Jon Jones vs. Rashad Evans Headlines 5 Big UFC Fights to Make in 2012

2011 was an interesting year for the UFC.

The biggest fights available to the promotion were often destroyed by injuries. Jon Jones vs. Rashad Evans, Georges St-Pierre vs. Nick Diaz and Junior dos Santos vs. Brock Lesnar were three of the UFC's biggest potential money-making fights. All three were canceled or changed due to injury, hurting the UFC at the box office and disappointing fans around the world.

There's no guarantee that 2012 will be any different. But it's January and we're starting off fresh, so let's take a few moments and look at five big fights the UFC could potentially make over the course of the next twelve months.

Jon Jones vs. Rashad Evans

It's the UFC's biggest grudge match of the moment: former friends and training partners Jon Jones and Rashad Evans finally meet in the cage to settle their not-so-amicable split.

Injuries have caused the fight to fall apart on two occasions already, and we may be looking at a third if Jones ends up facing Dan Henderson in March. But if both guys keep on winning, the fight is eventually going to happen. It'll be criminal if 2012 passes us by without this fight coming to fruition.

Georges St-Pierre vs. Nick Diaz

In terms of huge grudge matches, Georges St-Pierre vs. Nick Diaz is hot on the heels of Jon Jones vs. Rashad Evans as the UFC's most heated rivalry. We rarely see St-Pierre as anything less than his perfectly coiffed and PR'd self, but something about Diaz causes St-Pierre to lose his cool.

We should see this fight in 2012; Diaz will need to get by Carlos Condit and perhaps one more challenger before facing St-Pierre when he returns from injury. If these two finally face off in the cage, you can expect some serious fireworks.

Nate Diaz vs. B.J. Penn

The rivalry between B.J. Penn and Nick Diaz—once considered friends and training partners—has spiraled out of control since their UFC 137 bout. But nobody really wants to see B.J. face Nick again, so here's a solution: have Penn face Nate Diaz at lightweight. Yeah, B.J. is "retired," but I give that retirement about as much credence as I do the many retirements of pro wrestlers.

Penn will eventually come back, and he should come back at lightweight, where he was considered one of the greatest of all time before running in Frankie Edgar. Why not match him up with the younger Diaz brother?

Frank Mir vs. Josh Barnett

Even if Josh Barnett loses to Daniel Cormier in the eventual Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix finals, it's a lock that he'll end up the UFC. A battle between he and fellow veteran heavyweight Frank Mir would provide an interesting stylistic fight—two guys with excellent grappling skills facing off for the first time. On top of that, both guys are excellent at building fights.

This one would be a lot of fun, both before and during the actual fight.

Gilbert Melendez vs. Frankie Edgar

Look, I know it's a long shot. But what else is left for Gilbert Melendez in Strikeforce? Nothing, that's what.

They're not going to move Melendez to the UFC any time soon, but he still deserves the opportunity to face the best in the world rather than going in the cage against a stream of unworthy title contenders. He's played his role in Strikeforce admirably, even voicing his support for the new structure put in place by the owners at Zuffa.

But that structure is preventing a battle between the world's two top lightweights, and that's a shame. Give Melendez his due.