UFC Rankings after May

Very rarely do the fights live up to the hype. The month of May definitely wasn't a naysayer to that statement either.

With that being said, there have certainly been a great deal of cards that not only failed to live up to the hype, but failed to deliver any sort of excitement whatsoever.

Both UFC 113 and 114 fall in the middle. The fights were worth the money, as they weren't horrible, but at 50 bucks a pop, one would of expected a little bit more out of the insanely hyped fights.

But hey, this is a sport where hundreds of scenarios can happen and the fans won't always be pleased with the one they got.

Although the fights didn't live up to the unprecedented hype placed on its shoulders, they were still good and had an impact on the current rankings.

Lightweight Rankings

May's Key Fights:

Jeremy Stephens vs. Sam Stout

Another Lightweight noteworthy fighter fell from the map as Sam Stout was unable to defeat Jeremy Stephens at UFC 113.

In addition to landing the more powerful shots, Stephens was also quicker to the punch, battering Stout's face through three rounds en route to a split decision victory.

Both fighters are young, and with the right improvements, both could work themselves into the Top 10 over time with the right fights.

June's Key Fights:

Spencer Fisher vs. Dennis Siver

Although both fighters are coming off of a loss, the winner would be within earshot of the Top 10. A win for Fisher would make for four out of his last five, while a win for Siver would make five out of his last six.

Evan Dunham vs. Tyson Griffin

Evan Dunham looks to continue his impressive progression against the always dangerous and versatile Tyson Griffin. The winner will likely find himself one or two more wins away from a title shot.

Noteworthy- Takanori Gomi (31-6-0-1) & Joe Stevenson (31-11)

10- Kurt Pellegrino (15-4)

9- Clay Guida (26-11)

8- George Sotiropoulos (12-2)

7- Sean Sherk (33-4-1)

6- Jim Miller (17-2)

5- Tyson Griffin (14-2)

4- Diego Sanchez (21-4)

3- Gray Maynard (10-0-0-1)

2- Kenny Florian (13-4)

1- B.J. Penn (15-6-1)

Champion- Frankie Edgar (12-1)

Welterweight Rankings

May's Key Fights:

Paul Daley vs. Josh Koscheck

Koscheck kicked his love affair with striking aside long enough to out-grapple the explosive striker known as Semtex. Daley had no answer for Koscheck's takedowns throughout their three round fight, and spent most of the fight on his back struggling to get back up.

With that frustration fueled by the trash talk of Koscheck, Daley finally landed his famed left hook, but it was long after the final bell, forcing Dana White to hand him his walking papers.

Meanwhile, Koscheck will begin preparing for The Ultimate Fighter 12 appearance and his season-ending showdown with Georges St. Pierre.

John Hathaway vs. Diego Sanchez

Sanchez is probably confused on the direction of his career right about now. His Lightweight experience didn't fair off so well when he was battered by former Lightweight champion B.J. Penn.

Now, his Welterweight aspirations fizzled before they could even find solid footing, as he was bruised and battered by the 22-year-old British prospect John Hathaway.

Hathaway shrugged off the majority of Sanchez's takedown attempts and made him pay with his tremendous reach advantage, landing a plethora of shots that slowed Sanchez's remarkable pace down considerably.

Dong Hyun Kim vs. Amir Sadollah

Kim showed how great his Judo is by completely frustrating Sadollah through three rounds with his tremendous control. Sadollah had no answer for any of Kim's takedowns and was smothered as a result.

Kim's performances of late have been real solid and a few more big wins could catapult him into the Welterweight mix.

June's Key Fights:

Carlos Condit vs. Rory MacDonald

Condit makes his return to the cage after a layoff of over six months against a dark horse of a fighter in Rory MacDonald. If Condit fights as sloppily as he did against Jake Ellenberger, it could wind up being a very short night for him as MacDonald is known to be a finisher.

Paulo Thiago vs. Martin Kampmann

Once again, Thiago will get another stiff test in competition, this time against the well-rounded game of Martin Kampmann.

If it weren't for Georges St. Pierre appearing on the next season of TUF, this type of fight would normally have secured the next No. 1 contender slot behind Josh Koscheck.

Noteworthy- John Hathaway (13-0), Dong Hyun Kim (13-0-1-1), Anthony Johnson (8-3) & Matt Serra (10-6)

10- John Howard (14-4)

9- Mike Swick (14-4)

8- Carlos Condit (23-5)

7- Martin Kampmann (16-3)

6- Matt Hughes (44-7)

5- Dan Hardy (23-7)

4- Paulo Thiago (13-1)

3- Thiago Alves (16-6)

2- Josh Koscheck (15-4)

1- Jon Fitch (22-3)

Champion- Georges St. Pierre (20-2)

Middleweight Rankings

May's Key Fights:

Alan Belcher vs. Patrick Cote

Belcher showed off his gritty determination once again as he ate some heavy shots from Cote in their UFC 113 showdown.

Instead of folding like many of Cote's past opponents, Belcher trucked on and eventually got the fight onto the ground where he had a great advantage in Jiu Jitsu.

