UFC Against the World: Sizing Up the Competition in Mixed Martial Arts

Where do the best fighters in the world fight?  This is the ultimate measuring stick for mixed martial arts promotions: How many of the world's most elite fighters does your organization have?  The more elite fighters, the better your organization is.  Nothing else on God's green earth but this makes your promotion truly legitimate.   

I was reading through Andrew Mahlmann's piece about MMA promotions recently and this caught my eye: 

"What fans want to see most, however, is not organizations competing, but the fighters. The NFL, NBA, and dominant leagues of their ilk have become the cultural institutions they are because they eventually came to house all the top competition under one roof." 

This started the wheels turning in my head.  Is the UFC "the NFL of MMA" or isn't it?  When discussing MMA with people who are unfamiliar with the sport, I've used these very words to help them understand.  But is it a true statement?  

We can safely say that the UFC stands head and shoulders above all others, but there are definitely a lot of the best fighters in the world who fight for someone else. 

How do all of the major MMA promotions rate, and specifically, where do the best fighters in the world fight?  How many top fighters are currently competing for each? 

To answer this question I compiled the two best current rankings lists that I could think of: Sherdog.com and Fightmatrix.com.  Sherdog does a competent job and its rankings are based on the opinions of respected MMA analysts.  Fightmatrix is a very good computer generated rankings system.  Each has it’s advantages.  Computers are impartial while human opinion can avoid mistakes that a computer just can’t possibly see.  Looking at both of them together gives us the best picture of how things stack up division by division.     

HEAVYWEIGHTS: 206 to 265 Lbs.

Cain Velasquez finishes off Brock Lesnar, capturing the number one ranking and the UFC title.

Sherdog.com Rankings: 

1. 1. Cain Velasquez 9-0-0 UFC
2. 2. Brock Lesnar 5-2-0 UFC
3. 3. Fabricio Werdum 14-4-1 Strikeforce
4. 4. Junior dos Santos 12-1-0 UFC
5. 5. Antonio Silva 16-2-0 Strikeforce
6. 6. Shane Carwin 12-1-0 UFC
7. 7. Frank Mir 14-5-0 UFC
8. 8. Fedor Emelianenko 31-3-0 Strikeforce
9. 9. Alistair Overeem 34-11-1 Strikeforce/DREAM
10. 10. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira 32-6-1 UFC

FightMatrix.com Rankings:

1. 1. Cain Velasquez 9-0 UFC
2. 2. Brock Lesnar 5-2 UFC
3. 3. Fabricio Werdum 14-4-1 Strikeforce
4. 4. Junior dos Santos 12-1 UFC
5. 5. Antonio Silva 16-2 Strikeforce
6. 6. Shane Carwin 12-1 UFC
7. 7. Frank Mir 14-5 UFC
8. 8. Fedor Emelianenko 31-3-1 Strikeforce
9. 9. Alistair Overeem 34-11-1 Strikeforce/DREAM
10. 10. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira 32-6-1 UFC

In virtually all combat sports, the Heavyweight Division is the most important and most watched division in the sport.  This division has struggled throughout MMA’s history.  The best, brightest, most physically gifted athletes inevitably went to other sports like football and basketball because there was a lot more money to be made there. 

As a result, the Heavyweight Division has often played second fiddle to Light Heavyweight.  That trend has changed in recent years, thanks to hugely popular and polarizing figures like Brock Lesnar, Fedor Emelianenko, Alistair Overeem and others.  Heavyweight has taken it’s rightful place as the flag-ship division for the two biggest MMA organizations in the world: The UFC and Strikeforce.

The Heavyweight Division is still recovering from the aftershocks of the fall of the best Heavyweight in MMA history, Fedor Emelianenko.  Fedor’s decade-long winning streak was the one and only exception to the rule that, “The No. 1 ranked fighter in the world is the UFC champion.”  After losing two fights in a row, the Heavyweight Division has fallen in line with all other MMA rankings with the UFC champion being ranked number one in the world. 

The Heavyweight Division today is a story of two promotions: The UFC and Strikeforce.  The UFC has six of the top ten fighters in the world under its banner, while Strikeforce houses the other four.  This is Strikeforce’s strongest division by far, yet the UFC’s Heavyweight Division is still better than the rest of the world combined. 

