UFC 136 Fight Card: Ranking the Best Fights on the Card

This weekend in Houston, Texas, fans will get an opportunity to witness not one, but two title defenses in the same night at UFC 136.

The last event where two titles fights were on the same card was back in April of 2010 at UFC 112, when Frankie Edgar captured the lightweight title and Anderson Silva defended his middleweight championship against Demian Maia.

Now, Edgar will once again defend his belt, and look to end the trilogy with Gray Maynard on a high note.

Maynard is the only fighter to ever defeat Edgar, and at UFC 125 earlier this year, they fought in one of the best fights in UFC history that ended in a draw.

Both fighters will look to prove to everyone who the better fighter is.

Before Maynard and Edgar continue their war, we will see featherweight champion Jose Aldo defend his UFC featherweight title against featherweight newcomer Kenny Florian.

Florian was once one of the top fighters in the lightweight division, but after losing to Maynard for the No. 1 contender spot, decided to move down a weight class and grabbed his fist victory in dominating fashion.

The card for Saturday night is one of the most stacked cards of the year and could very well be the best event of 2011.

Aside from both title fights, we will also see Anthony "Showtime" Pettis, who rarely disappoints, as well as the always-entertaining Melvin Guillard, and the return of Chael Sonnen.

Let's take a look at some of the best fights on this weekend's card.

7) Leonard Garcia vs. Nam Phan

The first fight on Saturday's main card is a tale of unfinished business between Nam Phan and Leonard Garcia.

The two first met at the Ultimate Fighter Finale: Team GSP v. Team Koscheck. Phan was a semifinalist on the show and was originally slated to face Alex Caceres, who would later be forced off the card due to injury.

Garcia stepped in and the two went to war for three straight rounds. At the end of the fight, Garcia was awarded the split decision in what has been called one of the most controversial decisions ever.

Garcia always puts on exciting fights and has received several close decisions just because of his aggressive fighting style.

UFC President Dana White, however, was so sure that Phan had won the fight that he made sure the 28-year-old was awarded his win bonus.

The two were originally supposed to rematch at UFC Fight Night 24, but Phan was forced off the card due to injury, and the "Korean Zombie" Chan Sung Jung stepped in to face Garcia and finished him with a sick twister submission.

Garcia has been out of the fight game since due to injuries, and is looking to get back into the octagon and prove that he not only earned the first victory, but is the overall better fighter.

Phan enters the octagon in a must-win situation, as he has gone 0-2 since entering the UFC. After the loss to Garcia, Phan lost a unanimous decision to former WEC champion Mike Brown.

If Phan cannot come out with a victory Saturday, his UFC career could be over as quickly as it started.

6) Demian Maia V. Jorge Santiago

After losing a unanimous decision to middleweight champion Anderson Silva at UFC 112, it was clear that Demian Maia had to improve his overall fight game.

A black belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu, Maia continuously tried to force Silva to the ground to use his impressive submission skills, but could not do so.

Silva knew the dangers of going to the ground, so he stayed on the feet and embarrassed Maia in the stand up.

In his last three fights, Maia has drastically improved his standup, winning two unanimous decisions, and losing a close fight to Mark Munoz.

Both fighters were known for the ground game, as Munoz was a decorated wrestling champion, but for the most part the fight stayed on the feet and the two went to war.

Maia will look to bounce back from the defeat against Jorge Santiago, who recently returned to the UFC after leaving the organization in 2006.

Since leaving, Santiago has gone 11-1 in different organizations and has looked impressive in his victories.

In his first fight back, however, Santiago was defeated by talented former Marine Brian Stann by TKO, and Santiago looked anything but impressive in the fight and will look to show everyone, including Dana White, that he's still got it.

Look for this fight to stay standing for some time, but if it goes to the ground, look out, because the fight could be over in a blink of an eye for either fighter.

5) Joe Lauzon V. Melvin Guillard

One of the most impressive fighters in the lightweight division today is Ultimate Fighter alum Melvin Guillard.

Guillard is currently on a five-fight win streak and has yet to be knocked out in his career. Since 2008, Guillard has gone 8-1 and has done so in dominant fashion.

Of those eight fights, Guillard has finished four of them by way of knockout or TKO, including an impressive knockout of current lightweight contender Dennis Siver.

As impressive as Guillard has been lately, it seems that the he has not received a step up in competition because of it.

All five of his recent victories have come against fighters that are outside of the top 10 in the division. After getting a split decision victory over Jeremy Stephens back at UFC 119, Dana White and UFC matchmaker Joe Silva were probably not convinced of Guillard's ability to contend.

However, in his last two fights, Guillard has dominated both Evan Dunham and Shane Roller, ending both fights in the first round.

After two impressive victories, it seems the UFC still is not convinced, as he now faces Joe Lauzon, a talented submission fighter who is 2-2 in his last four fights and has never been able to win against top competition.

If he wants to be considered as a contender in a jam-packed lightweight division, Guillard will not only have to win on Saturday, but do so in dominating fashion.

If Guillard is victorious, that should be enough for the UFC to throw some tough matchups at him, like Jim Miller, Matt Wiman, or a rematch with Nate Diaz.

4) Anthony Pettis V. Jeremy Stephens

Why this fight is on the preliminary card continues to amaze me, but I guess I'll will have to make due.

The fight between Antony Pettis and Jeremy Stephens will no doubt be action-packed and will challenge for fight of the night.

While in the WEC, Pettis earned his nickname "Showtime" with some of the most impressive high-flying moves.

He challenged then-WEC lightweight champion Ben Henderson in the final WEC event, and made everyone's jaw drop when he jumped off the cage and hit Henderson with a flying kick to the face.

