6) Chuck Liddell (Pictures) (17-3-0) — The UFC light heavyweight champion has won four in row by stoppage: Jeremy Horn (Pictures) (TKO), Randy Couture (Pictures) (KO), Vernon White (Pictures) (KO), and Tito Ortiz (Pictures) (KO). In case you weren’t sure, The Iceman has explosive hands. In April he became the first man to knockout Couture, scoring a first-round win to claim the UFC belt. Liddell has gotten better with age, and seems more comfortable in the cage today than he was two years ago. Liddell doesn’t trump Shogun because he doesn’t possess the skills the Brazilian does. While Shogun can win a fight from anywhere, Liddell has yet to show he can be successful on his back. Randy Couture (Pictures) exploited this in their first meeting in June 2003. Their trilogy comes together at UFC 57 Super Bowl weekend in Las Vegas.

5) Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (Pictures) (25-3-1) 1 NC — If it wasn’t for Fedor, we’d all be trying to figure where “Minotauro” ranks amongst the all-time great MMA heavyweights. Known for an elegant ability to grapple unlike any other heavyweight in the world, Nogueira hasn’t lost to anyone outside of Fedor since 2000 and avenged the only other loss of his career (to Dan Henderson (Pictures) in RINGS) in 2003. The man can take a beating, too. Brutal fights versus Bob Sapp (Pictures), and later in his career against “Cro Cop” as well as the trilogy versus Fedor bear that point out well.

4) Mauricio Rua (Pictures) (12-1-0) — The Brazilian’s only loss came against his countryman Renato Sobral (Pictures) in Sept. 2003. This year the young striker is 5-0, holding impressive victories over Ricardo Arona (Pictures), Alistair Overeem (Pictures), Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (Pictures) and Quinton Jackson (Pictures). There’s no other way to put it except to say that Shogun has exploded in the 205-pound division this year, and his combination of Muay Thai and wrestling skills, as well as an understanding of how to submit and stay out of submissions have this 24-year-old Chute Boxe product the favorite to win Sherdog.com’s Fighter Of The Year honors.

3) Matt Hughes (Pictures) (38-4-0) — Sporting just one loss since the spring of 2001 (a submission defeat versus B.J. Penn (Pictures)), Hughes has basically cleaned out the UFC 170-pound division. With the Penn loss hanging over his head, he armbarred Georges St. Pierre (Pictures) in Oct. 2004. Hughes’ place on this list hangs in the balance with rematches versus Penn and St. Pierre on horizon. Pound-for-pound the strongest fighter in MMA, Hughes has adapted his game of late, moving away from the ground-and-pound M.O. that defined his early career to win three of his last four fights by submission. Interesting stat: nearly 50 percent of Hughes’ wins have come by sub.

2) Takanori Gomi (Pictures) (22-2-0) — Undefeated since losing to B.J. Penn (Pictures) in Oct. 2003, the Japanese lightweight has wins over Jens Pulver (Pictures), Luiz Azeredo (Pictures) and Tatsuya Kawajiri (Pictures). More than winning, Gomi has taken his game to a new level in 2005 and is poised to win the Bushido 160-lb. Grand Prix on New Years Eve. He fights without fear and can dominate from any position. It’s his tenacity on the feet combined with a world-class submission wrestling background that sets Gomi apart from virtually every other fighter on the planet. If he’s impressive in taking out Hayato Sakurai (Pictures) on Dec. 31, Gomi could challenge Fedor for the top spot on this list.

1) Fedor Emelianenko (Pictures) (22-1-0) 1 NC — The Russian PRIDE heavyweight champion and reigning PRIDE Heavyweight Grand Prix champion is the most complete fighter this sport has ever seen. Bold statement? I don’t think so. He is undefeated in last 20 fights (if you include the No Contest) and decisively avenged the only loss of his career. His victory over Mirko Filipovic (Pictures) in August showed how intelligent he is in the ring, and it also displayed what kind of toughness the champ brings with him. With the exception of Sergei Kharitonov (Pictures), Fedor’s beaten every worthy heavyweight PRIDE has to offer, which means he’s beaten nearly all the heavyweights in the world worth fighting. Questions linger about a Fedor-Andrei Arlovski (Pictures) contest. At this point, I don’t see anything that prevents Fedor from dominating that bout. He is the best fighter in the world.