UFC Rankings — February 2008

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These rankings are based on a plethora of factors: win-loss record, method of victory, competition the fighter is facing, and the push given to them by the UFC matchmakers.

POUND FOR POUND

1. Anderson Silva (Middleweight Champion)
2. Quinton Jackson (Light Heavyweight Champion)
3. Georges St. Pierre (Interim Welterweight Champion)
4. Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera (Interim Heavyweight Champion)
5. B.J. Penn (Lightweight Champion)
6. Dan Henderson
7. Forrest Griffin
8. Chuck Liddell
9. Rich Franklin
10. Mauricio Rua

NOTES: Anderson Silva is a consensus #1 in most fighter rankings, including Sherdog, MMAWeekly and Yahoo…Penn moves to #4 with a dominating Lightweight title win over Joe Stevenson at UFC 80. He will face former champin Sean Sherk in May…Forrest Griffin comes out of nowhere to capture the #7 spot with his stunning upset of Mauricio Rua…Chuck Liddell moves back into the top ten with his victory over Wanderlei Silva…

HEAVYWEIGHT
Over 205 lbs. to 265 lbs.

1. Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera (Interim Heavyweight Champion)
2. Fabricio Werdum
3. Frank Mir
4. Andrei Arlovksi
5. Tim Sylvia
6. Cheick Kongo
7. Brock Lesnar
8. Mirko Cro Cop
9. Heath Herring
10. Antoni Hardonk

NOTES: Randy Couture is not included in this list and will not be until he returns to the company…”Minotauro” captures the top spot in the heavyweight division after his stunning submission of Tim Sylvia at UFC 81…Fabricio Werdum vaults into #2 with a TKO of top heavyweight Gabriel Gonzaga, and will likely face Noguiera in a rematch of their PRIDE battle this summer…Frank Mir comes out of nowhere with his submission victory over Brock Lesnar…Tim Sylvia falls to #5 after losing to Noguiera…Cheick Kongo acheived this ranking with his defeat of Mirko Cro Cop, and will face Heath Herring at UFC 82, which could put him into title contention late in 2008…Brock Lesnar debuts in the heavyweight rankings largely because of his thrilling showing at UFC 81. Lesnar pummeled Mir for nearly the entire fight and lost because of a rookie mistake, but proved that he’ll be an exciting force in the division for years to come…Mirko Cro Cop is at #8 largely because of his past, but one more loss will put him out of the rankings…

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT
Over 185 lbs. to 205 lbs.

1. Quinton Jackson (Light Heavyweight Champion)
2. Dan Henderson
3. Forrest Griffin
4. Chuck Liddell
5. Mauricio Rua
6. Lyoto Machida
7. Keith Jardine
8. Wanderlei Silva
9. Rashad Evans
10. Houston Alexander

NOTES: Quinton Jackson remains #1. He will face Forrest Griffin at the conclusion of the new season of The Ultimate Fighter in June…Dan Henderson remains in the light heavyweight rankings despite a move to middleweight to face Anderson Silva. A win over Silva would remove him from the Light Heavyweight rankings…Forrest Griffin defeated Mauricio “Shogun” Rua in stellar fashion, which moves him to #3 in the rankings and earned him a title shot this summer…Chuck Liddell nears the top of the division rankings with a win over Wanderlei Silva in a fantastic fight. He’ll face Shogun in May and a win will earn him a likely title shot in late 2008…Lyoto Machida earns a #6 ranking with a decisive win over Sokoudjou in December, and will face Tito Ortiz in May. A win over Ortiz would put Machida in the driver’s seat for a title shot in 2008, especially if Shogun beats Liddell…Keith Jardine will face Wanderlei Silva next.

MIDDLEWEIGHT
Over 170 lbs. to 185 lbs.

1. Anderson Silva (Middleweight Champion)
2. Dan Henderson
3. Rich Franklin
4. Nate Marquardt
5. Yushin Okami
6. Michael Bisping
7. Thales Leites
8. Ricardo Almeida
9. Jason MacDonald
10. Chris Leben

NOTES: Anderson Silva remains #1 in a division where there are no threats to his supremacy outside of Dan Henderson. Silva will face Henderson at UFC 82 in March…Rich Franklin is the “gatekeeper” to the division, in that he’ll largely be able to beat anyone not named Anderson Silva…Nate Marquardt moves back up a few notches with a win over Jeremy Horn at UFC 81…Michael Bisping has yet to fight in the division, but is ranked #6 on past performances in the light heavyweight division…Ricardo Almeida debuts in the top ten with a decisive victory over Rob Yundt at UFC 81.

WELTERWEIGHT
Over 155 lbs. to 170 lbs.

1. Georges St. Pierre (Interim Welterweight Champion)
2. Matt Serra (Welterweight Champion)
3. Matt Hughes
4. Jon Fitch
5. Karo Parysian
6. Diego Sanchez
7. Marcus Davis
8. Josh Koschek
9. Thiago Alves
10. Mike Swick

NOTES: This is the only division where the title holder is not ranked #1, and for good reason. Georges St. Pierre, though losing to champion Matt Serra, is a dominant force in the division and destroyed Matt Hughes in December. He’ll face Matt Serra to unify the title in an April rematch…

LIGHTWEIGHT
Over 145 lbs. to 155 lbs.

1. B.J. Penn (Lightweight Champion)
2. Sean Sherk
3. Kenny Florian
4. Frankie Edgar
5. Roger Huerta
6. Tyson Griffin
7. Joe Stevenson
8. Joe Lauzon
9. Thiago Tavares
10. Spencer Fisher

NOTES: It appears that B.J. Penn has finally captured the potential so many saw in him. His UFC 80 win over Joe Stevenson was decisive and left no doubt that he’s the best in the division. He’ll face Sean Sherk in a title match this summer…Sherk, who was stripped of his belt due to a positive steroids test last summer, remains #2, though a good win from Kenny Florian in April could change that…Tyson Griffin continued his winning ways at UFC 81. The fight wasn’t as exciting as most of his bouts are, but he dominated Gleison Tibau from bell to bell, and that’s enough to move him up in the rankings.