Bantamweight

1. Brian Bowles (8-0)
Going into his WEC bantamweight title bout with Miguel Torres, Bowles was thought to be a game challenger but not a major-league threat. In the cage, Bowles was far more than that, as he smashed Torres in the first round to snatch the 135-pound mantle.

2. Miguel Torres (37-2)
Torres was heralded as one of the sport’s pound-for-pound stalwarts and the man to put the 135-pound division on the map. In his fourth defense of the WEC bantamweight title, he was flattened in the first round by impressive upstart Brian Bowles, who handed Torres his first loss in 18 fights.

3. Masakatsu Ueda (10-0-2)
He had to overcome both rope grabbing and eye gouging, but Ueda kept his unbeaten record and Shooto world title on July 19 by taking a well-appointed unanimous verdict over tough Brazilian youngster Eduardo Dantas.

4. Takeya Mizugaki (12-3-2)
Coming off of his wildly entertaining 25-minute brawl with Miguel Torres in April, Mizugaki was done no favors in his second bout in the promotion, as he faced off with veteran Jeff Curran on Aug. 9. However, the Cage Force bantamweight champion survived a last-minute submission scare from Curran to take a hard-fought split decision win.

5. Dominick Cruz (14-1)
A healthy underdog heading into his Aug. 9 bout with Urijah Faber pupil Joseph Benavidez, Cruz was one step ahead throughout the entire bout and deftly outworked Benavidez on the feet and the floor en route to a unanimous decision win. He now figures to be the first title contender for newly minted champion Brian Bowles.

6. Joseph Benavidez (10-1)
Though he came into the bout as a considerable favorite to challenge for the WEC bantamweight title, Benavidez’s undefeated record came to an end at WEC 42. He was outworked in all facets of the game by the much longer and rangier Dominick Cruz.

7. Akitoshi Tamura (14-7-2)
With a successful bantamweight debut over Manny Tapia in April, Tamura was keen to move his divisional record to 2-0 against Damacio Page at WEC 43 on Sept. 2. With the event’s postponement, he will square off with the Greg Jackson charge at Oct. 10.

8. Manny Tapia (10-2-1)
Having lost two in a row, a win is imperative for Tapia when he takes on tough Midwesterner Eddie Wineland. However, “The Mangler” will have to wait until Oct. 10 for the bout after WEC 43 was moved to San Antonio.

9. Damacio Page (11-4)
Page was set to square off with Akitoshi Tamura on Sept. 2 in Youngtown, Ohio. With the postponement of the show, the hard-hitting Greg Jackson disciple will now face the former Shooto world champion on Oct. 10 in San Antonio.

10. Rani Yahya (15-4)
Against John Hosman on Aug. 9, Yahya added another first-round submission to his resume. Three straight first-round tapouts have put the grappling all-star back into contention for another crack at the WEC bantamweight crown.

Other contenders: Antonio Banuelos, Mike Easton, Marcos Galvao, Scott Jorgensen, Eddie Wineland.

* With a return to the ring unlikely given the injuries sustained in his December motorcycle accident, formerly eighth-ranked Will Ribeiro was removed from the rankings.