Anderson Silva Edges Out GSP in ESPN's First Pound-for-Pound Rankings

UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva has an ESPN panel convinced that he is just a little bit more dominant than UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre. 

ESPN.com writers Josh Gross, Franklin McNeill and Brett Okamoto voted in on the matter, as well as ESPN.com editor Darius Ortiz and MMA Live host Jon Anik.

Silva’s praises were sung when the panel agreed that “there are few fighters in the sport that can entertain simply by hitting the heavy bag. Silva is one of them. His movement in the cage seems almost choreographed and, when he wants to be, he's a proven finisher.”

Criticism was minimal, citing his strange antics during his match with Demian Maia, but little else. 

St-Pierre’s strengths were highlighted by this statement:

“We already knew he possessed a takedown that apparently no man weighing 170 pounds can stop; now he's added a devastating jab to his standup, which he picked up from Freddie Roach (the same Freddie Roach who trains boxer Manny Pacquiao).”

As far as negatives went, ESPN cited that GSP recently said that Silva is the most dominant fighter in MMA at this point.

Additionally, the analysts agreed that it would be nice for him to finish fights a little more frequently. 

UFC featherweight champ Jose Aldo earned the still-coveted No. 3 spot, earning high marks for his well-rounded striking and tough-to-defend speed. 

The only real knock on Aldo is that he suffered compacted vertebrae in September, and the panel questioned his durability after suffering an injury of this magnitude this early in his career.

Aldo is presently just 24 years old. 

UFC lightweight and bantamweight champions Frankie Edgar and Mauricio Rua, respectively, rounded out the top five. 

Fans are likely to wonder about the bottom half of the list though. 

Few hardcore MMA fans would consider UFC bantamweight title holder Dominick Cruz the sixth-best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, even with a 17-1 professional record.

Reigning UFC heavyweight champ Cain Velazquez is arguably a reasonable fit for the No. 7 spot after three convincing wins in a row, but after Velazquez is where the list really gets dicey.

No one is going to question light heavyweight Jon Jones' ability, but it seems a little too early in his career to put him in a top 10 pound-for-pound list until he gets some gold around his waist.

He can shake off all critics if he can dethrone Rua at UFC 128 on March 19.

Jake Shields is probably a fair addition to the list at No. 9. He he has rattled off 15 wins in a row, although he looked very beatable in his most recent outing against Martin Kampmann. 

It has almost been unanimously declared that Shields performed poorly due to a quick and substantial weight cut to make 170 pounds against Kampmann.

Seeing how Shields fairs against an elite fighter like St-Pierre at UFC 129 will really solidify where he stands in the sport. 

The pick most likely to have fans in an uproar, especially Strikeforce fans, is Gray Maynard closing out the list at No. 10. 

Maynard took Edgar to the brink in his second professional encounter at UFC 125, where Edgar’s tenacity was highlighted after getting brutalized in the first round,  then miraculously fighting back for a draw.

At the same time, it is tough to ignore Maynard’s inability to finish fights. His past seven victories have been by decision, and his wrestling style is the definition of “lay and pray.”

Even the most die-hard UFC fan has to acknowledge that Maynard making the list over Strikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez is questionable. 

So in a nutshell, ESPN’s top 10 pound-for-pound list is as follows: 1. Anderson Silva, 2. Georges St-Pierre, 3. Jose Aldo, 4. Frankie Edgar, 5. Mauricio Rua, 6. Dominick Cruz, 7. Cain Velazquez, 8. Jon Jones, 9. Jake Shields, 10. Gray Maynard. 

What does everyone think? Did the panel get it right? Is this an obvious UFC bias, or is the competition at Strikeforce really devoid of an elite fighter right now?