Please note that the rankings are determined by a panel of MMA Freak writers. Previous ranks are in parenthesis:
Top 10 Heavyweights (9/26/15)
1) Fabricio Werdum (1)
Fabricio Werdum will have to face Cain Velasquez in his first title defense to prove his submission win in the first match wasn’t a fluke victory. Due to the schedule, this match probably won’t happen until February next year.
2) Cain Velasquez (2)
After losing his title at UFC 188 in Mexico City, Mexico; Cain Velasquez will get a second chance at Fabricio Werdum by showing the loss was an error in planning and training. This will also depend on where the fight is.
3) Junior dos Santos (3)
Junior dos Santos will finally get a crack at Alistair Overeem after years of the two talking about and forth. The match will take place on December 19th at UFC on Fox: dos Anjos vs. Cerrone 2 in Orlando, Florida on regular Fox.
4) Andrei Arlovski (4)
The rest of the year Andrei Arlovski will be off and will then face Stipe Miocic at UFC 195 on January 2, 2016. This should be an interesting fight due to the common traits between the two middle range heavyweight fighters.
5) Stipe Miocic (10)
Stipe Miocic will get a crack at Andrei Arlovski at UFC 195 in Las Vegas after he has recovered from his injury. While a win in this match probably won’t earn Miocic a title shot, it will continue to raise his ranking for sure.
6) Travis Browne (5)
Following the lifting of his suspension, Travis Browne will next be facing Matt Mitrione at UFC Fight Night: Dillashaw vs. Cruz on January 17, 2016 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts in a definite showdown.
7) Alistair Overeem (7)
Alistair Overeem will be facing Junior dos Santos at UFC on Fox: dos Anjos vs. Cerrone 2 on December 19th.
8) Mark Hunt (6)
There are sure to be fireworks when Mark Hunt faces Antonio Silva in a rematch at UFC 193 on November 15th. Hunt will have the home advantage at the Etihad Stadium in Melbourne, Australia before an expected record crowd.
9) Ben Rothwell (8)
Ben Rothwell was supposed to face Stipe Miocic at UFC Fight Night: Holohan vs. Smolka before an injury to Miocic removed both men from the card. It is now unknown when Rothwell will be fighting next if this year.
10) Josh Barnett (N/A)
It was almost two years off for Josh Barnett but he finally returned at UFC Fight Night 75 to beat Roy Nelson.
Contenders list: Vitaly Minakov, Roy Nelson, Frank Mir, Jared Rosholt, Stefan Struve, Antonio Silva
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