Antonio Rogerio Nogueira: Little Nog will have a quick chance to return to form after losing to Bader with a fight against Tito Ortiz in March. If the Brazilian can’t defeat Ortiz, who hasn’t won a fight in four years, it may be time to go back to the drawing board.
10- Mo Lawal: Lawal was humbled by Feijao in August and it should be a valuable lesson to the young fighter to not rely on his standup skills too much and begin to incorporate the wrestling skills that he honed over the years as a collegiate. Lawal is currently recovering from knee surgery and should return to action at some point in 2011.
Those are my thoughts, what are yours?
The Sports Inquirer 
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