USAT/SBN November MMA Consensus Rankings: Middleweight
by Kid Nate on Nov 19, 2009 10:41 PM EST
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47 comments
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anderson Silva | 100 | UFC | 1 |
| 2 | Nate Marquardt | 94 | UFC | 2 |
| 3 | Dan Henderson | 94 | Free Agent | 3 |
| 4 | Demian Maia | 79 | UFC | 5 |
| 5 | Vitor Belfort | 79 | UFC | 6 |
| 6 | Chael Sonnen | 71 | UFC | 7 |
| 7 | Jake Shields | 61 | Strikeforce | 12 |
| 8 | Jorge Santiago | 58 | WVR | 4 |
| 9 | Yushin Okami | 57 | UFC | 8 |
| 10 | Yoshihiro Akiyama | 52 | UFC | 10 |
| 11 | Robbie Lawler | 44 | Strikeforce | 9 |
| 12 | Kazuo Misaki | 30 | WVR | 11 |
| 13 | Mamed Khalidov | 30 | WVR | NR |
| 14 | Paulo Filho | 29 | DREAM | 14 |
| 15 | Nick Diaz | 23 | Strikeforce | 18 |
| 16 | Michael Bisping | 22 | UFC | 13 |
| 17 | Ronaldo Souza | 21 | DREAM/Strikeforce | 18 |
| 18 | Nate Quarry | 21 | UFC | 17 |
| 19 | Alessio Sakara | 20 | UFC | 15 |
| 20 | Thales Leites | 18 | MFC | 22 |
| 20 | Alan Belcher | 18 | UFC | 20 |
| 20 | Ricardo Almeida | 18 | UFC | 23 |
| 23 | Wilson Gouveia | 17 | UFC | 24 |
| 24 | Gegard Mousasi | 16 | Strikeforce | 27 |
| 25 | Rich Franklin | 16 | UFC | NR |
Rankings compiled by Richard Wade.
Fans are used to #1 Anderson Silva toying with opponents, but in recent months we've been treated to the spectacle of seeing Silva and his manager Ed Soares toy with the UFC. First he wants to fight #5 Vitor Belfort and will be ready for UFC 108. But snap, he's having elbow surgery. No wait, no surgery, he'll be ready. Then he doesn't think Belfort is worthy of a title shot. And the surgery is on again. Now they're on the verge of signing that fight for UFC 109. We'll see.
Meanwhile, #2 Nate Marquardt will be facing #6 Chael Sonnen at UFC 110, while #3 Dan Henderson twists in the wind. A Marquardt win will surely earn him a second bite at the Anderson Silva apple.
Not quite as sure that Sonnen will get to try for gold with a win, but surely the Zuffa brass are full of gratitude toward Sonnen since he banished the specter of a #9 Yushin Okami title shot.
#4 Demian Maia is rumored to be facing Dan Miller at UFC 109. A win against the tough Miller should put Maia back in the title hunt.
#7 Jake Shields solidified his unlikely status as a top middleweight by beating Jason "Mayhem" Miller at Strikforce: Fedor vs Rogers and taking the Strikeforce middleweight belt. Strikeforce boss Scott Coker has stated that Shields could return to welterweight now that they've beefed up that division a bit more. Shields is talking about becoming a two division champ. Time will tell.
#8 Jorge Santiago dropped four slots after being upset by (the previously unranked) #13 Mamed Khalidov at Sengoku XI. This is a disaster for Santiago who at one point was scheduled to face Belfort at Affliction's final show. Two years of momentum building in Strikeforce and Sengoku have suddenly evaporated.
#10 Yoshihiro Akiyama is expected to headline UFC 110 against legend Wanderlei Silva. This fight, at the UFC's Australian debut will also air during prime-time in Japan and South Korea. Akiyama was a crucial acquisition for the UFC, a true star in Asia, who has shown the ability to hang in the UFC. He will be sorely tested against the former PRIDE champion.