If anyone in an MMA conversation mentions "the kick," he is talking about Showtime.

Pettis would go on to win the belt and was next in line to face the winner of the Frankie Edgar-Gray Maynard title fight at UFC 125.

However, because that fight went to a draw, an immediate rematch was made and Pettis was forced to wait.

The 24-year-old did not want to wait too long before making his UFC debut, so he agreed to face fellow lightweight contender Clay Guida.

Unfortunately for Pettis, Guida dominated the fight and won an unanimous decision. Because of this, Pettis lost his No. 1 contender spot as well as his main card appeal (which I disagree with).

Pettis will not have an easy task in his second UFC fight, as he takes on Jeremy Stephens, a vicious knockout artist who was at one time in the top 10 in the division.

Stephens has finished 14 of his 20 victories by way of knockout or TKO and plans to do more of the same against Pettis.

This fight is the first card shown on Spike TV and will no doubt get the rest of the night started with a bang.

These two will look to take each other's heads off, with Pettis looking to regain his contender spot and Stephens looking to put Showtime on the Facebook prelims.

3) Chael Sonnen V. Brian Stann

The moment a lot of fight fans have been waiting for has finally come, as Chael Sonnen makes his return to the octagon.

The last time we saw Sonnen fight was at UFC 117, where he dominated middleweight champion Anderson Silva for four-and-a-half rounds before tapping to an arm triangle.

After the fight, it was assumed that rematch would be made, until it was discovered that Sonnen had failed a post-fight drug test that showed that Sonnen had elevated testosterone levels.

Sonnen was suspended until September and was then scheduled to face Yoshihiro Akiyama in March. Sonnen was taken off of the card, however, and his contract was put on hold because of a money laundering conviction.

Now that all of that is behind him, Sonnen wants to get back into the mix and earn his rematch with Silva.

It won't be a walk in the park for Sonnen, as he has to go up against Brian Stann, who has been slowly climbing the ranks in the middleweight division.

One would expect the trash-talking Chael Sonnen that we all know and love (or hate) would return, but he has no plans of that because of the respect he has for Stann.

Since dropping a unanimous decision to Phil Davis in February of last year, Stann has gone on a impressive three-fight win streak.

The former WEC light heavyweight champion's victories include an upset knockout against Chris Leben and a dominating TKO over returning Jorge Santiago in May.

It will be interesting to see if ring rust is an issue for Sonnen, as he has been out of the fight game for over a year after losing to Silva.

Both fighters have aggressive fighting styles and will come right at each as soon as the referee says go.

This fight has title implications surrounding it and will no doubt be a contender for "Fight of the Night."

2) Kenny Florian V. Jose Aldo

Since finishing second in the first season of the Ultimate Fighter, Kenny Florian has been a force to be reckoned with in the lightweight division.

However, Florian has come up short when it comes to big fights. He lost a unanimous decision to Sean Sherk in his second lightweight fight for the vacant title.

After that, he won his next six fights and challenged then-champion BJ Penn for the title, but lost yet again, this time by rear naked choke. Florian was dominated in that fight and did not look like the fighter that had won six in a row.

Penn would later lose his title to Frankie Edgar, which gave Florian another opportunity to capture the belt, as long as he could beat Gray Maynard.

Florian would lose yet again to Maynard, and was once again dominated. After the fight, President Dana White labeled Florian a "choker" when it comes to big fights.

With another loss in the lightweight division, Florian decided to make the move down to featherweight and cruised to his first victory over Diego Nunes.

The victory was so convincing, the UFC decided to give him a title shot against Jose Aldo this Saturday.

Aldo has not lost in six years and has won seven of his last nine fights by either knockout or TKO. Aldo does not just beat his opponents, he destroys them.

The 25-year-old has not been beating lower talent, either, as he has defeated top names as Manvel Gamburyan and former champions Urijah Faber and Mike Brown.

If the fight stays standing, which I am sure Florian is not looking to do, Ken Flo could be in some serious trouble.

Aldo's speed as well as his high-flying moves can be devastating, including his double flying knee that knocked out Cub Swanson in just eight seconds.

Florian will have his hands full with this one, but hopes to show not only White, but the rest of the world that he can come through and finally wear the gold around his waste.

1) Gray Maynard V. Frankie Edgar

The last time Gray Maynard and Frankie Edgar fought, fight fans witnessed one of the greatest title fights in UFC history.

These two went to war for five rounds and the fight unfortunately ended in a draw.

The fight started with a dominating first round from Maynard, one in which many did not think Edgar could recover from. A lot of fans scored that round 10-8 for Maynard because he was able to knock down Edgar and control him on the ground with strikes.

However, Edgar stunned us all when he came back full force and landed some impressive strikes, as well as an amazing slam, earning him two rounds at least.

When the judges turned in their scorecards and the result was announced, it felt like I had just kissed my cousin. I got some action, but we all know it wasn't right.

The debate began over who actually won. Those in favor of Maynard said the 10-8 first round score would have made it impossible for a draw to occur if the rounds Edgar won were scored 10-9.

Those in favor of Edgar believed that the champion had octagon control, as well as showed enough heart and determination to win the fight and remain champion.

I expect these two to start right where they left off from their last fight in the final match of the trilogy.

Maynard is the only loss on Edgar's resume and he is looking to get his revenge, while Maynard is looking to add another win to his undefeated record and show the world that he has been the best lightweight in the division all along.

One this is for sure: These guys do not like each other, and fight fans will reap the benefits of it.

Expect another war and another "Fight of the Night."