Analysis by Kid Nate
The biggest news in the heavyweight division this month is definitely the eclipsing of #4 Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira by #5 Cain Velasquez at UFC 110.
Compiling the rankings of twenty top mixed martial arts web sites, the USA TODAY / SB Nation Consensus MMA Rankings present the top 25 fighters in MMA for the seven major weight classes. These world MMA rankings are the most accurate reflection of how the top fighters in MMA across all promotions like UFC, WEC, Affliction and DREAM are viewed by the experts who cover the sport.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fedor Emelianenko | 100 | M-1 Global/Strikeforce | 1 |
| 2 | Brock Lesnar | 96 | UFC | 2 |
| 3 | Frank Mir | 90 | UFC | 3 |
| 4 | Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira | 85 | UFC | 4 |
| 5 | Cain Velasquez | 79 | UFC | 6 |
| 6 | Junior dos Santos | 76 | UFC | 5 |
| 7 | Shane Carwin | 72 | UFC | 8 |
| 8 | Brett Rogers | 69 | Strikeforce | 7 |
| 9 | Alistair Overeem | 61 | K-1/DREAM/Strikeforce | 10 |
| 10 | Fabricio Werdum | 57 | Strikeforce | 10 |
| 11 | Andrei Arlovski | 50 | ??? | 12 |
| 12 | Josh Barnett | 49 | WVR | 9 |
| 13 | Gabriel Gonzaga | 31 | UFC | 13 |
| 14 | Randy Couture | 27 | UFC | 17 |
| 15 | Ray Mercer | 27 | Adrenaline | 20 |
| 16 | Aleksander Emelianenko | 27 | ProFC | 22 |
| 17 | Antonio Silva | 26 | WVR/Strikeforce | 15 |
| 18 | Pedro Rizzo | 26 | Free Agent | 23 |
| 19 | Muhammed Lawal | 26 | Strikeforce | 25 |
| 20 | Mirko Filipovic | 26 | UFC | 27 |
| 21 | Sergei Kharitonov | 26 | DREAM | 19 |
| 22 | Jeff Monson | 25 | Free Agent | 14 |
| 23 | Ben Rothwell | 25 | UFC | 15 |
| 24 | Tim Sylvia | 25 | Adrenaline | 18 |
| 25 | Cheick Kongo | 25 | UFC | 28 |
The biggest news in the heavyweight division this month is definitely the eclipsing of #4 Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira by #5 Cain Velasquez at UFC 110.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fedor Emelianenko | 100 | M-1 Global/Strikeforce | 1 |
| 2 | Brock Lesnar | 96 | UFC | 2 |
| 3 | Frank Mir | 90 | UFC | 4 |
| 4 | Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira | 88 | UFC | 3 |
| 5 | Junior dos Santos | 77 | UFC | 5 |
| 6 | Cain Velasquez | 74 | UFC | 6 |
| 7 | Brett Rogers | 69 | Strikeforce | 9 |
| 8 | Shane Carwin | 66 | UFC | 8 |
| 9 | Josh Barnett | 61 | WVR | 7 |
| 10 | Alistair Overeem | 56 | K-1/DREAM/Strikeforce | 10 |
| 10 | Fabricio Werdum | 56 | Strikeforce | 11 |
| 12 | Andrei Arlovski | 46 | ??? | 12 |
| 13 | Gabriel Gonzaga | 26 | UFC | 13 |
| 14 | Jeff Monson | 24 | Free Agent | 14 |
| 15 | Antonio Silva | 22 | WVR/Strikeforce | 16 |
| 15 | Ben Rothwell | 22 | UFC | 19 |
| 17 | Randy Couture | 21 | UFC | 17 |
| 18 | Tim Sylvia | 20 | Adrenaline | 15 |
| 19 | Sergei Kharitonov | 20 | DREAM | 33 |
| 20 | Ray Mercer | 20 | Adrenaline | 23 |
| 21 | Semmy Schilt | 19 | K-1 | 23 |
