USAT/SBN September MMA Consensus Rankings: Heavyweight

by Kid Nate on Oct 1, 2009 9:16 AM EDT in Rankings Comment 45 comments

Rank	Fighter	%	Promotion	Last Rank
1	Fedor Emelianenko	100	M-1Global/Strikeforce	1
2	Brock Lesnar	96	UFC	2
3	Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira	89	UFC	4
4	Frank Mir	86	UFC	3
5	Josh Barnett	75	WVR	6
6	Junior dos Santos	69	UFC	14
7	Shane Carwin	68	UFC	7
8	Randy Couture	65	UFC	5
8	Brett Rogers	65	Strikeforce	9
10	Andrei Arlovski	59	Strikeforce	8
11	Cain Velasquez	49	UFC	11
12	Alistair Overeem	44	DREAM/Strikeforce	10
13	Fabricio Werdum	38	Strikeforce	12
14	Jeff Monson	29	Free Agent	13
15	Gabriel Gonzaga	24	UFC	18
16	Tim Sylvia	23	Adrenaline	16
16	Cheick Kongo	23	UFC	17
18	Pedro Rizzo	21	Free Agent	29
19	Ben Rothwell	21	UFC	19
20	Aleksander Emelianenko	19	ProFC	21
21	Roy Nelson	19	UFC	20
22	Antonio Silva	18	WVR	21
23	Marcio Cruz	18	Art of Fighting	25
24	Gilbert Yvel	17	Fight Force International	28
24	Mirko Filipovic	17	UFC	15
24	Semmy Schilt	17	K-1	26

Rankings compiled by Richard Wade.

After a pretty packed summer for heavyweight action, the best on tap in the near future is tonight's Kimbo Slice vs #21 Roy Nelson on The Ultimate Fighter.

As fun and anticipated as that bout is, MMA fans will have to wait until late October for a truly relevant heavyweight tilt when UFC 104 will bring #11 Cain Velasquez and #19 Ben Rothwell together. The winner should get a title shot.

A few short weeks later on November 7 we'll see #1 Fedor Emelianenko face #8 Brett Rogers at Strikeforce's debut CBS show. Amusingly there will be no title on the line.

#12 Alistair Overeem is the Strikeforce heavyweight champ and he may or may not return to defend it at some point soon.

A short two weeks later at UFC 106, #2 Brock Lesnar will defend his UFC belt against #7 Shane Carwin.

If both Fedor and Brock win their bouts, expect the competitive hype/hate trains to keep rolling. Although if Fedor proves to be a rankings bust on CBS, what happens in the cage might be a moot point.

As far as chart movement this month, #6 Junior dos Santos jumps eight spots off his TKO win at UFC 103. His opponent, #24 Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic, drops nine spots from #15.

Making a less dramatic jump is #3 Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira who rises one spot after his convincing UFC 102 win over #8 Randy Couture (who drops from #5). It's likely that Couture has fought his last bout as a heavyweight. He'll be moving down to 205lbs at UUFC 105. No word on what's next for Big Nog, he's been calling for a rematch against #4 Frank Mir or a title shot.

Rumors abound that #16 Tim Sylvia will be fighting in Japan in December. No word on what's next for #10 Andrei Arlovski. #5 Josh Barnett will likely defend his Sengoku belt against #22 Antonio Silva.

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. Show more "

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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Comments

WTF is Barnett still doing at #5? He hasn’t fought since January and gained a spot? After destroying Affliction:Trilogy and basically the entire promotion?

by lhasafi on Sep 30, 2009 11:19 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

he'll need to actually lose a fight or be inactive for 18 months

to drop much more I think.

Follow me on Twitter @KidNate

by Kid Nate on Oct 1, 2009 12:22 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I’m thinkin that the winner of Cain/Rothwell will take on JDS for a shot at the BROCKLESNAR!!!!!!!!

Keep firing Assholes!

The Leafs are back!

by Ubernoober on Oct 1, 2009 3:11 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Did Big Nog retire or something? No one ever seems to mention him in title shot talk.

Walla walla walla I'm an idiot.

by ufc4 on Oct 1, 2009 9:58 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

Nogueira lost

his interim title to Mir, then beat Randy. I know that was almost a year ago, but maybe with another win or two he could get a shot.

by rzor on Oct 1, 2009 10:05 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think everyone is kind of dreading the inevitable in-Octagon

carnage when Big Nog goes up against Lesnar. Even if Big Nog taps him out I expect some serious brain trauma to be inflicted by Lesnar.

Follow me on Twitter @KidNate

by Kid Nate on Oct 1, 2009 10:19 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Is it just me or do you see the UFC making Nog’s road to a title shot as hard as possible. I would heavily favor Lesnar, but it would be risky for them considering that if Big Nog wins It’s going to be hard to sell your HW Champ as the best in the world and Fedor as irrelevant if the man holding your belt was convincingly beat by thim twice.

by nottheface on Oct 1, 2009 12:55 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

He was already the interim title holder

Walla walla walla I'm an idiot.

by ufc4 on Oct 1, 2009 6:42 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

That was before Fedor signed with Strikeforce and before they had to worry about American audiences watching someone not in the UFC being recognized as the best in the world.

by nottheface on Oct 2, 2009 1:31 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

If Nog isn’t brain dead by now after all the beatings he has taken I don’t think Lesnar will do it.