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTS: 186 – 205 Lbs

Shogun pounds out previously unbeaten Lyoto Machida, claiming the UFC title and "best Light Heavyweight in the world" honors.

Sherdog.com Rankings:

1. 1. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua 19-4 UFC
2. 2. Rashad Evans 18-1-1  UFC
3. 3. Quinton "Rampage" Jackson 31-8 UFC
4. 4. Lyoto Machida 16-2 UFC
5. 5. Jon Jones 12-1 UFC
6. 6. Forrest Griffin 18-6 UFC
7. 7. Ryan Bader 12-1 UFC
8. 8. Antonio Rogerio Noguera 19-4 UFC
9. 9. Rafael Cavalcante 10-2 Strikeforce
10. 10. King Mo Lawal 7-1 Strikeforce

Fightmatrix.com Rankings:

1. 1. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua 19-4 UFC
2. 2. Rashad Evans 18-1-1 UFC
3. 3. Quinton "Rampage" Jackson 31-8 UFC
4. 4. Lyoto Machida 16-2 UFC
5. 5. Jon Jones 12-1 UFC
6. 6. Forrest Griffin 18-6 UFC
7. 7. Dan Henderson 26-8 Strikeforce
8. 8. Randy Couture 19-10 UFC
9. 9. Gegard Mousasi 30-3 Strikeforce
10. 10. Rafael Cavalcante 10-2 Strikeforce

Light Heavyweight is traditionally the most popular and exciting division in mixed martial arts.  Currently, the UFC absolutely owns this division. 

The UFC also owns all the spotlights for this division with the upcoming fight between Mauricio "Shogun" Rua and Jonny "Bones" Jones.  This match up is a battle between two fighters that virtually always finish their opponents and most often completely manhandle them in the process.  You couldn't ask for a better title fight.

The former and current Strikeforce champions get squeezed into the rankings at the ninth and tenth spots, but it’s difficult to make the case that these fighters would be highly successful against the UFC’s midlevel ranks.  Of the three, only Mousasi has the resume of wins that would seem to predict good success against the UFC’s second tier of fighters—like Thiago Silva, Rich Franklin, Lil Nog, Forrest Griffin, Ryan Bader and Matt Hammill.  I can definitely see Cavalcante and Lawal losing to any of those guys.  Mousasi would be a strong matchup for most of them.

At light heavyweight, the UFC is unrivaled as the premier promotion on the planet.  They have the best well-established talent with Lil Nog, Shogun, Machida, Rampage, Forrest, Rashad, Matyushenko and Franklin.  They have the best new talent with Thiago Silva, Jon Jones, Ryan Bader and Phil Davis.  And the UFC has the top six absolutely locked up.

The UFC is very close to being "the NFL of MMA" at Light Heavyweight.

MIDDLEWEIGHTS: 171 – 185 Lbs.

Anderson Silva drops Vitor Belfort with a perfectly thrown front kick to retain his title, making it an unprecedented eight consecutive title defenses of his crown.

Sherdog.com Rankings:

1. 1. Anderson Silva 28-4 UFC
2. 2. Chael Sonnen 25-11-1 UFC
3. 3. Yushin Okami 26-5 UFC
4. 4. Nate Marquardt 30-10-2 UFC
5. 5. Ronaldo "Jarare" Souza 14-2-1 Strikeforce
6. 6. Demian Maia 14-2 UFC
7. 7. Dan Henderson 26-8 Strikeforce
8. 8. Jorge Santiago 23-8 UFC
9. 9. Vitor Belfort 19-9 UFC
10. 10. Michael Bisping 20-3 UFC

Fightmatrix.com Rankings:

1. 1. Anderson Silva 28-4 UFC
2. 2. Chael Sonnen 25-11-1 UFC
3. 3. Wanderlei Silva 33-10 UFC
4. 4. Ronaldo "Jarare"Souza 14-2-1 Strikeforce
5. 5. Yushin Okami 26-5 UFC
6. 6. Jorge Santiago 23-8 UFC
7. 7. Nate Marquardt 30-10-2 UFC
8. 8. Vitor Belfort 19-9 UFC
9. 9. Demian Maia 14-2 UFC
10. 10. Michael Bisping 20-3 UFC