Based on the premise that all MMA rankings are subjective but that it’s still useful and informative to know who the online MMA community as a whole ranks as the best fighters in MMA, we collect and average the rankings of the top MMA websites to produce our consensus rankings.
We compile the top MMA rankings from each of our sources and award 25 points for a first place ranking, 16 for a 10th place ranking, 1 for a 25th place ranking. A formula is used to "normalize" the data so all fighters are awarded points from those lists that do not include a full 25 fighters. This formula ensures that each ranking site awards the same number of total points regardless of how many fighters they choose to rank. Each fighter’s total is divided by the number of possible points to determine their standing in the Consensus Rankings.
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Boy, no love for Mayhem Miller at all. Going for 5 rounds with #7 and nearly winning at one point to not even be considered top 25.
by KrmtDfrog on Nov 18, 2009 8:22 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
Mayhem is suffering
from a string of losses, no contests and long gaps between fights.
Follow me on Twitter @KidNate
by Kid Nate on Nov 18, 2009 9:07 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Miller’s last credible win was in 2006.
Bolts from the Blue // "Game over." - Jamal Williams
Bloody Elbow // "Every normal man must be tempted at times to spit upon his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats." - H.L. Mencken
by Richard Wade on Nov 18, 2009 11:24 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
He still is
better than quite a few of the people on the bottom 25. And again, going the distance with #7 and having the only dangerous near finish should give some credibility.
by KrmtDfrog on Nov 19, 2009 2:30 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Having credibility and being ranked in the top 25 in the world are 2 different things. Just because you like Bully Beatdown that doesn’t change the fact that he’s 1-2-1 in his last four fights.
by ufc4 on Nov 19, 2009 11:51 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
rankings don't measure who is the better fighter
they track past accomplishements
Follow me on Twitter @KidNate
by Kid Nate on Nov 20, 2009 4:10 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
shrug
his losses and NC’s are to #7 and 17 and again, close with #7 and he has a win over #11. I know you don’t make the rankings, but it’s a bit puzzling why someone who has as much publicity as Miller as well as the credibility to back some of it up can’t even crack the top25. Wilson Gouveia? Thales Leites? Alessio Sakara?
by KrmtDfrog on Nov 19, 2009 2:37 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
That win was in 2006 and the rest of your case for Miller rests on a No Contest and a Loss to a natural Welterweight.
Bolts from the Blue // "Game over." - Jamal Williams
Bloody Elbow // "Every normal man must be tempted at times to spit upon his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats." - H.L. Mencken
by Richard Wade on Nov 19, 2009 6:45 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I know right
It sucks not seeing Miller in the top (25!!) list of fighters because he is extremely talented! Is it because he took some time off or what? Losing a really close fight to a ranked fighter (basically chocking him out) should not weigh that heavily against a guy, IMHO.
by jesuslovesyoumma on Nov 19, 2009 11:11 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
He didn’t basically choke Shields out, if he did he would have won.
by ufc4 on Nov 19, 2009 11:52 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
That natural welterweight is #7 and also beat #11 AND holds the 2nd biggest US promotion’s middleweight belt. If anything, that adds credibility to my argument.
by KrmtDfrog on Nov 19, 2009 11:53 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
so?
Losing to #7 in a close fight you almost win suddenly means you’re at least 19 spots lower in the rankings? Mir beat Nog. Fedor beat Rogers, Sylvia and Arlovski. All of those losers are in the top 20 of the HW bracket. I can do this in every single division.
by KrmtDfrog on Nov 19, 2009 11:55 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Losing to #7 in a close fight you almost win suddenly means you’re at least 19 spots lower in the rankings?
No, but losing a fight doesn’t usually propel you up the rankings. Mayhem was probably already ranked that low. The heavyweight fighters you mention have actual wins on their records that keep them afloat in the top 20.
by JRN on Nov 19, 2009 11:58 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
right..
