Post UFC 113 Official Welterweight MMA Rankings

UFC 113 has come and gone, leaving a huge wave of headline-worthy stories in it's wake.

First and foremost, the UFC has a newly-crowned light-heavyweight champion in Mauricio "Shogun" Rua. Determined to kick dirt on the faces of the UFC 104 main event judges, Rua wilted Lyoto Machida with his old-school aggressive attack and knocked him out early in round 1.

In the night's co-main event, Josh Koscheck pushed his love affair with striking aside and executed a perfect wrestling game-plan against the much more dangerous striker, Paul Daley.

In typical Koscheck fashion, he did all he could to not only get under the skin of Daley by whispering trash (as opposed to talkin' it) in his ear, but the entire Montreal crowd as well, by dissing their hockey team in the post-fight interview. Dissing a Canadian hockey team in Canada! That's just something you don't do!

Anyways, the win keeps Koscheck ranked in the top ten of Bleacher Report's first official welterweight rankings. Daley, on the other hand fails against top competition once again and falls from the list.

10. Jay Hieron- Free Agent

Record: 19-4

Last Fight: Decision win over Joe Riggs at Strikeforce- Miami

Next Fight: Undetermined

Jay Hieron's Strikeforce contract was completed with his latest win over Joe Riggs, but he is still happy with the company and wants a new deal. However, with Strikeforce's unwillingness to grant Hieron a title shot against Nick Diaz, who knows how much more blood, sweat, and tears he will be willing to donate to the company.

9. Dan Hornbuckle- Bellator

Record: 20-2

Last Fight: Submission win over Tyler Stinson at Bellator 15

Next Fight: Steve Carl at Bellator 19

While his list of victims isn't littered with the who's who of fighters, Dan Hornbuckle consistently wins. He once won 13 fights in a row, and is currently riding a five-fight win streak. Hornbuckle looks to keep that winning streak alive with two more wins in the Bellator Season Two Welterweight Tournament, in order to get a shot at the champion, Lymon Good.

8. Dan Hardy- UFC

Record: 23-7-0-1

Last Fight: Decision loss to Georges St. Pierre at UFC 111

Next Fight: Undetermined

Before his fight with Georges St. Pierre, many believed that Dan Hardy had no place in the top ten. However, after hanging tough through five rounds, as well as a few deep submissions, he has definitely proved his spot on the board. With only two losses in his last 14 fights, Hardy looks to continue in proving the doubters wrong.

7. Jake Shields- Free Agent

Record: 25-4-1

Last Fight: Decision win over Dan Henderson at Strikeforce- Nashville

Next Fight: Undetermined

Although Jake Shields last three fights have been all above 180 lbs, he still deserves a spot in the welterweight top ten as he has won 10 straight contests inside the division. As a free agent, with many MMA gurus predicting a UFC future, Shields could find himself fighting the top welterweights of the world in no time.

6. Josh Koscheck- UFC

Record: 15-4

Last Fight: Decision win over Paul Daley at UFC 113

Next Fight: Georges St. Pierre at an undetermined event.

Josh Koscheck has been a UFC foot soldier for some time, but recently has evolved his game enough to become a serious threat in the division. The only thing that has hindered him is his consistency against top competition. Koscheck will coach against Georges St. Pierre on The Ultimate Fighter season 12 and fight him in a rematch shortly thereafter.

5. Paulo Thiago- UFC

Record: 13-1

Last Fight: Submission win over Mike Swick at UFC 109

Next Fight: Martin Kampmann at UFC 115

Paulo Thiago was considered a nobody when he entered the UFC in the early months of 2009, but after cleaning the clock of Josh Koscheck, fans have begun taking notice. With only one loss on his resume, Thiago continually accepts tough fights and performs at a high level in them. He looks to stay in the UFC's title race with a third straight win over Martin Kampann.

4. Nick Diaz- Strikeforce & Dream

Record: 21-7-0-1

Last Fight: Technical knockout win over Marius Žaromskis at Strikeforce- Miami

Next Fight: Hayato Sakurai at DREAM 14

With the brash, California-sideshow bravado aside, Nick Diaz continues to prove himself as one of the top welterweight fighters in the world. He has only lost once in his last 12 bouts, which was due to a cut against K.J. Noons. Consistently finishing fights, Diaz hopes to do the same against Hayato Sakurai in Japan on May 29.

3. Thiago Alves- UFC

Record: 16-6

Last Fight: Decision loss to Georges St. Pierre at UFC 100

Next Fight: Jon Fitch at UFC 117

Since 2006, Thiago Alves has only lost twice, incidentally to the two fighters ranked above him. The man is a starving artist type of fighter, pushing his will to the breaking point just to improve his game slightly. Alves looks to take the first step required on his path to the top by earning redemption in his highly-anticipated rematch with Jon Fitch.

2. Jon Fitch- UFC

Record: 21-3

Last Fight: Decision win over Ben Saunders at UFC 111

Next Fight: Thiago Alves at UFC 117

Anybody who thinks that Jon Fitch isn't the number two welterweight in the world is a fool. The man has only lost once since 2003, with that lone loss coming to the welterweight kingpin Georges St. Pierre, in a fight where Fitch found his way out of a number of dangerous scenarios. Riding a four-fight win streak, Fitch will look to prove his win over Thiago Alves wasn't a fluke in their rematch. One more thing, Fitch may have to strongly reconsider his opinion on fighting training partners if he ever wants to get another title shot.

1. Georges St. Pierre- UFC

Record: 20-2

Last Fight: Decision win over Dan Hardy at UFC 111

Next Fight: Josh Koscheck at an undetermined event

No surprise here, Georges St. Pierre is the consensus king at 170 lbs. With smart tactics and a well-rounded attack, St. Pierre consistently wins against the world's top competition. The only thing people can truly gripe about is his recent inability to finish off opponents. Looking to the future, St. Pierre will look to pass along his caged wisdom to a new breed of fighters on TUF 12 along side rival coach Josh Koscheck, as well as defending his UFC gold for a fifth consecutive time.