Anderson “The Spider” Silva! There isn’t anything that I can say about this man that hasn’t already been said by everyone else. Silva has left a trail of destruction behind him which includes 16 wins in 16 fights, inside the octagon. What’s even more impressive is his 11-0 record in title fights.
The man has won fights via front kick to the face, Thai knees to the nose, and a knee to the solar plexus. The only thing left for him to do would be to hit a sonic boom on an opponent (Horrible Street Fighter Reference). Nothing he does inside the octagon surprises me at this point.
He constantly disregards the first rule we learn about fighting, and that is to keep your hands up at all times. The things that he does inside the octagon are impossible for anyone to emulate. There isn’t a doubt in my mind that Silva is the greatest of all time.
Oh, and let’s get one thing straight, he isn’t a ducker as some fans have stated. He completely outclassed two men we call legends in Dan Henderson and Vitor Belfort.
After fighting those two, why on earth would he ever be labeled a ducker? “The Spider” is the #1 fighter on the planet, so it should come as no surprise that he tops the MMA Freak Middleweight Rankings.
Watch The Spider do his thing in the amazing highlight video below and believe your eyes.
VIDEO COURTESY OF THE UFC..
At #2 and I know that I’m going to get a ton of hate for this, is Michael “The Count” Bisping. The middleweight division suffers from what I like to call the here today gone tomorrow syndrome. Contenders like Mark Munoz and Yushin Okami now sit towards the bottom of the top 10 after occupying the top 5 at one point.
But not Michael Bisping. He has been a model of consistency throughout his 17 fight UFC career. Since Bisping made his middleweight debut at UFC 83, he is second only to Anderson Silva in wins inside of the middleweight division with 9. If it weren’t for that bad decision loss to Chael Sonnen, Bisping would be on a six fight win streak. That my friends, is consistency, and that is why Bisping is #2 in my book.
At #3 is a fighter that everyone is high on, Chris Weidman. Unfortunately for Weidman, there are those who feel as though his win over Munoz is tainted by the fact that Mark was out of shape going into that fight. Although I wouldn’t go that far in saying that, I can definitely understand and respect their opinions. With that said, it sure does look like Matt Serra and Ray Longo have something brewing in NY.
Weidman’s ability to control where the fight takes place, and end a fight, is definitely a fun thing to watch. The scary thing is that if he starts striking like he did against Munoz, we could have a future champion on our hands. Of course, Anderson Silva will be retired by then.
At #4 we have Tim Boetsch. That sounds weird even to me. Although Boetsch is 4-0 since dropping to 185, I honestly don’t have a clue what his ceiling is, and that’s not necessarily a good thing. He was getting beat up by Okami until he threw a 4th quarter hail mary knockout in a dramatic third round finish.
He then followed that up with his lack luster performance (albeit, in a win) against Hector Lombard. He could easily be winless in his last two fights. I put Boetsch at #4 because he is 4-0 at 185 and has managed to beat several good fighters. I didn’t put him there because I believed that he is actually a top 4 fighter. His fight with Weidman should give us a clear idea where he stands.
Coming in at #5 is “The Phenom” Vitor Belfort. Now, before anyone complains about why I put Belfort at five, consider this; his last loss was at light heavyweight to Jon Jones! At 185 it’s a different story, where on any given day, he can defeat anyone not name Anderson Silva.
Also, let’s be fair here; he came closer to officially defeating Jones than anyone else. For all of you wise guys out there, Matt Hamill doesn’t count, because he defeated Jones by DQ. If you don’t think that Vitor is a top 5 middleweight, watch his next fight, where he’ll knock out his opponent.
At #6 we have Alan Belcher “The Man with the Horrible Tattoo.” Did you get my movie reference? You didn’t? Tough crowd we have here. All joking aside, the only thing that separates Belcher from being on a seven fight winning streak is the atrocious judging displayed in his fight with Akiyama. Belcher clearly won that fight, but ended up dropping a decision.
As it stands, Belcher has finished his last four opponents which could mean that he is closing in on his own title shot. His fight with Okami (a rematch of a fight he loss), should show us where he stands in the middleweight division.
At #7 is Mark Munoz. Out of everyone in my top 10, Munoz is the most difficult to read. Is he the guy who crushed Chris Leben, or is he the guy who was crushed by Weidman? Don’t get me wrong, Munoz is a talented fighter. I just don’t know where he stands at 185.
I’m not even sure if he is capable of defeating any of the fighters ranked ahead of him. Munoz is in a tough spot here and has to figure out a way to get back into contention. He’s #7 due mostly to the fact that he wins the fights that he should.
At #8 is Strikeforce Middleweight Champion, Luke Rockhold. Wait…..Isn’t he Fred Flintstone’s boss? Breaking News: My Editor has just informed me that Mr. Slate is Fred Flintstone’s boss. I’m truly sorry for the mix up guys, gals, and Mr. Rockhold.
Moving right along, Rockhold is incredibly talented and it appears as though he has a very high ceiling. It’s difficult to gauge how high the ceiling is due to the fact that there only three legit middleweights in Strikeforce. Let’s bring Rockhold over to the UFC to see what he can do.
At #9 is former middleweight title challenger, Yushin Okami. “Thunder” is holding on for dear life in the middleweight top 10 and a win over Buddy Roberts didn’t necessarily help him out. Look, I believe that his loss to Boetsch was a fluke, but a loss is a loss, so he’ll have to work his way back up to the top.
Okami definitely has the talent to beat almost every top 10 middleweight, so it wouldn’t surprise me to see him crack the top 5 sometime next year. Beating Alan Belcher would be a great start.
Rounding out the top 10 is Brian Stann. As much as I hate saying this, I believe that we have seen the best of Brian Stann already. To be a UFC Champion, you have to have very good takedown defense. Don’t believe me; look at all of the present UFC champions.
If you can’t stop Bisping’s takedowns, you won’t be able to stop the takedowns of Weidman either. This is not to say that Stann isn’t a good fighter; he is a very good and dangerous fighter, who has the power to stop almost any middleweight. A fight with Vitor Belfort could give Stann a chance to move up the middleweight rankings.
Fight Fans, Sound Off: Who’s in your top 10 Middleweight Rankings?!?
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