Sherdog Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

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Middleweight

1. Anderson Silva (28-4)
Silva showed vintage form in his stunning first-round knockout of countryman Vitor Belfort on Feb. 5. Now, Silva’s training partner, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, revealed recently that Silva could make his next title defense against Yushin Okami at August’s “UFC Rio,” though UFC brass have stated that they are awaiting the results of St. Pierre’s April 30 defense against Jake Shields before locking anything down.

2. Chael Sonnen (25-11-1)
On April 8, Sonnen was sentenced to 24 months’ probation and ordered to pay a $10,000 fine for his role in a 2006 money laundering scheme. With his contract frozen, the fighting future of the onetime UFC middleweight title challenger remains up in the air, but one thing is for certain: Sonnen won’t be coaching the upcoming season of “The Ultimate Fighter” opposite Michael Bisping as previously speculated.

3. Yushin Okami (26-5)
Will he or won’t he? Okami once again found himself at the front of the line for UFC middleweight title contention after shutting down Nate Marquardt in a November decision, but “Thunder” has yet to be assigned his rematch with 185-pound king Anderson Silva. While rumors assert that Okami could finally get his shot at “UFC Rio” in August, he could just as well have to wait for a super-fight between Silva and Georges St. Pierre.

4. Nate Marquardt (31-10-2)
Marquardt was slated to reenter the Octagon against Japanese star Yoshihiro Akiyama at UFC 128. However, Akiyama was forced to withdraw from the bout due to the March 11 disaster in his home country, and Marquardt instead took on late replacement Dan Miller and emerged victorious. "The Great" has since teased the idea of a return to the welterweight division.

5. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza (14-2, 1 NC)
In a great fight, Souza successfully defended his Strikeforce middleweight crown for the first time on Jan. 29, submitting Robbie Lawler in the third round. “Jacare” dominated on the ground but was badly hurt in the first round, battling back from the brink of defeat to notch the rear-naked choke win in the third stanza.

6. Demian Maia (14-2)
Since his five-round decision loss to Anderson Silva in April 2010, Maia has won back-to-back unanimous decisions over Kendall Grove and Mario Miranda. The jiu-jitsu ace will look to make it three in a row when he meets powerful wrestler Mark Munoz on June 11 at UFC 131.

7. Jorge Santiago (23-8)
Sengoku’s middleweight champion has signed on for a second tour of duty with the UFC. Santiago expects to make his return to the Octagon at UFC 130 in May, when he will take the place of Wanderlei Silva and challenge Brian Stann in a fantastic middleweight affair.

8. Vitor Belfort (19-9)
Though many tabbed Belfort a live underdog heading into his Feb. 6 title challenge against Anderson Silva, it seems hard to imagine “The Phenom” not becoming synonymous with his brutal knockout loss to “The Spider” at UFC 126. The Brazilian fight community has already immortalized the knockout as “bicuda na fuca,” and it is sure to be a highlight reel staple for years to come.

9. Michael Bisping (21-3)
Bisping got the last laugh against antagonist Jorge Rivera on Feb. 27 when he stopped “El Conquistador” on second-round punches in their UFC 127 co-headliner. While the Brit’s postfight actions may not have won him scads of new fans, “The Count” proved himself definitively to be a better and more versatile fighter than Rivera. Where Bisping goes from here remains to be seen, but regardless, he remains a valuable commodity for the UFC’s international outings.

10. Hector Lombard (28-2-1, 1 NC)
Bellator’s 185-pound ruler added another scalp to his collection on March 25, slicing 50-fight veteran Joe Doerksen with punches and elbows to force a first-round doctor stoppage in Sydney, Australia. The hard-hitting judoka will attempt to run his impressive win streak to 18 on May 14, when he meets surging Hawaiian Falaniko Vitale in a non-title Bellator bout.

Other contenders: Alan Belcher, Mamed Khalidov, Robbie Lawler, Mark Munoz, Brian Stann.

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