Unless your last name is ‘RUA’ …
My argument is that Miller is more talented than a lot of the ‘top’ 25 listed.
Not a blow at the ranking system, just my personal view.
UFC4, rewatch the fight and tell me he didn’t come close to strangling shields to death… PLEASE.
by jesuslovesyoumma on Nov 20, 2009 12:05 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Unless your last name is ‘RUA’ …
Haha, yeah, he’s a major exception. Personally, I never move someone up based on a loss, regardless of circumstance.
by JRN on Nov 20, 2009 12:16 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Sure, he came close. Heath Herring also came close to KO’ing Nogueira, and BJ Penn came close to beating GSP in their first fight, and I could go on and on. The fact is he didn’t choke him out and that’s all that matters.
by ufc4 on Nov 20, 2009 12:34 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
that matters in the w/l column
not the top25 rankings.
by KrmtDfrog on Nov 20, 2009 1:08 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
The key difference here
is that the choke, close as it was, was Mayhem’s only meaningful offense in 25 minutes, and it accomplished nothing overall.
To contrast, Rua outlanded Shogun two-to-one and sustained that offense throughout the fight, looking more impressive than anyone else so far against an undefeated fighter.
by Tedd Welch on Nov 20, 2009 1:23 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
The man so good he outlanded himself
Rua outlanded MACHIDA :)
by Tedd Welch on Nov 20, 2009 1:23 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
You mean like
Gouveia, who’s 2-2 in his last 4, including a loss to unranked Goran Reljic?
Or Sakara, who has losses to Houston Alexander and Chris Leben interspersed between wins against Leites, Joe Vedepo and James Lee?
I’m not saying he should be top10, but for him to not even be in the 25 is head scratching.
by KrmtDfrog on Nov 20, 2009 12:26 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
You won’t find me defending every placement on these rankings. That’s why I’ve got my own.
But if anything, I think Sakara is underrated. Thales Leites was a top 5 middleweight when Sakara beat him. That’s big. In fact, it’s a far bigger when than any possessed by several of the people ranked ahead of him. (The Houston Alexander fight was at 205, by the way, so it’s immaterial).
But yeah, I’d have Miller in the lower top 25 myself.
by JRN on Nov 20, 2009 12:34 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Far bigger WIN, not “when.” Weird mistake.
by JRN on Nov 20, 2009 12:34 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Nick doing well considering he’s never even fought at MW.
by An0nymous on Nov 19, 2009 10:53 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
Lawler & Shields > Bisping?
Am I the only Bisping fan in the world?
Keep firing Assholes!
The only thing Fishbob does consistently is dissapoint.
by Ubernoober on Nov 19, 2009 11:00 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
Well, who has Bisping beaten at MW to deserve a higher ranking?
Shields at least beat Lawler, who beat Trigg, who beat perennial top 15 middleweight Kazuo Misaki (who beat Dan Henderson and a peaking Denis Kang).
by JRN on Nov 19, 2009 11:02 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I’m a very big Bisping fan but I can’t see him above Shields at this point. I’d take him over Lawler in a fight right now, but I wouldn’t rank him in front of him based on resumes at this moment.
Editor - BloodyElbow.com - SBNation's mixed martial arts headquarters.
MMA Editor - SBNation.com
by Brent Brookhouse on Nov 19, 2009 11:21 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
cmon, bisping should get more credit than that
he hung with rashad, and matt hamill, who is much bigger than shields.. bisping would crush shields
by amadeus on Nov 19, 2009 11:23 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Fighting outside the UFC = +5 spots
Keep firing Assholes!
The only thing Fishbob does consistently is dissapoint.
by Ubernoober on Nov 19, 2009 11:25 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
i guess so
i mean, i guess what dan henderson did to bisping was embarassing. but i’d love for hendo to go to SF and see shields try to hump his leg for 5 rounds
by amadeus on Nov 19, 2009 11:26 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Dan would literally skullfuck him. I’m serious, he would rip off Shield’s head, scoop out the eyes and start making sweet love to the holes.
