Please note the rankings are determined by a panel of MMA Freak writers. Also note the previous rankings (5/30/14) are in parenthesis:
1. Johny Hendricks (1)
Johny Hendricks has supposedly recovered enough from his surgery that he is now training for whomever his next challenger will be. Now the only other thing he can do is face the winner of the match between Robbier Lawler and Matt Brown to determine a challenger.
2. Robbie Lawler (2)
Apparently Robbie Lawler will be facing Matt Brown on UFC on Fox: Lawler vs. Brown coming up on July 26th, 2014 for a title shot. Lawler maybe the odds on favorite, however as is known in MMA, anything can happen in any given match and Brown is dangerous.
3. Rory MacDonald (4)
Rory MacDonald defeated Tyron Woodley at UFC 174 and as a result is in the hunt for a possible title shot against Johny Hendricks. It would actually make more sense for MacDonald to face Hendricks first if Lawler were to win however Dana White makes the decisions.
4. Tyron Woodley (3)
After a disappointing loss against Rory MacDonald, Tyron Woodley is looking for a rebound against Dong Hyun Kim at UFC Fight Night: Bisping vs. Le. He is clearly looking for a quick rebound which could propel him back into contender talks if things work out just right.
5. Carlos Condit (5)
Carlos Condit will be out for possibly the rest of the year after his knee injury and surgery following his fight with Tyron Woodley. The question then becomes what does he need to do in order to get back into the win circle and furthermore how to get back to a contender.
6. Hector Lombard (6)
Originally scheduled to face Dong Hyun Kim at UFC Fight Night: Bisping vs. Le, Hector Lombard had to drop out due to an injury. Make no mistake though when he comes back he will still be dangerous.
7. Ben Askren (10)
Ben Askren‘s successful ONE Fighting Championship debut against Bakhtiyar Abbasov should give him a welterweight title shot.
8. Matt Brown (7)
Robbie Lawler is without a doubt the biggest challenge that Matt Brown will ever face on July 26th at UFC on Fox: Lawler vs. Brown.
9. Demian Maia (8)
After his win against Alexander Yakovlev, Demian Maia can now begin to build himself back to contendership by stringing a win streak.
10. Jake Shields (9)
Jake Shields’ injury that pulled him from his World Series of Fighting match Jon Fitch may or may not affect his coaching on TUF 20.