1. Georges St. Pierre: Winner of 7 fights in a row, 30 consecutive round decisions, and an absolute dismantling of Josh Koscheck. His recent resume features wins over Koschcheck, Fitch, Penn, Alves and Hardy. Not a slouch among them.
2. Jose Aldo: Aldo has not just risen through the ranks over the last year, he has torched everyone in his path. Notable names like Faber and Brown didn't stand a chance against Aldo. And with the exception of the Faber fight, his last 7 decisions have been via KO/TKO. That's not only the mark of a great fighter, but of a great finisher.
3. Anderson Silva: I never thought Id see the day where Silva was 3rd on any list, but after watching him get picked apart by Chael Sonnen before eventually winning via triangle, Ive determined he is human. His victories before that were impressive, but not the highlight reel wins we're used to. If he can beat Belfort impressively, then we'll know he's back.
4. Cain Velasquez: Maybe this is a little high for him, considering how recent he is to the belt, but his win against Lesnar was extremely impressive and he is said to have the most powerful punch (as measured by scientific measurements) in all of MMA. Velasquez could dominate this weight class for the next year and some.
5. Mauricio Shogun Rua: Many people thought Machida was unbeatable, and Rua has beaten him for the belt and narrowly lost to him in a 5 round contest that most people had Rua winning. He also has wins over Lidell, Overeem and Coleman and might move up this list if he can beat Evans in March.
6. Frankie Edgar: I have become an enormous Frankie Edgar fan, and the comeback he mounted against Maynard at UFC 125 was the greatest comeback Ive seen in MMA. He has fought 3 times since April, and 2 of those were wins against the legend BJ Penn and Edgar also has wins against Sherk, Franca and Veach. The third bout between him and Maynard will help cement his status at the top or cause a major shift in the rankings.
7. Dominick Cruz: Winner of 7 in a row, Cruz has been on a rampage through the Bantamweight class for the last 2 years. The knock on him is that he can't finish fights, as evidenced by 6 decisions in those 7 wins, but a win is a win and this kid is good at notching them.
8. Rashad Evans: He hasn't fought in 7 months, but he still only has one loss to his record (Machida) and has one of the most outstanding resumes in all of MMA. He faces a tough matchup in Rua and will also have to avenge his loss to Machida at some point, but for now he is still an elite.
9. Jake Shields: Its hard to argue with 15 straight wins and previous belts in Elite XC, Strikeforce and Shooto championship to his credit, but Shields still seems to have something to prove. He fights GSP in April, and win or lose, how he fares against the #1 fighter in the world will speak volumes to Shields status among the MMA greats.
10. Fedor Emelianenko: This 10th spot was up for grabs for me, and although I would much rather give it to Fitch, Emelianenko deserves this spot until he proves he isn't a powerhouse anymore. His loss to Werdum could easily have been a fluke, but the fact that he hasn't fought since then hasn't helped his legacy. Prior to that, he had an 11 win streak and a 17 win streak sandwiching a No Contest to Nogueira. That's as good as it gets.
Honorable Mentions: Jon Fitch, Lyoto Machida, BJ Penn, Gilbert Melendez, Gray Maynard
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