| 22 | Aleksander Emelianenko | 19 | ProFC | 26 |
| 23 | Pedro Rizzo | 19 | Free Agent | 20 |
| 23 | Stefan Struve | 19 | UFC | NR |
| 25 | Roy Nelson | 18 | UFC | 25 |
| 25 | Muhammed Lawal | 18 | Strikeforce | 29 |
The biggest story by far in the heavyweight ranks over the last 90 days has been the health of UFC Heavyweight champion #2 Brock Lesnar.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fedor Emelianenko | 100 | M-1 Global/Strikeforce | 1 |
| 2 | Brock Lesnar | 96 | UFC | 2 |
| 3 | Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira | 89 | UFC | 3 |
| 4 | Frank Mir | 87 | UFC | 4 |
| 5 | Junior dos Santos | 75 | UFC | 5 |
| 6 | Cain Velasquez | 69 | UFC | 7 |
| 7 | Josh Barnett | 67 | WVR | 6 |
| 8 | Shane Carwin | 67 | UFC | 9 |
| 9 | Brett Rogers | 66 | Strikeforce | 8 |
| 10 | Alistair Overeem | 58 | DREAM/Strikeforce | 11 |
| 11 | Fabricio Werdum | 54 | Strikeforce | 10 |
| 12 | Andrei Arlovski | 40 | ??? | 13 |
| 13 | Gabriel Gonzaga | 25 | UFC | 16 |
| 14 | Jeff Monson | 24 | Strikeforce | 14 |
| 15 | Tim Sylvia | 23 | Adrenaline | 15 |
| 16 | Antonio Silva | 22 | WVR/Strikeforce | 18 |
| 17 | Randy Couture | 22 | UFC | 12 |
| 18 | Cheick Kongo | 21 | UFC | 17 |
| 19 | Ben Rothwell | 20 | UFC | 21 |
| 20 | Pedro Rizzo | 19 | Free Agent | 19 |
| 21 | Marcio Cruz | 19 | Art of Fighting | 19 |
| 22 | Gilbert Yvel | 18 | UFC | 22 |
| 23 | Ray Mercer | 17 | Adrenaline | 22 |
| 23 | Semmy Schilt | 17 | K-1 | 22 |
| 25 | Roy Nelson | 17 | UFC | 25 |
One thing that hasn't changed in the heavyweight division in the last year is #1 Fedor Emelianenko's lock on the top spot. Over the last twelve months, his convincing wins over #12 Andre Arlvoski (was #3 one year ago) and #9 Brett Rogers (was unranked a year ago) have only solidified that position.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fedor Emelianenko | 100 | M-1 Global/Strikeforce | 1 |
| 2 | Brock Lesnar | 96 | UFC | 2 |
| 3 | Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira | 88 | UFC | 3 |
| 4 | Frank Mir | 86 | UFC | 4 |
| 5 | Junior dos Santos | 74 | UFC | 7 |
| 6 | Josh Barnett | 74 | WVR | 5 |
| 7 | Cain Velasquez | 67 | UFC | 11 |
| 8 | Brett Rogers | 65 | Strikeforce | 8 |
| 9 | Shane Carwin | 62 | UFC | 6 |
| 10 | Fabricio Werdum | 50 | Strikeforce | 13 |
| 11 | Alistair Overeem | 50 | DREAM/Strikeforce | 11 |
| 12 | Randy Couture | 49 | UFC | 9 |
| 13 | Andrei Arlovski | 44 | ??? | 10 |
| 14 | Jeff Monson | 27 | Free Agent | 14 |
| 15 | Tim Sylvia | 26 | Adrenaline | 18 |
| 16 | Gabriel Gonzaga | 24 | UFC | 15 |
| 17 | Cheick Kongo | 23 | UFC | 16 |
| 18 | Antonio Silva | 22 | WVR/Strikeforce | 22 |
| 19 | Pedro Rizzo | 21 | Free Agent | 19 |
| 19 | Marcio Cruz | 21 | Art of Fighting | 23 |
| 21 | Ben Rothwell | 21 | UFC | 17 |
| 22 | Gilbert Yvel | 20 | Fight Force International | 24 |
| 22 | Ray Mercer | 20 | Adrenaline | 26 |
| 22 | Semmy Schilt | 20 | K-1 | 24 |
