| Rank | Fighter | % | Promotion | Last Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lyoto Machida | 100 | UFC | 1 |
| 2 | Mauricio Rua | 92 | UFC | 4 |
| 3 | Rashad Evans | 91 | UFC | 2 |
| 4 | Quinton Jackson | 84 | UFC | 3 |
| 5 | Forrest Griffin | 79 | UFC | 5 |
| 6 | Gegard Mousasi | 74 | Strikeforce | 8 |
| 7 | Thiago Silva | 72 | UFC | 7 |
| 8 | Anderson Silva | 60 | UFC | 6 |
| 9 | Antonio Rogerio Nogueira | 55 | UFC | 9 |
| 10 | Luis Arthur Cane | 52 | UFC | 10 |
| 11 | Rich Franklin | 43 | UFC | 11 |
| 12 | Keith Jardine | 32 | UFC | 13 |
| 13 | Dan Henderson | 31 | Free Agent | 12 |
| 14 | Renato Sobral | 29 | Strikeforce | 15 |
| 15 | Jon Jones | 25 | UFC | 18 |
| 16 | Chuck Liddell | 24 | UFC | 14 |
| 17 | Brandon Vera | 24 | UFC | 16 |
| 18 | Sokoudjou | 21 | Strikeforce/DREAM | 22 |
| 19 | Vladimir Matyushenko | 20 | UFC | 20 |
| 20 | Matt Hamill | 20 | UFC | 19 |
| 21 | Mark Coleman | 20 | UFC | 24 |
| 22 | Wanderlei Silva | 19 | UFC | 16 |
| 23 | Vitor Belfort | 19 | UFC | 22 |
| 24 | Paulo Filho | 18 | DREAM | 25 |
| 25 | Tito Ortiz | 17 | UFC | 21 |
Rankings compiled by Richard Wade.
In the time we've been compiling these rankings, I've never seen a fighter shoot up to #2 after a loss, but #2 Mauricio "Shogun" Rua's loss to #1 Lyoto Machida at UFC 104 was no ordinary loss. Even though the judges unanimously concluded that Machida won the first three rounds, virtually every observer, including the official judges scored the last two rounds for Shogun.
Clearly Rua "solved" the mystery of Machida karate. The X factor in the rematch is whether or not he'll be able to apply that knowledge in such a way that he is able to win the majority of the rounds or finish the fight. Pushing the pace could expose Rua to the kind of blistering counter-attacks that fell so many previous Machida opponents.
#3 Rashad Evans will now headline UFC 108 against #7 Thiago Silva. This is a far cry from the UFC 107 bout against #4 Quinton "Rampage" Jackson that fans of The Ultimate Fighter's most watched season ever have been hoping for. But Hollywood and a sudden collapse in the relationship of Jackson and UFC boss Dana White first postponed and now have seemingly curtailed that grudge match.
We'll see if Jackson holds true to his pledge to retire from MMA. But if he does attempt to return and tries to fight for anyone other than the UFC, expect legal fireworks.
#5 Forrest Griffin will headline UFC 106 against #25 Tito Ortiz this weekend. This is another fight that was a substitute for a substitute. Originally Ortiz was to return to the UFC against Mark Colemn, but Coleman's injury created the opening for the Griffin match. Heavyweight Champ Brock Lesnar's illness bumped his fight with Shane Carwin off the card and pushed Griffin-Ortiz into the headliner spot. For a fight between two ranked former champions, it's hard to imagine how the fight could be less relevant to the division.
That card will also see #9 Antonio Rogerio Nogueira make his UFC debute against #10 Luiz Arthur Cane in a fight that could have near-term title implications. Nogueira has expressed a willingness to fight Machida, despite both having trained together and sharing a manager in Ed Soares. Regardless of who wins Nogueira/Cane and Machida/Rua 2 it seems likely that the UFC light heavyweight belt will remain in Brazilian hands for the forseeable future.
#6 Gegard Mousasi pounded out #18 Sokoudjou at Strikeforce: Fedor vs Rogers and now occupies a unique position in MMA -- being a non-UFC fighter who would be an immediate threat to contend for the UFC title who isn't Fedor Emelianenko or a lightweight (yes, I'm excluding Jake Shields on purpose). it will be very interesting to see if Strikeforce and DREAM can provide Mousasi with credible opposition.
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.