After one of the most dominant heavyweight performances in the history of mixed martial arts, there is no doubt that Cain Velasquez rules the world of MMA’s heavyweight fighters.
Velasquez takes over the number one position from the man he defeated at UFC 121, Brock Lesnar. Heavy MMA will be counting down the top ten fighters in each division and invite you all to let us know how right (or…wrong) we are. Today, the heavyweights.
Note: HeavyMMA.com’s fighter rankings are based off how good we think the fighter in question is, not MMA math. Rankings current as of October 26, 2010.
1. Cain Velasquez
Matt Brown: Simply the best. There’s no doubt that Cain Velasquez earned the top spot after dominating Brock Lesnar at UFC 121. The path doesn’t get any easier as Dana White has already given Junior Dos Santos the next shot at the newly crowned champ.
Jeremy Botter: Velasquez started drawing comparisons to Fedor Emelianenko back in 2006. They weren’t accurate then, but they might be now. He made the massive Brock Lesnar look like the rookie he truly is, and I suspect Junior dos Santos won’t offer up much more competition. This belt could be his for awhile.
2. Fedor Emelianenko
Matt Brown: One freak loss doesn’t take away from what Fedor Emelianenko has done in his mixed martial arts career. Be honest, if they fought tomorrow, would you pick any other heavyweight in the world to beat Fedor other than the guy at the #1 spot? Didn’t think so.
Jeremy Botter: I don’t agree with putting Emelianenko over Werdum, but it’s difficult to pretend that he’s not still one of the two best heavyweights in the world.
Matt Brown: You get the number 3 spot for beating the greatest heavyweight fighter of all time. He’s also got big wins over Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, Brandon Vera, Gabe Gonzaga and Alistair Overeem throughout the course of his nine-year career.
Jeremy Botter: Werdum probably deserves a higher spot and might be able to cement it if the proposed rematch with Emelianenko ever comes to fruition.
Matt Brown: Perhaps it was all too much, too fast for the former WWE wrestler. Nobody is going to deny his freakish athletic ability. But it’s been exposed in two consecutive fights that Lesnar has a long way to go in being a total and complete mixed martial artist.
Jeremy Botter: We all overstated his worth as a mixed martial artist, but we still know that he’s a competitor and will likely rebound from this loss by getting back in the gym and working on his weaknesses. If he doesn’t, he’s not long for the sport.
5. Junior Dos Santos
Matt Brown: Congrats JDS, you get that monster that crushed the bigger monster at UFC 121. Yes, JDS gets Cain Velasquez for the UFC heavyweight title sometime in 2011 in a fight that will easily test the Brazilian striker immensely.
Jeremy Botter: Dos Santos is wading into deep waters with Velasquez, and I suspect he’ll be eaten alive. He’s good, but he’s not that good, and I will go on record as predicting a very quick finish for Velasquez.
Matt Brown: How much does Carwin want that first round against Lesnar back now? Carwin was literally seconds and/or a little more cardio away from holding that gold belt and now he’ll have to take it away from the winner of JDS and Cain Velasquez…if he can get past a tough Roy Nelson.
Jeremy Botter: Carwin truly does not like Roy Nelson, so that’s going to be an interesting fight come New Year’s Day. The winner will find himself in the mix for a shot at Velasquez.
Matt Brown: The word on the street is that we’re going to get Mir vs. Lesnar 3. Mir has all the confidence in the world in his abilities and after seeing Lesnar at UFC 121, I’m sure he’s feeling even better about a possible trilogy.
Jeremy Botter: Given their history together, I don’t like Frank Mir’s chances against Lesnar in a third bout. But he’s got to be feeling good right about now. Of course, given that Shane Carwin is now out of his bout with Roy Nelson, that might be a prime position for Mir to assume if the UFC feels the need.
8. Alistair Overeem
Matt Brown: After a rough patch where he lost five of seven fights 2006-2007, Overeem has gone on an eight-fight win streak (one no contest), all ending by way of various stoppage. Nobody knows what’s next for Overeem, but there’s Fedor, Antonio Silva and Werdum out there and any of those would make for a fun fight.
Jeremy Botter: Overeem won’t be back in Strikeforce until next summer. It’s a shame, too, because he made quite the impact this year for the promotion. In the meantime, he’ll work in K-1 and continue becoming the best striker in the heavyweight division.
9. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
Matt Brown: This might be the twilight of the MMA legends career, but he’s still a very dangerous fighter that is going to be rough for anyone. Bad losses to Frank Mir and Cain Velasquez leave the one-time pound for pound great in limbo.
Jeremy Botter: I’d like to see Brendan Schaub get Nogueira next. It would be a fine test for Schaub’s standing as a prospect, and it would go a long way towards telling us if the oft-injured Nogueira has anything left in his legendary tank.
10. Antonio Silva
Matt Brown: He’s only fought once in 2010 and that really isn’t his fault. Next, he gets Overeem – the Valentijn version as opposed to the Alistair version. He’s basically a .500 MMA fighter that really won’t get Silva too much quality action in the cage.
Jeremy Botter: He’s fighting the wrong Overeem, but it’s a start.
