UFC Power Rankings: Melvin Guillard and the Lightweight Contenders

Between the fantastic flying knee knockout of Dong Hyun Kim by Carlos Condit, the surprisingly quick knockout of the legendary Wanderlei Silva by Chris Leben and the memorable bantamweight title fight between Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber, its easy to overlook the shifts undergone in the lightweight division.

Three Lightweight fights graced the UFC 132 card, all of the utmost importance in the lightweight division, with the winners all hoping to cement their position in what is probably considered the deepest division in the UFC, especially after the WEC merger.

With a couple nasty knockouts courtesy of Rafael Dos Anjos, who recently returned from a jaw injury at the hands of Clay Guida and Melvin Guillard, who knocked out Shane Roller, to kick off the night, the lightweight picture got a little less blurry.

So with a couple more key bouts between contenders at UFC Live: Hardy vs. Lytle, in August, the UFC could end up with a clear pecking order for the lightweight title, that is if Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard III can actually produce a winner this time around.

Until then, here are the UFC Power Rankings for the lightweight division.

10. Evan Dunham

Originally scheduled to face George Sotiropoulos at UFC 132, Evan Dunham was sidelined by an injury and replaced by Rafael dos Anjos.

Dunham was hoping to rebound from his technical knockout loss to Melvin Guillard back at UFC: Fight For The Troops 2, however is once again one the sidelines recovering.

Prior to his loss to Guillard, Dunham suffered a controversial loss to former Lightweight Champion Sean Sherk, despite actively pursuing submissions and winning stand up exchanges.

However, in spite of being well deserving of the win against Sherk, even one loss is enough to put a lightweight that much further from the title, especially with fighters like Clay Guida and Guillard already knocking on the door to a title shot and guys like Donald Cerrone approaching contention.

Staying healthy and more importantly active are essentials in the talent-ridden lightweight division, but once he comes back, Dunham should have no problem finding an opponent.

9. George Sotiropoulos

After going on a seven fight win streak, tearing through the likes of Joe Stevenson, Kurt Pellegrino and Joe Lauzon, George Sotiropoulos was well on his way towards becoming a contender in the lightweight division.

However, after a disappointing loss to Dennis Siver at UFC 127 in his homeland, Australia, Sotiropoulos returned to the octagon recently against Rafael dos Anjos at UFC 132, however, his path to contention once again hit a speed bump when he was knocked out in only 59 seconds of the first round.

A Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt and submission ace on the ground, Sotiropoulos' standup has come into question as of late, especially when he was unable to hold his own standing against Siver after failing to take the fight to the ground.

While his last two losses are his first in the UFC since his streak began with his debut in 2007, in the tremendously deep lightweight division, they're enough to boot him away from the title, especially when many of the rest of the fighters on the list are on a meteoric rise.

8. Ben Henderson

While Ben Henderson's last fight in the WEC was highlighted by the "Showtime" kick he suffered at the hands of Anthony Pettis, Henderson has since rebounded, making a successful UFC debut at UFC 129.

Now, the former WEC Lightweight Champion will square off against Jim Miller at UFC Live: Hardy vs. Lytle on August 14, the man many consider to be next in line for a title shot.

The fight will be a big step up in competition for Henderson, who has already found more success in the UFC than the last man to beat him, Pettis.

Should he win, the Glendale, Arizona, native could find himself back in line towards a title, except this time it would be for UFC gold, instead of WEC.

7. Anthony Pettis

After becoming the last man to hold the WEC Lightweight Championship, doing so in spectacular fashion, Anthony Pettis had hoped to make his UFC debut in a title unification bout with the current UFC Lightweight Champion.

However, after their bout ended in a draw and both Gray Maynard and Frankie Edgar were sidelined due to injuries, Pettis instead opted to fight Clay Guida.

The result wasn't what he expected though, as he was thoroughly out-wrestled by Guida who took the decision.

The fight opened Pettis' eyes to the high level of wrestling he'll be encountering in the UFC talent pool, however at 24 years of age, it is only a learning experience.

