Power Rankings 10/15

Okay here are the Following the Flow Power Rankings. The fighters in each class are listed in a rough ranking with comments on the side. This isn't a pure talent level ranking system as that is not the only factor in determining who gets a title shot. Drawing ability is an important part of the decision making process on who fights who.



Heavyweight

Tim Sylvia - Sylvia's next bout would be against Jeff Monson it looks like and Big Tim has already said he won't get taken down. We'll see. He's gone if he does get taken down though. Monson is monster on the canvas.

Jeff Monson - I'd love to see Monson take the belt from Sylvia. The grapplers get second son status sometimes but Monson is an Abu-Dhabi vet and can hang with or beat anyone on the floor. It would be one hell of a reach advantage for Sylvia though. Tim's sprawl will decided this one.

Brandon Vera - Rumor has it that Vera fights Mir next which will be a stern test and one that would most likely, if he wins, get him a title shot. Hell if either man wins he'll get a title shot i'd guess.....there's just no one else.

Arlovski - What now for Arlovski? I bet we see him in K1 for a bit until he can get a good streak going or until we get a new champ.

Cheick Kongo - Kongo and Vera look to be the guys who can make a run at the title next. I'd love to see Kongo vs Arlovski, who's with me?

Marcio Cruz - Cruz looked alright despite losing to Monson. Who next for Cruz? Mir?

Frank Mir - Can Vera make a name off the former champ? Can Mir actually make some sort of comeback? If he beats Vera he may well get a title shot.

Tom Murphy - With the dearth of contenders here Murphy might just have an opportunity at some big time names.

Brad Imes - When will we see the big man again? Imes vs Sylvia would be fun to watch. If the Octagon doesn't collapse.

Dan Cristison - Lost to Mir but looked okay doing it, maybe gets another shot in the UFC. Cristison/Imes could be fun.


Light heavyweight

Chuck Liddell - Liddel destroyed Sobral easily but man I can't wait for the Liddell Ortiz rematch. My god that could be a war. Can Liddell stuff an Ortiz takedown? I'm thinking maybe some, but not all.

Tito Ortiz - Beat down and owned Shamrock but then that was kind of expected wasn't it. Ortiz/Liddell is going to be explosive.

Renato Sobral - At some point I want to see Sobral vs Ortiz but that wouldn't be until next year at the earliest....and will it be a title fight? Until then there are a few nice options for Babalu to fight. Griffin.....Rashad Evans...and Bisping would be interesting choices. Hamill possibly too.

Forrest Griffin - Who next for Forrest? Did someone say Babalu? C'mon Forrest let us see the groundgame. Stop trying to cater to the fans or UFC brass and do what you do best.

Michael Bisping - I'm surprised Bisping hasn't had a fight yet sine the TUF finale. I'm sure one day we'll see a Bisping/Hamill match which would be compelling indeed, i'd also like to see Bisping against the young guy Gouveia. You know, a warm up before he takes on some of the heavies.

Rashad Evans - Evans hasn't shown much improvement at all since TUF. His style is basically lay and pray and avoiding submissions. Still shows potential with his boxing but like I said, no improvement. He beatdown Lambert nicely but still it seems his only ground weapon is to get a mount and then do the deed, he showed nothing from any other position. He can control anyone but do we want another, more athletic, Matt Lindland? NO.

Matt Hamill - Tito's love child will get some action in the UFC and while wrestling/ground and pound is not my favorite style Hamill can do it very effectively. He beat a game Silverback Seth but Seth looked better than last time I saw him on the ground.

Seth Petruzzelli - Seth did alright for a guy who at last glance had hardly any groundgame going against an Olympic caliber wrestler. He was way to quick to slide into guard. C'mon work for top position and fall back to guard if need be. Too many guys take up jiu-jitsu and then become too complacent to jump to guard. Seth also needs to work on his hands but the potential is there because he is a pretty good striker already. Good at judging distances and moving away from danger.

Alessio Sakara - What next for Sakara? Petruzzelli? Jardine?

Stephan Bonnar - Things are getting ugly for Bonnar, he's not improving, he's losing and now tested positive for banned substances. AND HE STILL LOST?!? Get it together man.

