USAT/SBN March MMA Consensus Rankings: Bantamweight

Rankings compiled by Richard Wade.

The Hardcore Gym is no longer at the top. They've been defenestrated by a footwork king from California.

There's a new champion and his name is #1 Dominick Cruz. The Alliance Gym bantamweight outclassed the seemingly overmatched (albeit also injured) #2 Brian Bowles at WEC 47 this month. After two rounds of dynamic angles, head and trunk movement as well as a frustrating jab, Bowles was getting picked apart. The fight was stopped after two rounds when it was determined Bowles could not continue due to a broken hand. While WEC 47 scored poorly in the ratings, expect Cruz to headline or co-headline a fight for his next title defense.

#4 Miguel Torres paid for his lame Chuck Norris jokes with a beatdown at the hands of #3 Joseph Benavidez. Benavidez saw his stock rise as well as his ranking from his previous number five spot whereas Torres dropped two spots from the number two position. It's been suggested Benavidez should get a rematch with Cruz (who defeated Benavidez once already), but there's been no word from WEC management.

In a huge upset, #5 Masakatsu Ueda recently lost his Shooto Featherweight title to Shuichiro Katsumura by guillotine choke in the second round at "The Way of Shooto 2". The relatively inactive Ueda seems to have paid for his ring rust by the respected but often unheralded (and unranked) Katsumura.

#6 Scott Jorgensen stays put at number six despite absolutely throttling Chad George at WEC 47. The former Boise State wreslter finished off George early in the first round with a ten-finger guillotine that lifted George off of his feet and rendered him unconscious. That makes three wins in the WEC in a row for Jorgensen. He is set to return to the cage against #13 Antonio Banuelos at WEC 48.

In what should be an interesting fight to watch due to clash of styles, #7 Takeya Mizugaki returns to the blue cage to face #8 Rani Yahya at WEC 48 (on the undercard). Mizugaki last competed at WEC 45 where he lost by unanimous decision to #6 Scott Jorgensen.

Greg Jackson-product #9 Damacio Page drops one spot in the rankings and for now loses his chance to increase his positioning. Originally slated to compete at WEC 48 against #13 Antonio Banuelos, he was forced to withdraw due to injury. No word on his return date yet.

And #10 Wagnney Fabiano rounds out the top ten, still coasting on his first bantamweight win at WEC 46 over the outmatched Clint Godfrey.