UFC Rankings: Anderson Silva and the Top 10 Middleweights in the UFC

The middleweight division has a lot to offer at the moment.

Just in the top 10 alone there are natives from Brazil, the Unites States, Japan and England.

There are wrestlers, submission artists, strikers, brawlers, and every imaginable mix in between.

The top 185-lb. fighters in the UFC are truly some of the best mixed martial artists in the world.  

The man leading the pack is being heralded by many as perhaps the greatest fighter the UFC has ever seen, and thus, the best the entire sport has ever seen.

Despite the longevity of his success, there is still business that requires his attention in the UFC middleweight division.

These are the top 10 middleweights in the UFC. 7/22/2011.

Fringe

Jorge Santiago

Wanderlei Silva

Alan Belcher

Tim Boetsch

C.B. Dollaway

Chris Weidman

Tom Lawlor

Brad Tavares 

10. Aaron Simpson

Aaron Simpson is 5-2 in the UFC with a 9-2 total professional record.  

Those only two losses are to men ahead of him on this list- Mark Munoz and Chris Leben.

The 37-year-old wrestler is still in phenomenal shape, but probably will not be much more than a high-level gatekeeper going forward.

9. Michael Bisping

Michael Bisping has looked really sharp since moving down to middleweight and racking up a 7-2 record. 

The only two losses are to bona-fide legends Dan Henderson and Wanderlei Silva.

Now riding a three-fight win streak, Bisping will be coaching against Strikeforce transplant Jason "Mayhem" Miller on the next The Ultimate Fighter season.

Although it is a high-profile match, fans are still waiting for Bisping to step up to that higher level of competition again. 

8. Demian Maia

The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu master is 8-3 in the UFC middleweight division with his three losses coming to the top guys in the division.

Although he has put on some very impressive performances during his UFC tenure, Maia definitely loses a little bit of footing in the division by losing a close bout to Mark Munoz in his last outing.

7. Chris Leben

None of Chris Leben's last four bouts have gone to a decision.

Although he was stopped by a surging Brian Stann, Leben himself has stopped Yoshihiro Akiyama, Wanderlei Silva and Aaron Simpson.

The last of which was a brutal knockout of the legendary Wanderlei Silva in less than 30 seconds.

Leben is a force to be reckoned with.

6. Mark Munoz

Munoz has been in no less than four close battles in the UFC middleweight division that have gone to a decision.

His only loss, however, was in one of those close battles against current championship contender Yushin Okami.

He also has three finishes in the division by way of his punching power.  

5. Brian Stann

Brian Stann moved down to the middleweight division last year and has now finished three straight opponents in impressive fashion.

His last two were knockouts over highly regarded fighters Chris Leben and Jorge Santiago.

That momentum has catapulted Stann into a matchup against Chael Sonnen.

Chael Sonnen represents access to contender status and also what has proven to be the most difficult stylistic matchup for Stann in being a high-level wrestler.

4. Vitor Belfort

Many will feel this is too lofty a position for Vitor Belfort, but Belfort's accomplishments still hold up over time.

Before losing to the champion in his last bout, Belfort was coming off of five straight victories, four of which were brutal knockouts.

His devastating first-round knockout over former middleweight champion Rich Franklin at a catch-weight of 195 lbs. counts toward his middleweight ranking for all intents and purposes.

3. Yushin Okami

It is surprising that UFC veteran Yushin Okami is actually the youngest man on this list at 30 years old.

With a 10-2 UFC middleweight record, Okami has been due for his title shot and will get a crack at the champion next month.

Okami owns a victory over the champion by way of disqualification before their UFC careers started and there is certainly some unfinished business left.

Whether Okami can prevail or not, expect him to hang around the title picture for quite some time.

2. Chael Sonnen

Chael Sonnen has been the only man to be able to seemingly loosen Anderson Silva's grip on the middleweight title.

He has suffered time away from the octagon due to performance enhancing drug and money laundering scandals, but the No.2 middleweight in the world is ready to return to action.

Sonnen talks more trash than anyone in the UFC—but he has proven able to back it up with his fighting.

After their upcoming bouts, we may get to see the highly anticipated rematch between Sonnen and Silva.

1. Anderson Silva

Thirty-six-year-old Anderson Silva has defended his belt a UFC record eight consecutive times. It would be nine if Travis Lutter had made weight in their 2007 confrontation.

All eyes will be on Anderson Silva as he headlines the UFC's return to Brazil in August.

He will be looking to extend his records and take out the extremely durable Yushin Okami, who has only been finished once in his career—way back in 2003.