Sherdog Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

---

Welterweight

1. Georges St. Pierre (21-2)
St. Pierre has proven sterling in Montreal, where he has bashed Matt Serra and Josh Koscheck. Next for “Rush” will be an appearance in Toronto on April 30, when he will defend his welterweight crown against Jake Shields in the main event of UFC 129 in front of what will be a massive crowd at the Rogers Centre.

2. Jon Fitch (23-3-1, 1 NC)
Fitch would have had the chance to erase the first stalemate of his career in a rematch of his February draw with B.J. Penn. However, the rangy wrestler suffered a training injury in late March severe enough to force him from the July date. What matchup awaits him upon his return remains to be seen.

3. Thiago Alves (18-7)
Alves did not have much time to savor his win over John Howard at UFC 124 before his name was right back on the UFC docket. “Pitbull” will return in May, when he is scheduled to meet surging welterweight contender Rick Story in a high-stakes bout at 170 pounds.

4. Jake Shields (26-4-1)
Shields made the jump from Strikeforce to the UFC because he felt it was the best way for him to prove his mettle against the world’s best fighters. He will get the ultimate chance to do so on April 30, when he challenges Georges St. Pierre for the UFC welterweight crown at UFC 129 in front of tens of thousands of fans at the Rogers Centre in Toronto.

5. Josh Koscheck (15-5)
Koscheck’s crushing Dec. 11 defeat to Georges St. Pierre was not just figurative; it was literal. Following surgery to repair a smashed orbital bone, Koscheck will spend at least six months on the shelf before returning to action, potentially stepping back into the Octagon sometime this summer.

6. Nick Diaz (25-7, 1 NC)
The ever-gutsy and hard-nosed Strikeforce welterweight champion put on perhaps the gutsiest and hardest-nosed performance of his title reign on April 9. Standing toe-to-toe with British banger Paul Daley, Diaz survived multiple knockdowns and stormed back to force a stoppage at the end of the opening round.

7. B.J. Penn (16-7-2)
Penn fought to a draw for just the second time in his career on Feb. 27, when he took tough welterweight stalwart Jon Fitch the distance at UFC 127. The pair would have danced again at July’s UFC 132, but Fitch was forced from the rematch with an injury, and Penn also withdrew shortly thereafter due to shoulder problems.

8. Carlos Condit (26-5)
The “Natural Born Killer” will return from an eight-month layoff against undefeated “Stun Gun” Dong Hyun Kim at June’s UFC 131. The Greg Jackson product has lost just once in his last dozen outings and currently rides a three fight win streak, including a brutal October knockout of Dan Hardy.

9. Paul Daley (27-10-2)
Daley nearly came out on top in the biggest fight of his career, dropping Nick Diaz early in their April 9 Strikeforce welterweight title fight. However, “Semtex” was unable to finish and had his four-fight win streak halted by Diaz body blows and ground-and-pound late in the first.

10. Diego Sanchez (23-4)
No longer known as “The Nightmare,” Sanchez continued his welterweight dream on March 3, taking a unanimous decision over Martin Kampmann in the main event of UFC Live 3. It was Sanchez’s second straight win at 170 pounds and second straight pocketing of a UFC “Fight of the Night” bonus check.

Other contenders: Ben Askren, Jake Ellenberger, Martin Kampmann, Dong Hyun Kim, Mike Pyle.

Continue Reading » MMA Lightweight Rankings