After a few moments, Belcher sunk in the rear-naked choke and officially announced his presence among the Middleweight contenders.

Michael Bisping vs. Dan Miller

Both fighters were in desperate need of a victory at UFC 114. Unfortunately for Miller, Bisping did enough to outwork him on his way to a unanimous decision victory.

Bisping shrugged off the few takedown attempts of Miller with ease, and used his quick footwork to score points all throughout the fight.

In order to contend with the best of the division, Bisping needs to score a win over an established contender. He'll likely target the winner of the Wanderlei Silva and Yoshihiro Akiyama fight.

June's Key Fights:

None

Noteworthy- Alessio Sakara (15-7-1) & Mark Munoz (8-1)

10- Rousimar Palhares (11-2)

9- Yushin Okami (24-5)

8. Demian Maia (11-2)

7- Michael Bisping (19-3)

6- Alan Belcher (16-6)

5- Wanderlei Silva (33-10-1-1)

4- Yoshihiro Akiyama (13-1)

3- Nate Marquardt (29-9-2)

2- Vitor Belfort (19-8)

1- Chael Sonnen (25-10-1)

Champion- Anderson Silva (26-4)

Light Heavyweight Rankings

May's Key Fights:

Mauricio Rua vs. Lyoto Machida

The rematch wasn't so controversial as the first fight, as Rua landed some beautifully-timed counter strikes on an unusually aggressive Machida.

After flooring Machida with a shot to the temple, Rua jumped on his prey and shut the lights a few seconds later with some well-timed shots to the face.

Many people didn't want to believe it after the first fight with Machida, but Rua is back to his old semi-aggressively dominant ways and will look to prove so with his first title defense against Rashad Evans.

Rashad Evans vs. Quinton Jackson

The fight went down almost exactly as most had predicted, as Evans used his speed to elude Jackson's striking and gain the clinch. From here, Evans used his wrestling to control and wear down Jackson for a better part of the fight.

There were a few moments in the fight where it appeared that there was going to be the highly anticipated knockout, Evans clipping Jackson in the first and Jackson buckling Evans in the third, but both fighters survived until the final bell.

With the win, Evans secured himself his second title shot at the Light Heavyweight crown.

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira vs. Jason Brilz

The fight was closer than most people give credit for, but the judges appeared to have gotten it wrong once again.

For the first two rounds, Nogueira struggled to stay on his feet as Brilz relentlessly worked his takedowns. Although he didn't land much in the way of ground striking, Brilz controlled the better part of the opening two rounds.

The third round was clearly Nogueira's, as Brilz began to suck wind and did little to mount any real offense. But in the end, the judges thought that Nogueira had done enough to secure the win.

With their UFC 114 performances, Nogueira showed he still needs improvement before contending in the division while Brilz showed that he deserves to be fighting better competition.

Luiz Cane vs. Cyrille Diabate

After rocking Diabate early, Cane appeared to slow down as he went for the finish. Once recovered, Diabate landed shots at will and eventually sent Cane crumbling to the canvas in search of his consciousness.

Diabate announced his presence with a big win in his UFC debut, and also effectively erased the hype of Cane all in one moment.

Junes Key's Fights

Chuck Liddell vs. Rich Franklin

Although the UFC is home to the best Light Heavyweight fighters of the world, the title picture is looking rather bleak. A win for either Liddell or Franklin would burst them into the Top 10 in dramatic fashion. A strong finish could leave them one fight out of a title shot.

Noteworthy: Ryan Bader (11-0) & Jason Brilz (18-3)

10. Vladimir Matyushenko (24-4)

9- Randy Couture- (18-10)

8- Forrest Griffin (17-6)

7- Jon Jones (10-1)

6- Thiago Silva (14-2)

5- Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (19-3)

4- Quinton Jackson (30-7)

3- Lyoto Machida (16-1)

2- Anderson Silva (25-4)

1- Rashad Evans (19-1-1)

Champion- Mauricio Rua (19-4)

Heavyweight Rankings

May's Key Fights:

None

June's Key Fights:

Ben Rothwell vs. Gilbert Yvel

Gilbert Yvel intends to prove he belongs in the Top 10, as well as the UFC, against the versatile Ben Rothwell. Both guys have heavy hands, so this one should be a barn-burner.

Patrick Barry vs. Mirko Filipovic

A very intriguing fight, as two accomplished and skilled kickboxers take the cage in UFC 115's co-main event. An impressive performance could bring the winner two or three fights away from a title shot.

Noteworthy: Stefan Struve (19-4)

10- Ben Rothwell (30-7)

9- Randy Couture (18-10)

8- Mirko Filipovic (27-7-2)

7- Gabriel Gonzaga (11-5)

6- Roy Nelson (15-4)

5- Cheick Kongo (15-6-1)

4- Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (32-6-1)

3- Frank Mir (13-5)

2- Junior dos Santos (11-1)

1- Cain Velasquez (8-0)

Interim Champion- Shane Carwin (12-0)

Champion- Brock Lesnar (4-1)