| 25 | Aleksander Emelianenko | 19 | ProFC | 20 |
| 25 | Roy Nelson | 19 | UFC | 21 |
November was supposed to be the most epic month in heavyweight MMA since August. Both #1 Fedor Emelianenko and #2 Brock Lesnar were set to fight. But just as in August, fate intervened and only one of the two titans of the division actually competed.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fedor Emelianenko | 100 | M-1Global/Strikeforce | 1 |
| 2 | Brock Lesnar | 96 | UFC | 2 |
| 3 | Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira | 88 | UFC | 3 |
| 4 | Frank Mir | 87 | UFC | 4 |
| 5 | Josh Barnett | 71 | WVR | 5 |
| 6 | Shane Carwin | 71 | UFC | 7 |
| 7 | Junior dos Santos | 70 | UFC | 6 |
| 8 | Brett Rogers | 67 | Strikeforce | 8 |
| 9 | Randy Couture | 65 | UFC | 8 |
| 10 | Andrei Arlovski | 51 | ??? | 10 |
| 11 | Alistair Overeem | 49 | DREAM/Strikeforce | 12 |
| 11 | Cain Velasquez | 49 | UFC | 11 |
| 13 | Fabricio Werdum | 41 | Strikeforce | 13 |
| 14 | Jeff Monson | 26 | Free Agent | 14 |
| 15 | Gabriel Gonzaga | 25 | UFC | 15 |
| 16 | Cheick Kongo | 22 | UFC | 16 |
| 17 | Ben Rothwell | 22 | UFC | 19 |
| 18 | Tim Sylvia | 21 | Adrenaline | 16 |
| 19 | Pedro Rizzo | 20 | Free Agent | 18 |
| 20 | Aleksander Emelianenko | 19 | ProFC | 20 |
| 21 | Roy Nelson | 19 | UFC | 21 |
| 22 | Antonio Silva | 18 | WVR | 22 |
| 23 | Marcio Cruz | 18 | Art of Fighting | 23 |
| 24 | Gilbert Yvel | 17 | Fight Force International | 24 |
| 24 | Semmy Schilt | 17 | K-1 | 24 |
November is the big month for heavyweights. Ok, well it's not quite as big as it was going to be until yesterday, but it's still big.
| 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 |
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.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fedor Emelianenko | 100 | M-1 Global/Strikeforce | 1 |
| 2 | Brock Lesnar | 95 | UFC | 2 |
| 3 | Frank Mir | 87 | UFC | 4 |
| 4 | Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira | 85 | UFC | 5 |
| 5 | Randy Couture | 80 | UFC | 6 |
| 6 | Josh Barnett | 79 | Affliction* | 3 |
| 7 | Shane Carwin | 66 | UFC | 7 |
| 8 | Andrei Arlovski | 62 | Strikeforce | 9 |
| 9 | Brett Rogers | 62 | Strikeforce | 8 |
| 10 | Alistair Overeem | 59 | Strikeforce/DREAM | 10 |
| 11 | Cain Velasquez | 41 | UFC | 11 |
| 12 | Fabricio Werdum | 34 | Strikeforce | 14 |
| 13 | Jeff Monson | 34 | Free Agent | 12 |
| 14 | Junior dos Santos | 31 | UFC | 13 |
| 15 | Mirko Filipovic | 27 | UFC | 15 |
| 16 | Tim Sylvia | 23 | Adrenaline | 16 |
| 17 | Cheick Kongo | 23 | UFC | 17 |
| 18 | Gabriel Gonzaga | 21 | UFC | 21 |
| 19 | Ben Rothwell | 20 | UFC | 18 |
| 20 | Roy Nelson | 19 | UFC | 19 |
| 21 | Antonio Silva | 18 | WVR | 22 |
| 21 | Aleksander Emelianenko | 18 | ProFC | 22 |
| 23 | Heath Herring | 17 | UFC | 24 |
| 24 | Paul Buentello | 17 | UFC | 24 |
| 25 | Marcio Cruz | 17 | Art of Fighting | 26 |