For some reason, the Middleweight division seems to get a lot less attention compared to Welterweight and Light Heavyweight.  This may be due to the fact that there is absolutely no question who the best in the world is.  Anderson Silva is miles better than any other fighter at Middleweight and even if he loses a fight in the near future, he will retain his status as "greatest Middleweight in the history of mixed martial arts" for years and years.  Looking over the top 10 Middleweights, Anderson Silva has already beaten five of them.  After the much anticipated superfight between Anderson Silva and Georges St. Pierre, Anderson's title defense options will probably be one rematch after another: Yushin Okami, Chael Sonnen, Nate Marquardt, etc.

The underlying problem at Middleweight: Anderson Silva makes elite fighters look like amateurs.  The only exception was Chael Sonnen, and since he tested positive for steroids after the fight, it is difficult to put too much weight on his five-round pummeling of Anderson Silva—and in the end, Anderson beat him anyways.

The biggest unknown at Middleweight right now all hinges on the fight with St. Pierre.  Does Anderson move down to Welterweight for the Superfight or does St. Pierre move up to Middleweight?  Is either title on the line and if so, which one?  Will the victor have to pull double-duty by trying to defend two titles simultaneously, or will they vacate one of their belts?  What happens to the title that is vacated?  Tough questions with no answers yet, but I think it actually makes the Anderson Silva vs. Georges St. Pierre fight even more compelling.      

The UFC has an absolute lock on world-wide talent at Middleweight with nine of the 10 best 185 pound fighters in the world fighting for them in the octagon. 

The one exception to this trend is Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza.  To call Souza talented is a huge understatement.  He’s a ten time world champion in submissions grappling competition.  He’s got a better resume in that department than Fabricio Werdum and Demian Maia.  And unlike some Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fighters, Jacare has all the overpowering strength and control as any Greco-Roman or Freestyle wrestler.  He’s a pretty good striker with rapidly improving skills in this department. 

The problem is that Souza and Anderson Silva both train at The Black House.  So it’s unlikely that we’ll see Jacare setting his sights on UFC gold while his teammate still reigns in the UFC.  And with no aspirations for the UFC title, Jacare will probably stay with Strikeforce and continue to defend his title there for now. 

In the Middleweight Division, the UFC is "the NFL of MMA" for all intents and purposes.  Nobody in the world is giving them any real competition at 185 pounds.  

WELTERWEIGHTS: 156 – 170 Lbs.

Georges St Pierre punishes the face of title challenger Josh Koscheck, racking up his 5th title defense and remaining the unquestioned best 170 pound fighter in the world.

Sherdog.com Rankings:

1. 1. Georges St Pierre 21-2 UFC
2. 2. Jon Fitch 23-3-1 UFC
3. 3. Thiago Alves 18-7 UFC
4. 4. Jake Shields 26-4-1 UFC
5. 5. Josh Koscheck 15-5 UFC
6. 6. Martin Kampmann 17-4 UFC
7. 7. Carlos Condit 26-5 UFC
8. 8, Nick Diaz 24-7 Strikeforce
9. 9. Dan Hardy 23-8 UFC
10. 10. Paul Daley 26-9 Strikeforce

Fightmatrix.com Rankings: 

1. 1. Georges St Pierre 21-2 UFC
2. 2. Jake Shields 26-4-1 UFC
3. 3. Jon Fitch 23-3-1 UFC
4. 4. BJ Penn 16-7-1 UFC
5. 5. Nick Diaz 24-7 Strikeforce
6. 6. Josh Koscheck 15-5 UFC
7. 7. Carlos Condit 26-5 UFC
8. 8. Paul Daley 26-9-2 Strikeforce
9. 9. Martin Kampmann 17-4 UFC
10. 10. Thiago Alves 18-7 UFC

The Welterweight Division is much the same story as Middleweight.  The UFC champion Georges St. Pierre absolutely dominates everyone he fights.  The rest of the top ten fighters in the world are almost entirely UFC fighters. 

