Ranking the Competitiveness of the Five Currently Scheduled UFC Title Fights

UFC 121 is less than one month away. That means that the highly anticipated fight between UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar and Cain Velasquez is closing in fast.

Despite the high anticipation for this fight, many are writing off Velasquez because of the size disadvantage he will face against Lesnar. So, how competitive will this fight be?

Let's find out by comparing it with the four scheduled title fights in the other UFC weight divisions.

5. Georges St. Pierre vs. Josh Koscheck

Whenever a fighter has to talk his way to a title shot, that probably means he doesn't really deserve to be there. While Josh Koscheck is one of the elite UFC welterweight fighters, he has already suffered a loss to Georges St. Pierre and there really isn't much to suggest that a rematch would play out any differently.

There is a good reason fans are clamoring for a fight between St. Pierre and Anderson Silva. That reason is because there is no one in the UFC that poses a threat to St. Pierre at welterweight. While the hype for this fight will be great after The Ultimate Fighter series, anyone hoping for a Koscheck win will be let down after UFC 124.

4. Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort

Some fans are displeased with the fact that Vitor Belfort earned a title shot against Anderson Silva without having fought at middleweight in the UFC. An excellent counter-argument to that would be that Belfort defeated the former middleweight champion Rich Franklin in impressive fashion.

Franklin would likely still be a top contender at middleweight if he had remained at that weight. So, a Belfort win against an even heavier Franklin could be seen as more impressive than a win over any current top middleweight contender.

Nonetheless, Silva is a terrible stylistic match-up for Belfort. While both fighters are known for their striking, Silva is a much better technical striker than Belfort. Expect Silva to pick Belfort apart in a boxing match that goes the distance.

3. Brock Lesnar vs. Cain Velasquez

While Lesnar does hold a significant size advantage in this fight, Velasquez's wrestling ability should not be overlooked. In addition, Velasquez has shown knockout power in his recent fights.

What keeps this fight from being one of the more competitive title fights is the fact that Lesnar has taken punches from a much more powerful Shane Carwin. It is hard to imagine Velasquez being able to knock Lesnar out where Carwin could not.

Also, Velasquez may be able to stuff a few of Lesnar's take down attempts. However, it would be hard to imagine Velasquez being able to continually deny Lesnar for three rounds. Once Lesnar is on top of an opponent, the end of the fight usually isn't very far away. 

2. Mauricio Rua vs. Rashad Evans

While this fight is still a long way away, the UFC has stated that there will be no interim title while Mauricio "Shogun" Rua recovers from an injury. While Rua might otherwise be considered a heavy favorite, giving Greg Jackson trained fighter Rashad Evans this much time to game-plan definitely evens the playing field.

Having re-dedicated himself to a wrestling first fighting style since his loss to Lyoto Machida, Evans has looked impressive in his last two fights against Thiago Silva and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. That being said, if Evans is unable to take this fight to the ground, this fight will be much less competitive than some of the other upcoming title fights.

1. Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard

Gray Maynard is finally going to get his chance to prove that he should have received a title shot before Frankie Edgar. Maynard, who beat Edgar slightly more than two years ago, was forced to take a longer path to his title shot. Many believe the reason his title shot was delayed was because of his less exciting fighting style.

The UFC lightweight champion Edgar, who was an underdog heading into his first title defense against B.J. Penn, is currently listed as an underdog yet again against Maynard.

Despite having lost to Maynard in the past, Edgar has shown incredible improvement in every one of his fights since that loss. It is highly unlikely that a victory for Maynard will come as easy as it did in the first meeting between these two fighters.