The Top Five MMA Fighters Who Need To Be in the UFC

Alex Wasserman by Contributor Written on September 06, 2009

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The UFC is the large pool of talent, but as fans we always want the pool to be bigger and have a better swim.

Right now the UFC has a solid group of champions that maybe need some more challengers, and it also has many exciting fights for some fighters that are not in the UFC.

Yes, the UFC has almost all of the best fighters in the world, but I think it should be all.

Here are the top five fighters that I think need to be in the UFC and, once they are, people will have to believe that the UFC has the best fighters and will answer many questions by providing crazy fights.

Enjoy.

5. Alistair Overeem

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Overeem's record may fool you; he has been fighting at light heavyweight for a while and was struggling to make the weight since he's 6'5".

Recently he's moved up to heavyweight and is a complete monster there. He's in his comfort zone and packed on a lot of muscle. He has fought great K-1 talents like Bahr Hari and Remy Bonjansky and beat Badr Hari and lost to Remy by a very close decision, which means that that his devastating muay thai is world class.

You may think "oh wow, another one-dimensional striker," but you are wrong. He has 29 wins with 17 coming by way of submission, which shows you that he's nicely well-rounded.

Alistair recently beat Paul Buentello for the Strikeforce heavyweight belt, so that means that he can face Fedor Emelianenko, which would prove to be a amazing fight.

Here's Overeem showing off his striking against a K-1 champ:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCiHV3drSUw

In conclusion, the "Demolition Man" is a great fighter and needs to be in the UFC pronto after he fights Emelianenko.

4. Josh Barnett

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Barnett is a man that is very accomplished and has a deadly ground game. With subs and ground 'n' pound, the man has it all and can also survive on the feet with good head movement and footwork.

He actually has five TKOs to his name and KO'ed Pedro Rizzo. Barnett also has solid wrestling and can sometimes take people down at will.

Another advantage he owns is that he is 6'3", 250 pounds and still has the speed needed for heavyweight.

The "Babyfaced Assassin" has a serious chance at beating Brock Lesnar because their styles match up perfectly. Brock cant rely on weight to win and his strinking and submission is nothing compared to Josh Barnett's. I also think that both of their wrestling is good and neighbor fighter has a large advantage in that aspect.

Once Barnett is back in the UFC, expect him to make a serious run for the UFC Heavyweight title. Here's a fun highlight of him:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCiHV3drSUw

P.S.: This is excluding the steroid use, which I think is unacceptable, but I kind of do believe him that he didn't mean to.

3. Aleksander Emelianenko

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Everyone always talks about Aleksander's older brother Fedor.

What people don't realize is that Aleks is a high-quality heavyweight with one of the best—if not the best—striking in the whole MMA heavyweight division.

He has hung with the best but didn't really go out and show the world his talent like Fedor and would have a chance to do that if he went to the UFC.

Standing at 6'6" and weighing around 260 pounds could be unstoppable. He makes fights look simple and easy as he showed in this fight

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHW_fkXITXc

Aleks jumps around organizations and he is not usually in good ones; the best career choice for him and the UFC is to go to the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

2. Gegard Mousasi

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This fighter is a very promising young talent; the sky's the limit for him.

He is only 24 years old, so, when he is supposed to be starting his MMA career, he already has a fight record of a veteran and not just a regular one—a very, very good one.

Gegard used to fight at middleweight but moved up to light heavyweight because it was more comfortable for him. Many had doubts about him and called him overrated, but he crushed the critics when he demolished Babalu. Here's the fight:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dICQ36rX_LA.

Being the Strikeforce light heavyweight champion, he may not move to the UFC soon, but I think he has a high chance to get past Lyoto Machida. Also working with the best fighter in the world (Fedor) doesn't hurt.

1. Fedor Emelianenko

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Fedor Emelianenko, undefeated heavyweight champion
Fought all the best and proved himself
True champ and pound-for-pound best in the world
Enough said
Too bad he couldn't come and play with the UFC Heavyweight division

Here's a small look into the Emperor's world:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtASWG35xRw

Thank You

PORTLAND, OR - AUGUST 29:  UFC fighter Antonio Nogueira (L) battles UFC fighter Randy Couture (R) during their Heavyweight bout at UFC 102:  Couture vs. Nogueira at the Rose Garden Arena on August 29, 2009 in Portland, Oregon.  (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/Gett

Tell if you agree or don't agree with the people I listed.

Also, tell me who else you'd like to see in the UFC.

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written on September 06, 2009 Rankings/List

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