The most intriguing development at Welterweight is the upcoming Superfight between Georges St Pierre and Anderson Silva. Already mentioned in the previous slide.  What happens when two unbeatable champions square off against each other?  The repercussions of that as yet unscheduled Superfight cannot possibly be overstated.  Whether GSP wins or loses, the UFC Welterweight Division might very well see the end of GSP’s reign of dominance at 170 lbs.  If the fight happens at 185 pounds, GSP might just vacate the Welterweight title and keep the Middleweight title.  If the fight happens at 170 pounds and GSP loses, then Anderson becomes the new champion.  Very likely he vacates that title and returns to Middleweight—leaving the Welterweight division champion-less.

Ironically, both of non-UFC top ten fighters used to fight for the UFC.  After Paul Daley’s infamous post-fight cheep shot punch to the face of Josh Koscheck, Dana White vowed that Daley will never fight in the UFC again.  Now Paul Daley is a very good striker, but his ground game continues to be his biggest weakness.  Time will tell whether Dana White sticks to his guns on this issue, but a lot of that may hinge upon how well “Semtex” fills this gaping holes in his MMA game.

Nick Diaz is another story entirely.  Dana White has stated that he believes Nick is the best fighter in the world outside the UFC.  This could be the beginnings of the UFC making serious efforts to get Nick Diaz back into the UFC.  Unfortunately, Mr. Diaz doesn’t seem interested.  He just recently signed a contract extension with Strikeforce and from his public statements and all other indicators, he’s perfectly happy with Strikeforec.

Daley and Diaz are two prime examples of fighters that I can easily envision getting completely dominated by top UFC fighters.  The UFC’s Welterweight ranks are filled with elite grapplers and wrestlers—Paul Daley’s Achilles heel.  Diaz might hold his own, but he’d almost certainly lose fights against Koscheck, Fitch, Alves, Hughes.  He probably has 50/50 odds of winning against Paul Daley, Martin Kampmann, Dong Hyun Kim, BJ Penn, Carlos Condit, Chris Lytle, Diego Sanchez, Mike Pyle and Jake Ellenberger.  Ultimately, the UFC will get by just fine without the services of Semtex and Nick Diaz. 

Conclusion: The UFC already is “the NFL of MMA” at 170 pounds. 

LIGHTWEIGHTS: 146 – 155 Lbs

Frankie Edgar pummels BJ Penn. Edgar beat Penn two times in a row, erasing all doubt who the UFC championship belt truly belongs to and wrapping up "best Lightweight on the planet" honors.

Sherdog.com Rankings: 

1. 1. Frankie Edgar  13-1-1 UFC
2. 2. Gray Maynard 10-0-1 UFC
3. 3. Gilbert Melendez  18-2 Strikeforce
4. 4. BJ Penn 16-7-1 UFC
5. 5. Shinya Aoki 26-5-2 DREAM
6. 6. Eddie Alvarez 21-2 Bellator
7. 7. Kenny Florian 13-5 UFC
8. 8. Tatsuya Kawajiri 27-6-2 DREAM
9. 9. Jim Miller 19-2 UFC
10. 10. Sean Sherk 36-4-1 UFC

Fightmatrix.com Rankings: 

1. 1. Frankie Edgar 13-1 UFC
2. 2. Gray Maynard 10-0-1 UFC
3. 3. Shinya Aoki 26-5-2 DREAM
4. 4. Gilbert Melendez 18-2 Strikeforce
5. 5. Eddie Alvarez 21-2 Bellator
6. 6. Clay Guida 28-11 UFC
7. 7. Jim Miller 19-2 UFC
8. 8. George Sotiropoulos 14-2 UFC
9. 9. Kenny Florian 13-5 UFC
10. 10. Tatsuya Kawajiri 27-6-2 DREAM

Two things are unclear at Lightweight:

1. The UFC has a lot of great Lightweight fighters, but unlike every heavier weight class, the UFC does not own an overwhelming majority of the world’s elite fighters.  But do Melendez, Aoki, Alvarez and Kawajiri all truly belong amongst the top ten Lightweights in the world? 
2. Clearly the UFC has the best 155 pound division, but who has the second best Lightweight division in the world?

I can’t definitively answer either question.  Melendez, Alvarez, Aoki and Kawajiri have never fought in the UFC and there are precious few common opponents with the UFC’s best fighters.  And you can make a very strong case for Strikeforce, Bellator or DREAM as the second best 155 pound division in the world.