Keep firing Assholes!
The only thing Fishbob does consistently is dissapoint.
by Ubernoober on Nov 19, 2009 11:32 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Yeah, Hendo would have upwards of 20 pounds on him, he does everything Jake does only ten times better.
by ufc4 on Nov 19, 2009 11:55 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Rankings are generally about actual fighting accomplishments rather than “who would beat who” judgments (though those naturally come into play to varying degrees).
Also, 205 and 185 are different weight classes with different rankings.
by JRN on Nov 19, 2009 11:30 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
'hung with'
… Who (top 10) has he beat in an impressive fashion?
by jesuslovesyoumma on Nov 19, 2009 11:32 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
More goofiness: Santiago over Khalidov, Rich Franklin still being ranked despite not having competed at MW in over 18 months, and most of all, the bizarre overrating of Dan Henderson and Vitor Belfort.
Dan Henderson’s only win over a single other top 25 fighter at MW is #16 Michael Bisping. Somehow that nets him a #3 spot.
Vitor Belfort, meanwhile, does not have a single win over a top 25 middleweight in the actual middleweight division, and he somehow makes it to #5.
by JRN on Nov 19, 2009 11:09 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
I agree on most
But you don’t think Hendo deserves to be a top 5 MW? Hmm, I have to disagree there man.
by jesuslovesyoumma on Nov 20, 2009 12:10 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
He deserves it the moment he has the actual wins to support that ranking and not a moment sooner. No question he’s got the ability, and he was probably ranked thereabouts during his original stint at MW. But that was a long time ago.
by JRN on Nov 20, 2009 12:17 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I agree with you about Santiago-Khalidov, but I would go further and say Santiago doesn’t even belong in the Top 20.
About Franklin, I believe in ranking a fighter in all divisions in which he’s fought (and beaten ranked opposition) in the last 3 years. (Perhaps that span is too long and 2 years is more apt.) By that token I rank Franklin at 205 and 185.
As a consequence, I place Henderson and Belfort above Franklin, with Belfort before Franklin for beating Franklin more decisively (and for being the more recent fight). Only A.Silva deserves to be ranked highter than this trio.
by klown on Nov 20, 2009 3:33 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
*with Belfort before Henderson for beating Franklin more decisively
by klown on Nov 20, 2009 3:34 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I can understand ranking Henderson ahead of Franklin at 205, but this is middleweight. How can a light-heavyweight fight count in two weight classes?
by JRN on Nov 20, 2009 11:10 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I would have thought Santiago would have taken more of a dive than that. I guess a lot of people don’t take much notice of Sengoku.
Not that I condone facism or any ism for that matter. Isms are in my opinion, not good. A person shouldn't believe in an ism, he should believe in himself.
I quote John Lennon, "I don't believe in Beatles, I just believe in me". Good point there, after all he was the walrus. I could be the walrus. Wouldn't change the fact I have to bum rides off of people.
by SamCupitt on Nov 20, 2009 12:11 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
Wheres the love for Akiyama?
for all intents and purposes, just consider all my posts as works of satire.
by Bandaka on Nov 20, 2009 12:56 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
Don’t think I’d rank him much higher than tenth right now.
by ufc4 on Nov 20, 2009 1:33 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Judging by his sexyness alone, Akiyama should at least be ranked in the top three!
for all intents and purposes, just consider all my posts as works of satire.
by Bandaka on Nov 20, 2009 8:25 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Did Shields jump five places because he defeated Mayhem or because more sites started to rank him at MW?
by rabrown on Nov 20, 2009 4:16 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
The latter.
Bolts from the Blue // "Game over." - Jamal Williams
Bloody Elbow // "Every normal man must be tempted at times to spit upon his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats." - H.L. Mencken
by Richard Wade on Nov 20, 2009 6:20 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
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