May UFC Rankings and Best Event Ever

Was UFC 129 the best event in the promotion's history? I think it probably was. The headlining fight was a letdown, but the card featured three highlight-reel knockouts, including one (Lyoto Machida's jump front kick) that is a serious contender for KO of the Year. We also saw a flying triangle, a 20-second KO, and Nate Diaz getting suplexed three times in one round. That doesn't even include the Fight of the Night, a surprisingly competitive featherweight title bout between Jose Aldo and Mark Hominick.

All that, plus by far the largest crowd in UFC history? I know some people won't be able to get past the disappointing headliner, but from where I'm sitting, yeah, it was the best card, top-to-bottom, that the UFC has ever put on. UFC President Dana White called it the highlight of his career.

The Undercard

The UFC picked a great event at which to air all of the preliminary fights. First, Pablo Garza won by flying triangle. Just when you thought flying subs were a lost art, right? Then John Makdessi floored Kyle Watson with a spinning backfist: one-punch knockout. We're only two fights in and everyone already knows the Submission of the Night (Garza) and Knockout of the Night (Makdessi).

Then Jason MacDonald won by first-round submission and Ivan Menjivar won by first-round TKO, including a brutal elbow that positively ruined his opponent's nose. On a normal card, that could have won Knockout of the Night. That's four fights, four finishes. After a decision, Jake Ellenberger outclassed Sean Pierson for another first-round knockout. Then, with the crowd chanting an expletive at Diaz, 21-year-old Rory MacDonald slammed Diaz with three powerful suplexes in the third round of a dominant victory.

We're not even to the main card yet.

The Main Card

Ben Henderson got one for the WEC guys with a win over Mark Bocek, 40-year-old Vladimir Matyushenko knocked out Jason Brilz with his first punch, and Lyoto Machida ended Randy Couture's career with a jumping front kick to the face. Couture had proven his doubters wrong so many times that, even at age 47, no one could count him out. But Machida was visibly quicker, and the bout was never close. For it to end with the damn Crane Kick from "The Karate Kid", though, changes the whole arc of Machida's career.

Once perceived as a boring fighter, he shed that image with awesome KOs of Thiago Silva and Rashad Evans. A questionable decision victory in October 2009 lost him some fans, but one finish like this weekend's can re-define public perception. When Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, himself a legend, defeated Couture in their classic matchup at UFC 102, the crowd booed Noguiera, simply because fans love Randy so much. I didn't hear boos for Machida. Partly that's because he's so sincerely emotional and respectful, it's hard not to like him. But mostly, it's because he KO-ed Couture with one of the most spectacular knockouts ever seen in MMA.

Training With Steven Seagal

Machida is the second fighter in UFC history to KO an opponent with a front kick, the first being Anderson Silva. Both trained with Steven Seagal, and both credited Seagal for teaching them the technique. Seagal has spent years as a punch line, and he gave an interview after the Silva fight that many people interpreted as Seagal claiming he invented the front kick. I agree that it sounded like he was saying that, but it was so obviously false, I can't imagine Seagal was trying to claim credit for a technique that is centuries old. Rather, as Seagal explained to Ariel Helwani this weekend, he taught Silva and Machida how to use a front kick to the face effectively in a real fight.

That's not a trivial accomplishment. For years, mixed martial arts fans have derided karate and taekwando as being ineffective in a real fight. If Seagal has taken traditional martial arts techniques and adapted them to be practical against high-level competition, this is a guy more fighters should be training with. So what if he comes off as narcissistic and strange? So does Eddie Bravo, but he has useful things to teach. Anderson Silva and Lyoto Machida are two of the greatest mixed martial artists in the world. They can't afford not to take their training seriously, and they obviously choose to work with Seagal for a reason. It can't be a coincidence that they've both won fights with the same technique. Anyway, Machida won in style and Couture retired gracefully. That alone made this a great card.