The UFC Lightweight Division has suffered from a lot of misfortune as well as neglect and mismanagement by Zuffa.  After Jens Pulver left the promotion in 2002, the UFC didn’t crown a new Lightweight Champion until 2006, four years later.  In those four years, the best and brightest UFC Lightweights left the UFC for other promotions.  In 2006, Sean Sherk became the new champion by defeating Kenny Florian.  A year later, Sherk tested positive for steroids after his successful title defense against Hermes Franca.  Sherk was stripped of the title and the UFC was once again champion less at 155 pounds.  

After BJ Penn claimed the belt in 2008 the UFC Lightweight Division stabilized and has grown by leaps and bounds since then., but what happened from 2002 to 2008?  . 

In those six years of UFC instability, other promotions were growing their Lightweight divisions and many fighters were achieving legendary status in Japan, Strikeforce and elsewhere.  The UFC has reclaimed the “best in the world” honors at Lightweight, but there are still a lot of legendary fighters in this weight class who built their legacies entirely outside of the UFC. 

Could Shinya Aoki beat Kenny Florian?  Does George Sotiropoulos have what it takes to beat down Eddie Alvarez?  Who would win if Meledez and Edgar fought?  What about Gray Maynard vs. Tatusya Kawajiri?  It’s impossible to say what would happen in all of these cases and we won’t find out anytime soon. 

The UFC gets the nod as the premier 155 pound division, but they’ve got a significant amount of competition.

FEATHERWEIGHTS: 136 – 145 Lbs.

Jose Aldo knocks out Manvel Gamburyan to retain his WEC title and become the first UFC Featherweight champion. Jose Aldo is the consensus number one Featherweight on the planet but a very large margin.

Sherdog.com Rankings: 

1. 1. Jose Aldo 18-1 UFC
2. 2. Hatsu Hioki 23-4-2 Sengoku (WVR)
3. 3. Chad Medes 10-0 UFC
4. 4. Manny Gamburyan  11-5  UFC
5. 5. Michihiro Omigawa 12-9-1  Sengoku (WVR)
6. 6. Marlon Sandro 17-2 Sengoku (WVR)
7. 7. Diego Nunes 16-1 UFC
8. 8. Joe Warren 6-1 Bellator
9. 9. Dustin Poirier 9-1 UFC
10. 10. Josh Grispi 14-2 UFC 

Fightmatrix.com Rankings: 

1. 1. Jose Aldo 18-1 UFC
2. 2. Hiroyuki Takaya 15-8-1 DREAM
3. 3. Chad Medes 10-0 UFC
4. 4. Hatsu Hioki 23-4-2 Sengoku (WVR)
5. 5. Joe Warren 6-1 Bellator
6. 6. Luis Palomino  14-6 Xtreme FC
7. 7. Kazuyuki Miyata 11-7 DREAM
8. 8. Bibiano Fernandes 8-3 DREAM
9. 9. Joachim Hansen 21-10 DREAM
10. 10. Marlon Sandro 17-2 Sengoku (WVR)

The WEC has been a major player at 145 pounds for years, but this is all new to the UFC.  The Featherweight Division welcomes the UFC to the utter chaos of ranking the world’s 145 pound fighters.  The top spot at 145 pounds has long since been claimed for Zuffa during the WEC days.  The rest of the rankings are all over the map.  

Here we have a case of number-cruncher rankings vs. human-created rankings.  Sherdog.com has six UFC fighters in the top ten, two Sengoku fighters one from Bellator and no fighter from DREAM cracks the top ten at all.  Fightmatrix.com has two UFC fighters in the top ten, four from DREAM, two from Sengoku, one from Bellator and one from XtremeFC.  We also see one of the weaknesses of human-made rankings: They don’t immediately update when fighters like Josh Grispi lose a fight.  The weakness of computer generated rankings is demonstrated by the mysterious appearance of unknown fighters like Luis Palomino.