It was just announced that #1 Fedor Emelianenko will face #9 Brett Rogers this fall for Strikeforce. Not the dream Fedor vs Lesnar match we were all hoping for, but probably as good as we're going to get.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fedor Emelianenko | 100 | M-1 Global | 1 |
| 2 | Brock Lesnar | 94 | UFC | 5 |
| 3 | Josh Barnett | 92 | ??? | 2 |
| 4 | Frank Mir | 86 | UFC | 3 |
| 5 | Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira | 83 | UFC | 4 |
| 6 | Randy Couture | 79 | UFC | 6 |
| 7 | Shane Carwin | 64 | UFC | 7 |
| 8 | Brett Rogers | 63 | Strikeforce | 8 |
| 9 | Andrei Arlovski | 58 | Strikeforce | 9 |
| 10 | Alistair Overeem | 56 | Strikeforce | 10 |
| 11 | Cain Velasquez | 43 | UFC | 11 |
| 12 | Jeff Monson | 37 | Free Agent | 12 |
| 13 | Junior dos Santos | 32 | UFC | 17 |
| 14 | Fabricio Werdum | 31 | Strikeforce | 14 |
| 15 | Mirko Filipovic | 28 | UFC | 13 |
| 16 | Tim Sylvia | 26 | Adrenaline | 15 |
| 17 | Cheick Kongo | 22 | UFC | 16 |
| 18 | Ben Rothwell | 21 | UFC | 19 |
| 19 | Roy Nelson | 20 | UFC | 24 |
| 20 | Gegard Mousasi | 19 | Strikeforce | 22 |
| 21 | Gabriel Gonzaga | 18 | UFC | 21 |
| 22 | Antonio Silva | 18 | WVR | 18 |
| 22 | Aleksander Emelianenko | 18 | ProFC | 19 |
| 24 | Paul Buentello | 17 | ??? | 24 |
| 24 | Heath Herring | 17 | UFC | 28 |
Ah, the best laid plans of mice and men... A month ago I confidently asserted that "the next 70 days will see some of the biggest heavyweight fights in MMA history. If everything goes according to plan..." Famous last words.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fedor Emelianenko | 100 | Affliction | 1 |
| 2 | Josh Barnett | 94 | Affliction | 2 |
| 3 | Frank Mir | 90 | UFC | 3 |
| 4 | Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira | 85 | UFC | 5 |
| 5 | Brock Lesnar | 80 | UFC | 6 |
| 6 | Randy Couture | 77 | UFC | 7 |
| 7 | Shane Carwin | 64 | UFC | 9 |
| 8 | Brett Rogers | 60 | Strikeforce | 26 |
| 9 | Andrei Arlovski | 60 | Strikeforce | 4 |
| 10 | Alistair Overeem | 59 | DREAM/Strikeforce | 10 |
| 11 | Cain Velasquez | 41 | UFC | 19 |
| 12 | Jeff Monson | 34 | DREAM | 15 |
| 13 | Mirko Filipovic | 34 | DREAM | 14 |
| 14 | Fabricio Werdum | 30 | Strikeforce | 11 |
| 15 | Tim Sylvia | 29 | Adrenaline | 8 |
| 16 | Cheick Kongo | 26 | UFC | 12 |
| 17 | Junior dos Santos | 25 | UFC | 13 |
| 18 | Antonio Silva | 23 | WVR | 17 |
| 19 | Ben Rothwell | 22 | Adrenaline | 18 |
| 19 | Aleksander Emelianenko | 22 | Fighting Mixed Combative | 23 |
| 21 | Gabriel Gonzaga | 20 | UFC | 16 |
| 22 | Gegard Mousasi | 19 | DREAM | 24 |
| 23 | Chris Tuchscherer | 18 | UFC | NR |
| 24 | Roy Nelson | 17 | UFC | 20 |
| 24 | Paul Buentello | 17 | Affliction | 21 |
Buckle your seatbelts fight fans, the next 70 days will see some of the biggest heavyweight fights in MMA history. If everything goes according to plan, there will be clarity in the division for the first time since the collapse of PRIDE.
| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fedor Emelianenko | 100 | Affliction | 1 |
| 2 | Josh Barnett | 92 | Affliction | 2 |
| 3 | Frank Mir | 90 | UFC |
4 |
| 4 | Andrei Arlovski | 88 | Strikeforce | 3 |
| 5 | Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira | 83 | UFC | 5 |
| 6 | Brock Lesnar | 78 | UFC | 6 |
| 7 | Randy Couture | 75 | UFC | 7 |
| 8 | Tim Sylvia | 58 | Adrenaline | 8 |
| 9 | Shane Carwin | 58 | UFC | 10 |
| 10 | Alistair Overeem | 53 | DREAM/Strikeforce | 9 |
| 11 | Fabricio Werdum | 40 | Strikeforce | 11 |
| 12 | Cheick Kongo | 35 | UFC | 12 |
| 13 | Junior dos Santos | 33 | UFC | 13 |
| 14 | Mirko Filipovic | 31 | UFC | 15 |
| 15 | Jeff Monson | 30 | DREAM | 14 |
| 16 | Gabriel Gonzaga | 26 | UFC | 16 |
| 17 | Antonio Silva | 24 | WVR | 17 |
| 18 | Ben Rothwell | 23 | Adrenaline | 18 |
| 19 | Cain Velasquez | 21 | UFC | 20 |
| 20 | Roy Nelson | 18 | Free Agent |
21 |
| 21 | Paul Buentello | 18 | Affliction | 23 |
| 21 | Sergei Kharitonov | 17 | DREAM | 21 |
| 23 | Aleksander Emelianenko | 17 | Free Agent | 19 |
| 24 | Gegard Mousasi | 16 | DREAM | NR |
| 25 | Marcio Cruz |
16 | WVR | NR |
The heavyweight division has endured months of stasis but big changes will be coming to the division this summer.
Showing 1 - 10 of 12 Older
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 »
Bloody ElbowMarch 9, 2010 by Kid Nate - 9 comments
March 9, 2010 by Nick Thomas - 26 comments
March 9, 2010 by Brent Brookhouse - 46 comments
March 9, 2010 by Nick Thomas - 6 comments
March 9, 2010 by Nick Thomas - 33 comments
MMA ManiaMarch 9, 2010 by Jesse Holland - 234 comments
March 9, 2010 by Jesse Holland - 105 comments
March 9, 2010 by Jesse Holland - 22 comments
March 9, 2010 by Jesse Holland - 13 comments
March 9, 2010 by Jesse Holland - 8 comments
Watch Kalib RunMarch 9, 2010 by Zak Woods - 0 comments
March 9, 2010 by Zak Woods - 4 comments
March 9, 2010 by Zak Woods - 1 comment
March 9, 2010 by Zak Woods - 1 comment
March 9, 2010 by Zak Woods - 2 comments
MMA For RealMarch 9, 2010 by Kelvin Hunt - 5 comments
March 9, 2010 by Kelvin Hunt - 6 comments
March 9, 2010 by Kelvin Hunt - 7 comments
March 9, 2010 by Kelvin Hunt - 7 comments
March 9, 2010 by Kelvin Hunt - 5 comments
Copyright © 2010 Sportsblogs, Inc. About Us Frequently Asked Questions Terms of Service Privacy Policy Disclosure Contact Us
Certain photos copyright © 2010 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
OpenCalais - Powered by Thomson Reuters