Two Title Fights

In the featherweight title fight, Aldo took Hominick down at will for the first three rounds, nailed him with about a dozen of the leg kicks that ruined Urijah Faber, and caused a gruesome hematoma that almost stopped the fight. But Hominick never quit, and he gave Aldo trouble in a way no one else ever has. The champ tired visibly as the bout continued, and Hominick spent most of the final round in top position, nailing Aldo with power shots. I scored the fight 48-45 Aldo, giving Hominick a 10-8 in the fifth.

The main event began the way everyone expected it to, with the crowd at Rogers Centre roaring in support of Georges St-Pierre, and the champ picking apart Jake Shields on the feet. Unfortunately, some time in the second or third round, Shields damaged St-Pierre's left eye, and the Canadian became noticeably tentative. Not surprisingly, three rounds contested on the feet by a grappling specialist (Shields) and a man who was half-blind (GSP) did not thrill the audience, but I think criticisms of St-Pierre's performance are unfair. He fought half the match with only one eye! Give the guy a break. Let's also remember that Shields is one of the best fighters in the world. He had won 15 fights in a row, including victories over Carlos Condit (who might get the next shot at GSP), Yushin Okami (the top contender at 185), and Dan Henderson (a champion two weight classes up). Shields hadn't lost since 2004 and hasn't been finished in over a decade. Expecting a healthy GSP to knock him out probably wasn't realistic.

I scored the fight 49-46 for St-Pierre, who lost a round for the first time since '07. I don't understand the scorecards turned in by judges Nelson Hamilton and Richard Bertrand, both of whom gave the champ a narrow 48-47 victory. Which round besides the fifth did Shields win?

No one likes to end the night on a bummer, but I'll trade a dull main event for flying triangles and jump front kick KOs any day. This was also the only event in which I've noticed a crowd unmistakably cheering the ring girls. Every time Brittney Palmer or Arianny Celeste or Chandella Powell showed up on the big screen, a roar went up from the arena. Brittney seemed to be as popular as any fighter this side of GSP.

May 2011 UFC Rankings

The rankings below are exclusively for the UFC, so you won't see names like Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza or Shinya Aoki on these lists.

Heavyweight (206-265 lbs)

1. Cain Velasquez
2. Junior Dos Santos
3. Brock Lesnar
4. Shane Carwin
5. Roy Nelson
6. Frank Mir
7. Brendan Schaub
8. Ben Rothwell
9. Stefan Struve
10. Matt Mitrione

Make it Happen: Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Schaub

It is my policy not to rank people who haven't fought in over a year and are not scheduled to fight, so Nogueira is not listed above, though he's presumably top-10 if he's healthy. The UFC's heavyweight roster is really thin, and half the top fighters are injured, so matchmaking is a little tricky right now. I'll settle for anything that gets two contenders in the cage.

Thank You, UFC, For: Nelson vs. Mir

An intriguing fight between a pair of top-10 heavyweights. Speaking of who is top-10, I think Sherdog does a lot of great stuff, but their heavyweight fighter rankings are just insane. Lesnar, who is 5-2 and coming off a loss, is ranked ahead of Dos Santos, who is 6-0 in the UFC, including wins over Fabricio Werdum, Gabriel Gonzaga, and Roy Nelson. Werdum is also ahead of JDS, despite that Junior knocked him out and got him cut from the UFC. Dos Santos has as many TKO victories (4) in the last three years as Werdum has fights. And there's just no way to look at Lesnar's record and say it's more impressive than Junior's.

Mir is sixth, despite that his only victory over a current top-10 was more than three years ago, in Lesnar's second professional fight — a bout Mir was losing badly before some timely intervention by referee Steve Mazzagatti. In the last two years, Mir has gotten absolutely destroyed by both Lesnar and Carwin, with his only wins against Cheick Kongo and a washed-up Mirko Cro Cop.

Alistair Overeem, the heavyweight champ of Strikeforce, DREAM, and K-1, is ranked ninth. Seriously. Fourth would probably be too low. To have him ranked fourth among Strikeforce heavyweights is ludicrous. He's behind Werdum (3), over whom he is a huge favorite in the Strikeforce Grand Prix. He's behind Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva (7), whose last two wins came over men who should be fighting at 205. And he's behind Fëdor Emelianenko (8), who is on a two-fight losing streak, 34, and fat. Yeah, he's Fëdor. If he goes easy on the ice cream cones, he could easily make light heavyweight.