For the most part, this is a repeat of the same problem we see at Lightweight: Long neglect by the UFC has left the Featherweight Division extremely competitive with a lot of fighters making a big name for themselves outside the Zuffa umbrella.  With the WEC handing over this division to the UFC, a tremendous amount of visibility and name recognition was added.  We’ve already seen one non-Zuffa great—Michihiro Omigawa—cross the pond to fight in the UFC’s new Featherweight Division.  With guys like Kenny Florian set to move down to 145 and greater motivation for fighters from Japan and elsewhere, the UFC seems to be poised inherit indisputable “Best Featherweight Division” honors.  They just aren’t there yet. 

Currently, the Featherweight Division is an even three-way split between Sengoku, DREAM and the UFC.  If the UFC is “the NFL of MMA” at 145, then DREAM and Sengoku both qualify as “the AFL of MMA.”  

BANTAMWEIGHTS: 126 – 135 Lbs.

Dominick Cruz completely dominated challenger Scott Jorgensen, defending his title and remaining the top ranked Featherweight in the world.

Sherdog.com Rankings: 

1. 1. Dominick Cruz 17-1 UFC
2. 2. Joseph Benavidez 13-2 UFC
3. 3. Brian Bowles 8-1 UFC
4. 4. Urijah Faber 24-4  UFC
5. 5. Scott Jorgensen 11-4     UFC
6. 6. Miguel Torres 39-3 UFC
7. 7. Takeya Mizugaki 13-5-2 UFC
8. 8. Brad Pickett 20-5  UFC
9. 9. Masakatsu Ueda 12-1-2 Shooto
10. 10. Demetrious Johnson 8-1 UFC

Fightmatrix.com Rankings: 

1. 1. Dominick Cruz 17-1 UFC
2. 2. Joseph Benavidez 13-2 UFC
3. 3. Urijah Faber 24-4 UFC
4. 4. Brian Bowles 8-1 UFC
5. 5. Miguel Torres 39-3 UFC
6. 6. Masakazu Imanari 21-7-2 DEEP
7. 7. Scott Jorgensen 11-4 UFC
8. 8. Zach Makovsky 12-2 Bellator
9. 9. Takafumi Otsuka 11-7 DEEP
10. 10. Wagnney Fabiano 14-3 UFC

The other newest UFC division is the 135 pound Bantamweight Division, and here we see something bordering on the miraculous.  For years the WEC successfully gathered in the best Bantamweights in the world.  Their weight division dominance at Bantamweight has been more complete and more overwhelming than any promotion has ever dominated any MMA division, the UFC included.  The new UFC Bantamweight Division has nine of the 10 best fighters in the world fighting for them and it is very questionable if Ueda, Otsuka, Makovsky and Imanari truly deserve to be ranked higher than Eddie Wineland, Demetrius Johnson, Rani Yahya, Michael McDonald and Brad Pickett. 

Perhaps the biggest reason for the WEC’s success at 135 has been Miguel Torres.  Torres was one of those unbeatable fighters that really built up the Bantamweight Division.  Fighters from all over the world wanted to try their hand at beating this seemingly invincible fighter and more and more fans wanted to see Torres in action.  By 2009 Torres was the WEC champion, had defended his title three times, had a record of 37-1 and was riding a 17 fight win streak.  And though he no longer rules the 135 pound ranks, he’s still a threat to anyone her fights at 135 pounds. 

The current UFC champion is Dominick Cruz and he’s going to be defending his title against the only man to ever beat him, Urijah Faber.  Faber is the most dominant Featherweight champion ever and he’s moving down a weight class to see what he can do at Bantamweight. This should be an incredible fight! 

The UFC is unquestionably “the NFL of MMA” in the Bantamweight Division.  

FLYWEIGHT: 116 – 125 Lbs.

With Jussier da Silva's recent loss to Ian McCall, Yasuhiro Urushitani is the top-ranked Flyweight fighter in the world.