Walla walla walla I'm an idiot.

by ufc4 on Oct 1, 2009 6:41 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

No chance if Cain wins. Cain gets a shot then Dos Santos gets a shot. They aren’t going to burn up two very marketable title shots by having them fight each other.

If Rothwell wins I think you have something there.

"Japan is half-Machida" - iiowyn

by Day Man on Oct 1, 2009 1:26 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I wonder

if Roy Nelson will move up for his TUF win over Kimbo.

Creator of the FightMatrix rating system.

by JCS_FM on Oct 1, 2009 9:19 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

possibly just because of the exposure he got. I dont think he gained any fans with that preformance though.

by ryanwk628 on Oct 1, 2009 10:16 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Rankings are not made by the UFC tho, it’s not a popularity contest for these rankings, cant really see him moving up for any the exhibition matches while he is still doing TUF.

"Did you feel you did well against Lindland?" "
Hell no.. I wanted to break the law"
---Rampage

by TearsofaClown on Oct 1, 2009 1:02 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

no but he did get a lot of hype and recognition as the last IFL champ. We have seen hype alone move guys up rankings

by ryanwk628 on Oct 1, 2009 1:33 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I get what your saying and that may be so to a certain point, but right now there are too many quality fighters ahead and behind of him to move him for fights that wont count for or against his record. As long as other fighters keep active then he shouldn’t and more than likely will not move up.

"Did you feel you did well against Lindland?" "
Hell no.. I wanted to break the law"
---Rampage

by TearsofaClown on Oct 1, 2009 4:38 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

The one that jumps out at me

is Jeff Monson all the way up there at #14. A lot of people must have liked The Snowman’s little run of wins, but I’m surprised the consensus is that he should be ranked higher than Gonzaga. I would also have expected Brett Rogers to move up to #3 by now.

by rzor on Oct 1, 2009 9:38 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Gonzaga hasn’t really beat anyone lately while Monson has like six wins in the last year, makes sense to me.

Walla walla walla I'm an idiot.

by ufc4 on Oct 1, 2009 10:00 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

you mean up to number 2 right? haha

by ryanwk628 on Oct 1, 2009 10:16 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Everyone wants to see Lesnar fight Fedro, even if they won’t admit it.

A man should never waste an opportunity to keep his mouth shut.

by iiowyn on Oct 1, 2009 11:12 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Rankings For October

Did Semmy Schilt have a fight recently? I had no idea.

If he hasn’t, then I don’t see how a kickboxer makes it into the MMA rankings.

...Behold, a pale horse. The man that sat upon it was Wieters, and hell followed with him.

"BJ on the BE" - Kierkegaard

by Brett Jones on Oct 1, 2009 9:59 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

how dare you.

He beat Mighty Mo last new year’s eve. He’s Mightier than a guy with mighty in his name, why shouldn’t he be ranked.

by Phildo on Oct 1, 2009 10:08 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Fight Magazine

for whatever reason has Schilt ranked at #12.

Follow me on Twitter @KidNate

by Kid Nate on Oct 1, 2009 10:25 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

For beating Mighty Mo?

So hey, it might be time to audit folks who provide you with the rankings.

...Behold, a pale horse. The man that sat upon it was Wieters, and hell followed with him.

"BJ on the BE" - Kierkegaard

by Brett Jones on Oct 1, 2009 11:04 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

every ranker we've used

has had a howler.
Fight Matrix for example — which is my personal favorite ranking site — has some hiccups in their rankings — because of them Ray Mercer was very nearly on this list.
The other alternative is rankers who just parrot the conventional wisdom — which is the majority of the rankers. That’s how guys like Alistair Overeem get ranked so high on essentially hot air. Leland has repeatedly demolished the reasoning behind Overeem’s high rank.

Follow me on Twitter @KidNate

by Kid Nate on Oct 1, 2009 11:20 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Leland is a man after my own heart. Overeem, to date, has beaten Paul Buentello.

Wow. Top 10 fighter right there!

Really, I’m not suggesting you make wholesale changes to how the rankings are compiled, but the Semmy Schilt inclusion is really strange to me. I mean, he’s at 25, so who cares in the grand scheme of things?

I can actually see an argument for including Ray Mercer in the rankings over Schilt. It’s kind of silly, sure, but he beaten a previously highly ranked (sort of) fighter. The ranking would be fleeting, but for that one point in time, Mercer did something of note. I’d be tolerant of acknowledging that.

...Behold, a pale horse. The man that sat upon it was Wieters, and hell followed with him.