Werdum, Mir, and Silva ahead of Overeem? You can't take that kind of list seriously. It contradicts the most obvious common sense. A ranking like that is worse than useless — it's misinformation.

Light Heavyweight (186-205)

1. Jon Jones
2. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua
3. Lyoto Machida
4. Rashad Evans
5. Quinton "Rampage" Jackson
6. Ryan Bader
7. Phil Davis
8. Forrest Griffin
9. Vladimir Matyushenko
10. Matt Hamill

Make it Happen: Machida vs. Bader

I'm assuming Bader will get past Tito Ortiz. Machida is the one guy I think might be able to beat Jon Jones right now. Put him up against another serious wrestler and let's find out. I'd also be happy to see Machida get the rematch he deserves against Rampage. They say styles make fights. Jones vs. Machida would be a fascinating matchup.

Thank You, UFC, For: Rich Franklin vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira

This matchup is not yet official, but is expected to take place at UFC 133 in August. Franklin is quickly compiling the most impressive résumé of fighters faced in MMA history. He's fought six UFC champions (Evan Tanner, Lyoto Machida, Anderson Silva, Vitor Belfort, Chuck Liddell, and Forrest Griffin). He's fought two PRIDE champions (Dan Henderson and Wanderlei Silva). He's fought two UFC Hall of Famers (Ken Shamrock and Liddell). He's fought Yushin Okami. And now Little Nog. That's quite a list of opponents. There are a few other fighters with similar résumés, so Franklin can't quit now. If he gets past Nogueira, Ace has to fight Rampage. If he loses ... Royce Gracie.

I kid.

Middleweight (171-185)

1. Anderson Silva
2. Yushin Okami
3. Jorge Santiago
4. Demian Maia
5. Vitor Belfort
6. Wanderlei Silva
7. Michael Bisping
8. Mark Muñoz
9. Jason "Mayhem" Miller
10. Rousimar Palhares

Chael Sonnen and Alan Belcher will return to this list when they get fights on their calendars. Sonnen recently became a felon, and Belcher hasn't fought in a year. Wanderlei Silva, expected to face Chris Leben in July, returns to the list and replaces Nate Marquardt, who apparently was totally serious about dropping to welterweight.

Make it Happen: Bisping vs. winner of Maia/Muñoz

Winner gets a title shot, unless St-Pierre moves up.

Thank You, UFC, For: Santiago vs. Brian Stann

The additions of Santiago and Miller re-energize the lackluster middleweight division. I'd love to see them face each other if Santiago gets past Stann and Miller beats Aaron Simpson.

Welterweight (156-170)

1. Georges St-Pierre
2. Jon Fitch
3. Jake Shields
4. Thiago Alves
5. B.J. Penn
6. Carlos Condit
7. Josh Koscheck
8. Martin Kampmann
9. Diego Sanchez
10. Dong Hyun Kim

Make it Happen: Shields vs. Koscheck

Shields just caused a serious eye injury, and Koscheck is recovering from one. Recipe for success, right?

Thank You, UFC, For: the weirdest match-making of any division

I would love to see title contenders fighting each other. The Fitch/Penn draw and GSP's uncertain future at welterweight make it a huge headache to set fights. As I see it, GSP has cleared out the UFC's welterweight division. All the top contenders are guys he's already beaten. His next fight should be against either Nick Diaz or Anderson Silva. Or even Yushin Okami, depending on what happens in Rio this August.

Hmm, that wasn't really a thank-you, was it? Okay, thanks for Sanchez vs. Matt Hughes and Condit vs. Kim.

Lightweight (146-155)

1. Frankie Edgar
2. Gray Maynard
3. Jim Miller
4. Sean Sherk
5. Anthony Pettis
6. George Sotiropoulos
7. Ben Henderson
8. Clay Guida
9. Melvin Guillard
10. Dennis Siver

Make it Happen: Miller vs. a quality opponent

Nothing against Kamal Shalorus, but Miller should be fighting title eliminators, not middle of the road opponents. If Guida defeats Pettis, Miller should face the winner of Edgar-Maynard III. If Pettis wins, I'd like to see Miller fight Ben Henderson.

