Sherdog Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

Welterweight

1. Georges St. Pierre (19-2)
After thwarting challenges from B.J. Penn and Thiago Alves in 2009, St. Pierre will open his 2010 campaign on March 27 in Newark, N.J., where he will defend his UFC welterweight crown against Dan Hardy. Like his rematch with Penn, his bout with Hardy will get the “Primetime” television treatment from Zuffa.

2. Jon Fitch (21-3, 1 NC)
Fans have grown listless with Fitch’s recent performances. Fortunately, despite his recent workmanlike victories, Zuffa has a wonderful solution: Fitch will take on former foe Thiago Alves at UFC 111 in perhaps the most appealing fight out there for the American Kickboxing Academy product.

3. Thiago Alves (16-6)
Alves will finally get his chance for redemption against Jon Fitch come UFC 111 on March 27. The pair met in June 2006, when a brutal Fitch upkick ended the night for the heavy-hitting “Pitbull.”

4. Dan Hardy (23-6)
A fixture in the UFC’s European efforts, the upstart Brit will have his first UFC bout on American soil on March 27 at UFC 111. Of course, that seems of little significance when compared to the fact that “The Outlaw” will meet Georges St. Pierre for the welterweight mantle.

5. Paulo Thiago (13-1)
Thiago entered his bout at UFC 109 with Mike Swick, once again, as an underdog. Once again, the once-beaten Brazilian blew away an American Kickboxing Academy product, choking Swick out cold in the second round to prove definitively that his victory over Josh Koscheck was no fluke.

6. Josh Koscheck (14-4)
Despite his evolution since appearing on the first season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” Koscheck has yet to challenge for the UFC welterweight crown. In order to earn that right, he will need to take out fast-rising British star Paul Daley at UFC 113 on May 8.

7. Paul Daley (23-8-2)
In his first two UFC outings, Daley blew the doors off of quality fighters in Martin Kampmann and Dustin Hazelett. Now, a UFC welterweight title shot may hang in the balance when he takes on Josh Koscheck at UFC 113 on May 8 in what amounts to a de facto title eliminator.

8. Mike Swick (14-4)
Coming off of a disappointing decision loss to Dan Hardy in November, Swick’s bout with Paulo Thiago at UFC 109 left him in even worse shape. He was choked unconscious in the second round and pushed further back in the UFC welterweight title picture.

9. Nick Diaz (21-7)
Diaz captured the Strikeforce welterweight crown on Jan. 30 in a highly entertaining slugfest with Dream champion Marius Zaromskis. Now, the major question for Diaz is whether his next opponent will be fan-desired challenger Jay Hieron or Japanese veteran Hayato “Mach” Sakurai.

10. Martin Kampmann (16-3)
Though his September spanking from Paul Daley still looms large, Kampmann got back on the winning side of the ledger in impressive fashion at UFC 108, as he took a tidy first-round submission over Jacob Volkmann.

Other contenders: Carlos Condit, Jay Hieron, Dan Hornbuckle, Matt Hughes, Marius Zaromskis.

* With the entry of Nick Diaz, formerly 10th-ranked Carlos Condit moves to the contenders list.