The real question is, can he make sure he shows that his tenure in the WEC wasn't just full of high-flying spectacle and compete with the gritty wrestling of the likes of Guida and Maynard?

6. Dennis Siver

The former German kickboxing champion Dennis Siver, secured his fourth win in a row at UFC 132 and while it may have been a controversial decision over Matt Wiman, Siver still eked out the win.

Since his upset of on the verge contender George Sotiropoulos, Siver has established himself as a dark horse contender of sorts, utilizing some strong striking in a division riddled with with wrestlers.

The strong and stocky Russian-born German may have made a name for himself in the UFC with his trademark spinning back kick, but it might be his resilience, which he showed against Spencer Fisher, Andrew Winner and Wiman.

Whether it's getting cut, rocked or outright bloodied, it seems as though Siver won't let anything stop him from approaching a title shot.

5. Melvin Guillard

Riding a five fight win streak, Melvin Guillard is on a tear towards the top of the UFC lightweight division.

Winning three of his last five fights by knockout, most recently a a first round KO of Shane Roller at UFC 132, "The Young Assassin" has established himself as arguably the most heavy handed lightweight in the UFC.

Since arriving at Greg Jackson's camp, Guillard has transformed from a drug using wild young fighter in the the lightweight Jackson saw potential in and under Jackson's tutelage, he has become focused and disciplined, a scary thing. 

So while he may have tossed out the entertaining idea of a lightweight tournament in order to weed out a true contender, he may not be too far from a title shot himself, especially if he performs as well as he has been of late.

4. Clay Guida

Coming off of a huge win against former WEC Lightweight Champion Anthony Pettis, Clay Guida has become one of the top contenders in the lightweight division.

Normally fighting at a frenetic pace, firing on all cylinders, Guida instead utilized his wrestling against the Pettis, choosing to exploit "Showtime's" weakness and play to his own strength.

It worked and Guida is now riding his four fight win streak after a tough submission win over Rafael dos Anjos, after injuring his jaw with a big hook, and second round guillotine choke of former Pride FC Lightweight Champion Takanori Gomi.

Now like almost everyone else in the division, Guida awaits to see who comes out on top between Maynard and Edgar.

3. Jim Miller

Boasting a seven fight win streak since his last loss to current No. 1 contender, Gray Maynard, Jim Miller is widely considered the consensus No. 3 lightweight in the UFC.

The only losses of his career came at the hands of current UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie Edgar and Maynard and since then, Miller has been tearing through every opponent placed in front of him, winning two of his last seven by submission and two by TKO, the latter of which was his last victory of Kamal Shalorus at UFC 128.

Now set to face former WEC Lightweight Champion Ben Henderson on August 14 at UFC Live: Hardy vs. Lytle, Miller is one fight away from a rematch with either Maynard or Edgar, however this time, it would be for the UFC Lightweight Championship.

2. Gray Maynard

Unable to secure the victory over Frankie Edgar, despite having defeated him previously, for the UFC lightweight title at UFC 125 due to a draw, Maynard was yet again left frustrated when both were forced from a third fight due to injuries.

Now seemingly healthy, "The Bully", will look to finally capture the belt he's been denied for so long, hoping to repeat a victory he had already collected over Edgar at UFC Fight Night: Florian vs. Lauzon back in 2008.

Should he be able to implement his game plan, which is centered around his powerful wrestling, the UFC could be looking at a new lightweight champion in the future.

1. Frankie Edgar

It seems as though Frankie Edgar is constantly having to validate his status as UFC Lightweight Champion, with both of his first title defenses being rematches.

However, "The Answer" has shown, that while some may doubt his position as champion, he certainly does not, unwilling to give up, especially in his last fight with Maynard at UFC 125, where he was rocked early.

Now, after injury derailed their trilogy bout, he will finally look to throw the monkey off his back and avenge the loss that Maynard has been holding over his head.

With a victory would come revenge and a welcomed new opponent in an entire division that has been waiting for months to get a crack at the champ.