Thank You, UFC, For: Sotiropoulos vs. Evan Dunham

Two rising stars, each derailed in his last fight, battle to rejoin the ranks of the elite.

Featherweight (136-145)

1. Jose Aldo
2. Mark Hominick
3. Kenny Florian
4. Diego Nunes
5. Manny Gamburyan
6. Chad Mendes
7. Dustin Poirier
8. Josh Grispi
9. Michihiro Omigawa
10. Erik Koch

Make it Happen: Aldo vs. winner of Nunes/Florian

Dana White indicated that the UFC would like to match Aldo with Mendes, which I think is premature. Mendes is perhaps the most one-dimensional athlete in the UFC — a wrestler whose other skills are in question — and he hasn't earned a title shot. I'd like to see Mendes face the winner of either Poirier vs. Rani Yahya or Gamburyan vs. Tyson Griffin.

Thank You, UFC, For: Nunes vs. Florian

This is a perfect choice for Florian's first bout at featherweight. The underrated Nunes poses a legitimate challenge, and this will be another indicator of how the WEC talent compares to established UFC contenders.

Bantamweight (126-135)

1. Dominick Cruz
2. Urijah Faber
3. Joseph Benavidez
4. Brian Bowles
5. Miguel Torres
6. Eddie Wineland
7. Scott Jorgensen
8. Brad Pickett
9. Demetrious Johnson
10. Takeya Mizugaki

Make it Happen: Pickett vs. Kid Yamamoto

Both fighters recently withdrew from scheduled bouts due to injury. When they're both healthy, match them up against one another.

Thank You, UFC, For: Torres vs. Johnson

Torres was originally slotted to face Pickett, who withdrew with an injury. Johnson is a terrific choice as his replacement.

UFC 130

MMA fans will have to subsist on Bellator for a while, because this event isn't until May 28th. The headliner is a lightweight title fight between Frank Edgar and Gray Maynard, a rematch of their New Years Day draw. I picked Maynard to win the first fight, but I'm going with Edgar this time. He gets better every time he steps into the cage, and I think his gameplan will evolve more than Maynard's.

In other action, I think Rampage Jackson ekes out a tough win over Matt Hamill, Roy Nelson exposes Frank Mir, Jorge Santiago submits Brian Stann, and Stefan Struve continues his climb up the heavyweight ranks. Nelson is a better striker and better grappler than Mir. The betting odds show Santiago and Stann nearly even, which I think is very tempting. Stann looks much better at 185 than he did at light heavyweight, but Santiago has won 11 of his last 12, facing tougher competition. Stann has power in his hands, so the knockout is always there, but unless Santiago gets Octagon jitters — this will be his first fight in the UFC since 2006 — he should roll through the All-American.

There are also two very important fights slotted to appear on the Spike TV undercard: Thiago Alves vs. Rick Story and Miguel Torres vs. Demetrious Johnson. Alves is arguably the most devastating striker in the welterweight division. In the last five years, he hasn't lost to anyone except Georges St-Pierre and Jon Fitch, with wins over Karo Parisyan, Matt Hughes, and Josh Koscheck. Story hasn't faced that caliber of competition, but he's won five in a row, and a victory over Alves would probably put him one or two more fights from a shot at the belt. Story is a good fighter, but I don't see how he gets past Alves.

Seeing the Torres/Johnson fight on the undercard is a bit of a shock — if he wins, Torres might get a chance to regain his title. Johnson is coming off wins over Damacio Page and Kid Yamamoto. It doesn't pay to underestimate Mighty Mouse, but he's half a foot shorter than Torres, and even with his great speed, I don't see how he can get inside to do damage. Wrestling isn't necessarily the answer, because Torres is an ace on the ground, with a dangerous offensive guard. I like Torres straight up, but probably not at the odds you're likely to see.

Very unofficial Sports Central parlay: Santiago + Alves + Torres. That's +300 or so if it hits.