UFC 137 Results: Will Roy Nelson Ever Become an Elite Heavyweight?

Roy Nelson lives to fight another day.

The Ultimate Fighter Season 10 winner defeated MMA legend Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic at UFC 137 on Saturday in what was considered a "loser leaves the UFC" bout.

The mantra in the UFC is typically three strikes and you're out.

Coming off back-to-back losses to Frank Mir and Junior dos Santos, Nelson fended off a determined Cro Cop to keep his job and maintain his position among the sharks in the deep heavyweight pool.

Will Nelson ever become an elite heavyweight?

There are still some serious improvements in Nelson's overall game that have to be made before he earns that label.

Even though he looked leaner than he has in years, Nelson continued to show struggles with his cardio against Cro Cop. Along with cardio issues, he still needs to shore up some holes in his boxing defense too.

It's tough to predict the future for any fighter, but at 35 years of age, the door is slowly closing on Nelson.

With the Strikeforce roster jumping ship, it's going to become even tougher for a him to stay afloat among the young studs and world-class veterans.

He can give any fighter in the heavyweight division a decent scrap, but with his current skill set, Nelson isn't prepared to deal with upper-echelon foes.

When thinking about a heavyweight placement for Nelson, he seems to fall in line with heavyweights such as Cheick Kongo, Brendan Schaub, Matt Mitrione and Travis Browne, which certainly isn't a bad place to be.

Regardless of where "Big Country" ranks in the heavyweight division, his UFC future is safe and secure.