"BJ on the BE" - Kierkegaard

by Brett Jones on Oct 1, 2009 11:49 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

we're constantly looking to adjust and improve

thanks for the feedback

Follow me on Twitter @KidNate

by Kid Nate on Oct 1, 2009 12:11 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

A good rationale for not counting Mercer’s victory over Sylvia is that Sylvia weighed in over 265, making it an openweight bout.

If people aren’t thinking about it that way, then I don’t think they have a terribly good reason NOT to rank Mercer.

by JRN on Oct 1, 2009 2:33 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

In fairness to Overeem...

…he does have some quality wins if you go back to 2006, in Belfort and Kharitonov. Sure, that’s kind of a long time ago, but is it all that much than the situation with Fedor?

by Vlad on Oct 1, 2009 6:16 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

"Much worse", that should've been.

Plus, while the Cro Cop fight was technically a no contest, Overeem was dominating before he got focused on the nut shots.

by Vlad on Oct 1, 2009 6:20 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

technically shouldn’t matter. It was a no contest, and he has a lot of wins from a long time ago but he also has a lot of losses

by Phildo on Oct 2, 2009 10:58 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Everyone’s infatuation with the “new” Alistair reminds me of the infatuation with the “new” Vitor, with the exception that Vitor destroyed two top rated and one good fighter. When Alistair beats one legit top fighter I’ll give him and his muscles their credit. Until then it’s all conjecture.

by nottheface on Oct 1, 2009 12:59 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I’d personally add the caveat that he has to beat that fighter in a drug tested environment, but that may be asking too much.

...Behold, a pale horse. The man that sat upon it was Wieters, and hell followed with him.

"BJ on the BE" - Kierkegaard

by Brett Jones on Oct 1, 2009 1:37 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

baby steps my friend, baby steps. Let’s not ask for too much.

I’d be happy to just see him fight a quality mma match, roids or no roids. in the US would obviously be better, but for him I’d just like to see him fight an mma fight against a quality opponent at this point.

by Phildo on Oct 1, 2009 2:29 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I’m somewhat surprised that “The Headhunter” Paul Buentello is not on the list.

by chrisbboy82 on Oct 1, 2009 10:28 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Well, he hasn’t beaten Mighty Mo.

...Behold, a pale horse. The man that sat upon it was Wieters, and hell followed with him.

"BJ on the BE" - Kierkegaard

by Brett Jones on Oct 1, 2009 11:05 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

But he beat “Baby Fedor” :(

by chrisbboy82 on Oct 1, 2009 11:28 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Let me get this straight...

Josh Barnett was given three chances to defeat Mirko Cro Cop, and he couldn’t get the job done. Junior Dos Santos was given a shot at Cro Cop and defeated him. But Barnett his a rank above him.

I understand that Barnett has much more experience than Dos Santos, and has fought bigger names. But, I wasn’t super impressed with Barnett’s wins over Rizzo, or Yvel. Rizzo is past his prime and is struggling to get by. (I’ll give him credit for beating Monson, but Monson is also past his prime). While Dos Santos KO’d Werdum, and Struve quick style.

Basically I think Dos Santos should be ahead of Barnett.
JMO

by KKamikaze on Oct 1, 2009 1:25 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Body of work. It’s probably just a matter of time before Dos Santos overtakes Barnett, anyway.

...Behold, a pale horse. The man that sat upon it was Wieters, and hell followed with him.

"BJ on the BE" - Kierkegaard

by Brett Jones on Oct 1, 2009 1:37 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Oh, and of course there’s the fact that Barnett face Cro Cop when Cro Cop was the scariest man not named Fedor. Dos Santos faced him in 2009.

...Behold, a pale horse. The man that sat upon it was Wieters, and hell followed with him.

"BJ on the BE" - Kierkegaard

by Brett Jones on Oct 1, 2009 1:38 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

In Barnett’s defense concerning the Cro Cop losses:

1) In the first fight Josh fractured his shoulder taking Cro Cop down and had to submit.
2) His second fight against Cro Cop was his first one back after rehabilitation.
3) His third fight was in the GP finals, where only a few hours earlier a tough decision over Big Nog, while Mirko knocked out Wanderlie in the 1st round.

None of them the best of scenarios for Josh.

by nottheface on Oct 1, 2009 2:04 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

The third one in particular was ridiculous and shouldn’t be held against him.

by Chromium on Oct 2, 2009 3:54 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

A win over Crocop

to put it lightly, isn’t what it once was

by greco-roman airlines on Oct 1, 2009 2:14 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Could you all maybe stop using Fight Magazine as a source, if they’re going to continue to have something ridiculous like ranking Semmy Schilt #14 in the world?

by Chromium on Oct 2, 2009 4:01 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Or maybe if you all could automatically discount like 5 random rankings each month (5 across all sources in all weight classes combined, so extremely few) as being extreme outliers? I know that goes completely against the idea of being a meta-ranking, but there’s gotta be a line somewhere. I assume you all don’t still use MMA ELO, at least below Lightweight, since they combine their male and female rankings?

by Chromium on Oct 2, 2009 4:07 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs