The UFC's Best Gatekeeper in Each Division

At the end of the day, aren't pretty much all of us gatekeepers? Better than some, not as good as others, but forging ahead nevertheless to try and carve out a respectable existence doing something we enjoy.

Ultimately, though, most people won't ever be champions. Not to be depressing. Hey, it's just the truth. We find ourselves a little piece of the rock, and we do what we can to maintain it while never fully giving up the struggle for something better. 

So to me, there's something essentially human about the gatekeepers of MMA. The velvet rope between the also-rans and the upper crust—that top echelon they would kill to see, but for whatever reason, don't appear to have quite the right mix of skills or gifts to reach.

Some people use the term gatekeeper as a pejorative. I tend to see it from the other side. If you're keeping a gate, it means you've got something to protect and, more importantly, are capable of protecting it.

These are the best examples from each UFC weight class. Gazing up at the stars, steering clear of the gutter and walkin' that line, one fight to the next. 

Flyweight: John Lineker

19-6 (0-1 UFC)

The UFC's most unsettled division is also its hardest place to find a gatekeeper. Before a chokeout loss to Louis Gaudinot at UFC on Fox 3, John Lineker had won 13 consecutive bouts.

He's definitely good enough to have a foothold in the division—and good enough to test anyone who wishes to do same. But Lineker could have the stuff to run higher up the ladder; we simply don't know.

It's possible that, a couple of years from now, it could be Gaudinot assuming this role, or perhaps Darren Uyenoyama, who has a gatekeeper-ish track record but has yet to fight at 125 pounds.

As the Zen master said, we'll see.

Bantamweight: Eddie Wineland

18-8-1 (0-2 UFC)

Eddie Wineland comes straight out of the Chris Lytle mold: Put on a show and let the chips fall.

The former WEC champ is still looking for his first UFC scalp. But those two losses came to Urijah Faber and Joseph Benavidez—no shame in that. The same holds true for his only other loss in the past four years, a submission loss to top-of-his-game jiu-jitsu ace Rani Yahya.

Scott Jorgensen is another good candidate here, though as someone who loses only to top-three types, his gate is situated at a slightly higher altitude than Wineland's.

Depending on what happens when they fight June 8, perhaps the two could switch places.  

Featherweight: Diego Nunes

17-3 (2-2 UFC)

With Mike Brown and Kenny Florian both apparently retiring in the span of a week, the featherweight division could suddenly seem awfully susceptible to a jailbreak. But all along, those two were mere decoys. Nova Uniao or no, Diego "The Gun" Nunes is the real keeper of the keys at 145 pounds.

Think about it. When KenFlo lost 10 pounds with visions of titlehood dancing in his head, who drew the assignment? Nunes (he lost by decision). When dangerous kick boxer Dennis Siver did the same, who did the brass entrust with the reins of the welcome wagon? Nunes again (he lost by decision).

When former WEC challenger Manny Gamburyan needed a temperature check, who was holding the thermometer? If you guessed "The Gun," then I believe you're catching on (and he won that one, by decision).

Here's the capper: When Nunes and Mike Brown first entered the Octagon, it was against each other. Nunes won. The Gun's next fight? Florian. Brown's next opponent? A sputtering Rani Yahya. That's a sizable distance. 

Lightweight: Mark Bocek

11-4 (7-4 UFC)

I was tempted to slot in Melvin Guillard here, and I probably would have if the goal was finding the gate between those who know how to submit someone and those who don't.

But because I'm doing it for just regular MMA fighting, Mark Bocek provides a much truer measuring stick. His rock-solid wrestling strains out the pretenders—a flagging Dustin Hazelett, a previously undefeated but ultimately not-UFC-caliber Joe Brammer—and lets the cream—Benson Henderson, Frankie Edgar, Jim Miller—rise to the top.

Welterweight: Thiago Alves

19-9 (11-6 UFC)

Thiago Alves has a job to do in the welterweight division. And for about two years now, he has done it very well.

"The Pitbull" is a near-perfect gatekeeper. You can't catch him, and you can't overpower him. You have to fight him. So if you can beat him, it means you're a good fighter.

Look at what a win over Alves did for Rick Story's career. True, he hasn't won since, but it's the exception that proves the rule. A win over gatekeeper Alves was enough to convince most people, without much further evidence, that Story was ready for prime time.

On the flip side, it was amazing how quickly Pitbull's full exposure of Papy Abedi sent the UFC newcomer tumbling down from the Phenom perch. 

Middleweight: Chris Leben

22-8 (12-7 UFC)

With Chris Leben on the shelf for a while, the gatekeeper's seat for the middleweight division is getting pretty cold.

Where have you gone, Demian Maia? A division turns its lonely, eh, I forget the rest.

Light Heavyweight: Thiago Silva

14-3 (1) (5-3-1 UFC)

A lot of people like to crown Stephan Bonnar here, or someone similar. Folly!

In his UFC career, look who Thiago Silva has beaten: James Irvin, Tomasz Drwal, Houston Alexander, Antonio Mendes, Keith Jardine and Brandon Vera (before Silva went and burned down the men's room with his goat urine, anyway).

Now look at his losses: Lyoto Machida, Rashad Evans, Alexander Gustafsson.

Silva's new nickname should be "The Thresher." Because all he does is separate wheat from chaff, baby. 

Heavyweight: (tie) Roy Nelson and Cheick Kongo

Nelson: 17-7 (4-3 UFC)
Kongo: 17-7-2 (10-5-1 UFC)

Forget Brock Lesnar. Forget Big Nog. The matchup I want to see for Roy Nelson and Cheick Kongo is each other.

Not only for gatekeeper supremacy in the heavyweight division, but for supremacy over the entire history of gatekeeping, going back to the time when towns actually hired men to guard their actual gates.

It allegedly almost happened once before. Here's one unauthorized voter hoping it comes to fruition next time.