Keith Jardine - Jardine looked slow, stiff and awkward against Wilson Gouveia but he should that he's tough and has good cardio which was enough. There really hasn't been much improvement though and my enthusiasm for Jardine is waning.

Wilson Gouveia - This guy looked really good. He dominated the first round and despite collapsing in the final two I believe he was the better fighter. If he works on his cardio he could go bigtime. He was comfortable and light on his feet and his kick boxing was better than Jardine's and Gouveia is a BJJ guy, we didn't even see that part of his game.



Middleweight

Anderson Silva - I don't know how good the groundgame is but you can see his standup is worldclass. What will happen when he lands flush on Rich's jaw? Okay so it was a knee that caught Ace flush either way it's a win. "And new UFC middleweight champion...." Who gets the first title defense? Swick? That could be a hell of a good fight.

Rich Franklin - The fight with Anderson Silva is going to be dangerous. The only knocks on Ace are his chin and lack of wins against credentialed fighters. This fight will test both of those things. So now Ace has to fight his way back to contention. Unless Dana White hands him a shot now which honestly would be just silly. I want to see Rich on the comeback trail, see him get fired up. Franlkin vs Marquardt still seems like a good fight.

Mike Swick - He looked like the better fighter against the Crow. Too bad Loiseau forgot to show up. Swick is pushing hard for a title shot and may well get it soon. I'm not sure what Silva winning the belt does to change things as far as whoever wins TUF 4 but Swick figures in there somehow. The standup fight in a Silva/Swick fight would be explosive, hell don't blink! For that reason and because Swick's stock is on the rise I expect him to get either the next title shot or the one after it.

Nate Marquardt - Nate has been waiting in the wings for a while since being tested positive for a banned substance. He's got legit credentials to make a title shot run and may deserve it more than Swick but I doubt it will happen just yet. Unless the UFC is just letting him work out his contract and then cut him loose i'd say he'll get a title shot next year or early next year. Be patient Nate, it's coming.

David Loiseau - I want Loiseau vs Spider Silva so bad I can taste it. Loiseau looked like he was seeing ghosts against Mike Swick and he was afraid to throw hands.......and feet. Loiseau/Leben could be fun.

Evan Tanner - What next for the former champ? I'd like to see him go against Leben at some point that would be a war! C'mon Evan Tanner, we need you.

Dave Terrell - Needs a fight, Marquardt would be a good one.

Chris Leben - Leben is going to be hungry after being dismantled by Silva. I still say bring on Riggs.

Dean Lister - Bring on Dave Terrell, what a grappling exhibition that would be.

Kendall Grove - The kid has heart, he's a taller Kenny Florian. Determination seems to be his great, and only, weapon.

Joe Riggs - Riggs is over-rated. He didn't deserve a shot at Hughes and he lost. I think he should be on TUF 4 myself. Can you say Riggs vs Leben??? Mmmmmm.

Jason McDonald - What an impressive with over Herman. I look forward to seeing more from the Canadian in the future.

Kalib Starnes - Kalib looked great on the show despite injuries, he's got a lot of skills. I'd like to see him fight Ed Herman. Starnes lost his last match but his opponent was solid. Kalib has real talent, watch out for him.

Ed Herman - Tough loss to the newcomer Jason McDonald but nothing to be ashamed of.

Rory Singer - Rory really choked on TUF so i'm not terribly impressed with him but he has some skills. I think he'll get beaten once or twice more and be out of the UFC.

Scott Smith - Smith vs Herman would be interesting.


Welterweight

Matt Hughes - Matt beat Penn because of patience and cardio but for those two rounds Penn looked like the better fighter. Truth be told Hughes didn't win so much as Penn lost when he gassed out big time. Next up, St. Pierre. The welterweights are deep and have some really spectacular fighters.

George St. Pierre - You can bet GSP's cardio will be where it needs to be and the fact that Penn made Hughes look thoroughly human only helps. Would Hughes have been as upset with GSP saying he was unimpressed by his (Hughes') performance against Penn if it weren't true?

Diego Sanchez - Diego looked his strongest against Karo at the end which speaks volumes for his cardio. He's a legit contender and will get the call after the Hughes/GSP bout.