Sherdog.com Rankings: 

1. 1. Jussier da Silva 9-1 Tachi Palace Fights
2. 2. Yasuhiro Urushitani 18-4-6 Shooto
3. 3. Mamoru Yamaguchi 25-5-3 Shooto
4. 4. Yuki Shojo 10-5-2 Shooto        
5. 5. Ryuichi Miki 10-4-3 Shooto
6. 6. Kiyotaka Shimizu 7-3-2 Sengoku (WVR)
7. 7. Alexis Vila 9-0 MFA
8. 8. Fumihiro Kitahara 9-2-1 Shooto
9. 9. Mitsuhisa Sunabe 13-6-4 Pancrase
10. 10. John Dodson 11-5 UWC

Fightmatrix.com Rankings: 

1. 1. Yasuhiro Urushitani 18-4-6 Shooto
2. 2. Mamoru Yamaguchi 25-5-3 Shooto
3. 3. Alexis Vila 9-0 MFA
4. 4. Ian McCall 9-2 Tachi Palace Fights
5. 5. Rambaa Somdet 8-2 Shooto
6. 6. Jussier da Silva 9-1 Tachi Palace Fights
7. 7. Kiyotaka Shimizu 7-3-2 Sengoku (WVR)
8. 8. Yuki Shojo 10-5-2 Shooto
9. 9. Mitsuhisa Sunabe 13-6-4 Pancrase
10. 10. Darrell Montague 9-1 Tachi Palace Fights

The UFC does not have a Flyweight Division currently and the promotion that clearly dominates this division is the oldest formal MMA organization in the world, Shooto.  Shooto has been one of the very few MMA promotions world-wide to focus almost entirely on  very lightest weight divisions in mixed martial arts.  To make matters confusing, Shooto calls their 125 pound division “Bantamweight.”  They even have a 115 pound weight class too. 

Again we see one of the biggest problems with human-made rankings: They don’t automatically update when a fighter loses.  The number one Flyweight in the world, Jussier da Silva lost to Ian McCall on February 18^th. 

Among the elite fighters at Flyweight, we also see several fight organizations most MMA fans have never heard of in their lives.  Tachi Palace Fights is a US based promotion that runs in California.  MFA is another tiny US based promotion in Florida.  Pancrase was once the king of MMA promotions, but these days it’s barely surviving.  Shooto has also been struggling for years.    

Many enthusiastic haters of the UFC would love nothing better than to see the world’s largest MMA promotion go down in flames.  You know what they say, “haters gonna hate.”  But how healthy is an MMA world without the UFC?  You can make a pretty good case that it would look a lot like the current Flyweight Division does today: A complete mess.  The Flyweight Division really needs some help right now and the UFC is probably going to be filling that need very soon. 

The WEC publicly announced plans to create a 125 pound division before the merger with the UFC happened.  UFC President Dana White has echoed those intentions in recent interviews.  This division would be a lot more work than simply adding two already built weight classes that were already built for the UFC ahead of time.  There are no big player promotions operating in this weight class right now so it shouldn’t be too difficult to draw top fighters from all over the world to join a new UFC Flyweight Division.  Organizations like DREAM, Bellator and Strikeforce would likely follow suit.

In the end, this move can only be a benefit for the most important people in mixed martial arts: The fighters.  

Breaking It Down

So how does the UFC stack up with their competition?  How many of the world elite top ten fighters are in the UFC and how many are fight for somebody else? 

Counting the seven major weight classes, here is the breakdown of where the best fighters in the world are today:

Based on Sherdog.com rankings:

• 51 of the 70 best figthers in the world fight for the UFC 
• 11 of them fight for Strikeforce
• 3 of them fight for Sengoku
• 2 of them fight in DREAM
• 2 of them fight for Bellator
• 1 of them fights for Shooto

That’s puts the clear majority of the most elite fighters in the world in the UFC’s ranks, but it also demonstrates that there’s a large number of non-UFC elites. 

Whether the UFC or somebody else does it, the best thing for MMA fans for there to be nothing preventing the best MMA fighters in the world from squaring off against each other.  I’d love to see Alistair Overeem fight Cain Velasquez.  It’d be great to see Brock Lesnar fight Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva.  I’d love to see Gilbert Melendez take on Frankie Edgar – the two men are virtual mirror images of each other.  It’d be great to see what Maynard has for pretty much any top 20 non-UFC fighter.  I’d love to see Gegard Mousasi against pretty much anyone in the UFC.  If Fedor can get his career back on track, I’d love to see him fight Frank Mir or Brock Lesnar.  Trouble is, all of these fights are impossible in the sport today.  If anyone can make these fights happen, I’m all in favor of it.

Conclusion: The UFC is not "the NFL of MMA" but they're far and away the closest thing to it that the  sport of mixed martial arts has.