UFC Heavyweight Division Dead or Just Taking a Nap?

With the official signing of Tim Sylvia and Ben Rothwell to Adrenaline MMA, there are some very nervous UFC fans.

Sylvia was a top-10 heavyweight and Rothwell was a top name on a very short list of quality free agents.

That leaves the division with some very interesting questions and some fights that may prove to be very watchable.

To those fans that think the division is dead, I ask for a little patience. I feel there are eight guys in division right now who could help the division float until more talent arrives or develops.

Cheick Kongo is a scary, scary dude.

He comes from a very good camp, and I'm watching his striking going from fantastic to flat out destruction. He is training with Rampage and his team and is in phenomenal condition.

Among the top contenders, Kongo is behind only Brandon Vera when it comes to stand-up. In the Herring fight, he looked uncomfortable and a little lost on the ground.

He must improve or will get destroyed in a division filled with scary submission guys.

Frank Mir is a one of the guys that is a lynchpin for the division.

If he can win a couple of fights against some good fighters, he may get another title shot. Mir has shown time and time again that he is a true BJJ tactician. He plans his work and works his plan.

If Mir is taking training seriously and is in shape and motivated, he will have the opportunity to get a title shot.

It is rumored he will fight Justin McCully on the UFC 86 card. If he wins, and he should, I would like to see Mir vs. the winner of Werdum versus Vera. The eventual winner of that fight would then be in line for a shot at the title.

Let's talk about Brock Lesnar.

I have had the pleasure to meet Mr. Lesnar and let me tell you he is bigger in real life. I really wished he hadn't done the WWE thing and went straight to MMA.

I am well aware of his position at the time and why he did what he did. The stint in the WWE is hurting Lesnar now among fans and it kills me.

I watched this guy wrestle for the U of M and he was unstoppable. This guy isn't a joke or gimmick. He is the real thing and a superb athlete.

His second MMA fight they gave him Frank Mir!

That's one hell of a test for a guy who has had one other pro fight. He will give Mark Coleman all he can handle plus some. Lesnar will beat Coleman and will get another opportunity to move up the ladder.

Gabriel Gonzaga went from practical unknown to the guy who turned Cro Cop into "Corky."

I have been watching the sport for a long time and the last thing I expected to happen was that high kick. I could almost see the glint of disbelief in Cro Cop's eyes as he realized he was about to go night-night.

I believe Gonzaga is a top-10 guy. He is going to get another shot at a top guy because of the lack of depth in the division.

He has to win that fight to get a chance to climb back up the pile. 

Fabricio Werdum is coming off a big win over Gonzaga for the second time.

He is an elite-level BJJ guy who has been in the ring with a bunch of tough guys. He has victories over Aleksander Emelianenko, Overeem, and Roman Zentsov. His last two losses were to Arlovski and Nogueira.

For Werdum to succeed, he has to improve his hands. His BJJ is only going to be able to bring him so far and sooner rather than later his is going to have to stand with guys.

He looked mediocre at best against Arlovski, but bounced back nicely against Gonzaga. He will have a chance to prove me wrong when he fights Brandon Vera at UFC 85.

Heath Herring is kind of the wild card in the division. If he continues to train hard and do the things he needs to, he may get a shot at the belt.

The question has always been which Heath Herring is going to show up.  When the guy is on, he is a lot of fun to watch.

Here is a guy who has fought the best in the world and never seems able to finish.

He lost back-to-back bouts with Fedor and Cro Cop, and has lost to big Nogueira three times. Talented but does he have the tools to be a champion? 

Brandon Vera will be the next heavyweight champion. That's what I think will happen at least.

Vera is a small guy for this division. There always seems to be talk about him going down to 205, which he could easily do.

Vera knows that the division isn't stacked right now and he could get a shot at the title with an impressive win or two.

At 205, you've got a plethora of scary dudes and Vera would have to go through guys like Chuck, Shogun, Jackson, Jardine, and the list goes on and on.

If Vera wants to go  down a weight class, he needs to win the heavyweight belt then cut the weight.

Vera is by far the most dangerous striker in the division. He has a good ground game, but his striking is elite. Vera has teamed up with Rob Kaman, who is widely regarded as the best kick-boxer in the business.

Vera has a great team and is highly motivated, I see him as the future of the division.

UFC heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira is second in the world only to Fedor.

His submissions are second to none. If you haven't seen this guy use an anaconda choke, please go right now and look it up!

He and Jeff Monson are my two favorite submission guys to watch.

When someone talks about non-Gi submission specialists, they are talking about these guys. The only person that poses a threat to Nogueira right now is Vera.

The amazing thing about Nogueira is that the guy has never been stopped. All of his losses have been decisions. He has lost twice to Fedor and has been beat by Dan Henderson and Josh Barnett by decision.

This guy is a monster and plans to be champion for a long time. The upside is that any fight with Nogueira in it is going to be a great fight.

Like any other sport, MMA is cyclical. The Heavyweights are "down" right now, but will be a exciting division in the future.

The growth of young guys like Vera, Kongo and Lesnar will help the division stay competitive. Crafty veterans like Mir, Herring, Werdum, and Gonzaga present a variety of good fights.

The heavyweights will be restored to glory, we just have to be patient.