BJ Penn - What now for the former champ? Does Penn drop down to lightweight now with losses to the champ and the number one contender? That would make a dynamite division just full to bursting. If so I want to see Penn/Sanchez first. Oh yeah. It would be after Diego gets a title shot of course, UFC won't risk a prime contender getting a loss before he gets the title shot.

Karo Parisyan - I was disappointed at the Karo that showed up against Diego. The standup looked to be a step backward from his last fight. Karo vs Koscheck would be fun.

Jon Fitch - Fitch is coming on strong. I'd like to see him and Diaz go at it.

Nick Diaz - That fight with Sherk was great, maybe a fight of the year contender. It may not have been as explosive as many but the technique in it was fabulous. Diaz always impresses me with his technique, whether boxing or grappling. The kid's game is just beautiful to watch. If only he'd keep his mouth shut and do the thing. He seemed to show class with Sherk at the end of the fight but no telling what happened after the decision was announced. Diaz has lost several tough, close decisions. Maybe you can fault him for not finishing them but that just seems picky when you see a young guy with the all around skills that Diaz has. He'll be champ one day mark my words. He could stand to be a little less defensive and go for some sub attempts.

Kuniyoshi Hironaka - He lost to Jon Fitch but looked composed, patient and skilled doing it. At least the groundwork. He might even deserve to be ranked higher here but his lack of notoriety in the states hurts him. I'd like to see more of Hironaka myself and am glad the UFC is bringing in more talent from outside the U.S.

Josh Koscheck - Josh's standup looked very good and very crisp, very light on his feet. He looks ready to make some serious noise.

Josh Burkman - What next for Burk? I'd like to see him against Kos.

Josh Neer - Neer looks like he can give just about anyone a good fight. I'd like to see a Fickett rematch with Neer rearranging his grill but that's just me.

Thiago Alves - Alves has ability he's just not using it.

Josh Haynes - Lost to Rory....good.


Lightweight


Sean Sherk - The new lightweight champ! He performed about as expected i'd say. He took every round but could not finish off Florian and probably looks worse today than Florian does. I'm sorry to say it looked more like lay and pray, more than ground and pound.

Spencer Fisher - Fisher beat a decent looking Dan Lauzon. Fisher looks to be next in line for a title fight and with his impressive all around game that would be fun to watch.

Kenny Florian - Florian is still progressing nicely on his standup. He consistently scored with kicks to Sherk's midsection but could not defend the takedown and despite several game sub attempts never was much of a threat. Great heart staying in there the whole fight though. I think he won some fans last night.

Jens Pulver - Jens needs at least one win against a top contender before getting a title shot.

Mark Hominick - C'mon UFC let's see Hominick vs Cummo or Pulver.

Joe Stevenson - Joe still needs some big wins to make a run at a title shot.

Yves Edwards - Got a beatdown from the very strong Stevenson. What next for Edwards who's 0-2 in recent UFC bouts? Sam Stout would be a good start.

Sam Stout - Right about here I would think. I think he would lose to Stevenson so Edwards would be a better matchup.

Joe Lauzon - Bursting onto the UFC with a win against a former champ is a big deal. Lauzon might have been the beneficiary of a bad matchup for Pulver though. Pulver's a striker and wanted to keep things standing but Lauzon had a huge reach advantage. The next fight will tell us if Lauzon is for real or not. Oh, and get a decent nickhame man. J-Lo? Ughhhh. (shivers)

Jorge Gurgel - I was surprised that Jorge couldn't get a takedown on Hominick. Not one and by the 3rd he had a couple shots that he just couldn't take advantage of because of his wind. Surprising.

Dan Lauzon - Got some work to do but could see some fights.

Duane Ludwig - Ludwig against Edwards would be a nice fight. Or Cummo.

Luke Cummo - Luke is rumored to be fighting Ross Pointon. Luke will have the advantage on the standup for sure and should be able to win this if he doesn't get caught with a haymaker. I'm still waiting for Cummo to get someone he can stand and trade with, maybe this will be it.

Melvin Guillard - In this the deepest weight class Melvin seems to have the ability to give just about anyone a run for their money on 'any given Sunday'. Raw power, explosive quickness, very good striking, uncanny balance.....it's just not fair. Melvin vs Sherk would be worth watching, as would a fight against Fisher.