Predicting Who Will Be Wearing UFC Gold At The End Of 2011
As we prepare to bid farewell to 2010, you can't help but look back and think about what a great year it was for the UFC. With three title changes, a sports promotion absorption, and a professional boxer getting introduced to the business end of an MMA glove; the sport's biggest promotion will continue to grow well into the new year and beyond.
With all the unpredictable changes happening this year, I'm sure that anyone who made their predictions around this time last year were probably caught off guard big time. So with that said, the folks here at Bleacher Report would like to throw their hat in the ring to see if we can come up with some possible shockers for 2011 title changes.
We expect the comments board to light up on this one....
Bantamweight: Faber Will Hold The Title By Year's End
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At 31, the Team Alpha Male leader has found a new home in the 135-pound division. In his recent divisional debut last month against Takeya Mizugaki he put on a great display of speed, power and striking, eventually earning the submission to finish the fight.
Post interview, the former 145-pound champ said that he felt great and that bantamweight seemed like the overall better weight class for him from a training and diet perspective.
Now that the WEC is being folded into it's much larger and more popular parent, the UFC, Faber will have the ability to expand his mainstream profile even further.
Featherweight: Jose Aldo Will Stay Champ For 2011 and Beyond
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Don't let that smile fool you. This man has the ability to hit you with both knees before you hit the ground. With the speed of a cheetah and the tenacity of a wolverine, UFC Featherweight Champ, Jose Aldo will continue to run like a hot knife through butter in the 145-pound division and there is simply nobody out there that can stop him right now.
Lightweight: Frankie Edgar Will Finally Teach The Bully A Lesson
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In what was the true underdog story of 2010, Frankie Edgar showed that through hard work and determination, you can accomplish anything.
Through his two victories over former division juggernaut, BJ Penn, "The Answer" leaves us with us with very little questions going into 2011.
Kicking off the new year, Edgar faces off against Gray Maynard at UFC 125 for just his second title defense. In their first meeting back at UFC Fight Night: Florian vs Lauzon over two years ago, Maynard used his size and strength to out muscle the much smaller champion for the win.
Now with the title at stake, and his more than impressive run of victories since that loss. Edgar could prove that he's not the same fighter and could end up using his phenomenal speed and footwork to frustrate Maynard into making a mistake.
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Welterweight: Jake Shields Will Be GSP's Swan Song At 170
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After last Saturday night, George St. Pierre showed us that there is nobody in his division that can really stand a chance of beating him. Once he defeats Jake Shields in what will probably be a late Spring / early Summer affair, it leaves the door wide open for GSP to bulk up and prep for a highly anticipated year ending superfight with middleweight champ Anderson Silva.
What does that mean for the welterweight division? Well it means that there will be a vacancy and perhaps Jon Fitch will finally get his due.
Middleweight: Anderson Silva Will Lose To GSP In a December Blockbuster Card
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The itsy-bitsy "Spider"
Came through with championship clout
Down came the regin
Once GSP wiped the Spider out
Sorry, I couldn't help it. However, once Anderson Sliva lays Vitor Belfort to waste in February, fans will be chomping at the bit to get him in the cage with George St. Pierre in the ultimate middleweight superfight.
GSP poses the same the same threats that Chael Sonnen did to Silva, however "Rush" is an overall better athlete who can defend himself on the ground.
If St. Pierre can pull off what was once thought to be impossible, look for Silva, 35, to either retire or move up to the light heavyweight division for 2012.
Light Heavyweight: Jon Jones Becomes Champ
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Rising light heavyweight star Jon Jones is on the fast track to a title shot for 2011. With strong showings over both Brandon Vera and Vladimir Matyushenko, Jones is set to take on another rising star in Ryan Bader at UFC 126.
If he is able to secure a decisive victory over Bader, he could end up getting pitted against either Rampage Jackson or Forrest Griffin by the summer, either of which would be a massive test for "Bones"
Provided that he gets past his early summer match up, Jones could end up in a year ending co main event against the winner of Evans and Shogun (hopefully Shogun since Evans and Jones are on the same team).
Heavyweight: Cain Velasquez Will Stay Champ For 2011
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Newly crowned champ Cain Velasquez's first title defense against Junior dos Santos in 2011 will merely serve to demonstrate why he'll continue to be champ for the next few years beyond 2011.
His tireless work ethic and incredible versatility make him a virtually unbeatable champion. There is practically nobody in the division with his balance of skill that would pose any major threat to his title.
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