Fighters.com Light Heavyweight Rankings

The light heavyweights fall in line in Fighters.com’s April rankings, the only rankings that matter.

1. “Rampage” Quinton Jackson (29-6)

Jackson is 4-0 since bringing his “Rampage” to the cage. He’s out-wrestled Olympians Lindland and Hendo and became the only man to put Liddell on ice twice. He’s earned Fighters.com’s top rank, but losses to Rua and Silva whisper questions from the past.

2. “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (22-6)

To think 205 is Hendo’s other weight class is astounding. A UD to Vitor Belfort paved a path for him to hold the PRIDE belt after a KO of long-time champ Silva. Henderson came up just short of unifying titles in a slog with ‘Page. Until next time?

3. “The Dragon” Ryoto Machida (12-0)

Versus Sokou, the undefeated “Dragon” proved he could fly high and finish. His measured style is as tough for opposition to decipher as it sometimes is for fans to watch. His “W” column reads like a who’s who of MMA, but Machida needs stoppages to ascend.

4. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou (4-2)

Sokou had been punching fighters out of their top ten ranking until he ran into Machida, but there’s no shame in tapping to “The Dragon”. His career has been too brief to predict whether his future is north or south of his Fighters.com #4 ranking.

5. “The Dean of Mean” Keith Jardine (13-3-1)

Blips on Jardine’s record to Houston Alexander and Stephan Bonnar belie focused performances over Liddell and Griffin; or, is it the other way around? Regardless, “The Dean of Mean” has ridden a roller coaster of inconsistency the last two years.

6. Forrest Griffin (15-4)

The TUF 1 champ dug himself out of the “one hit wonder” abyss with an impressive stoppage of touted Rua and earned a UFC gold run versus Jackson. But like Jardine, Griffin has proven beatable on any given night.

7. “Iceman” Chuck Liddell (21-5)

Liddell has faced the toughest schedule the last two years, but fell consecutively to Jackson and Jardine. He looked tough in his return to winning in the long-awaited face-off with Silva.

8. “Shogun” Mauricio Rua (16-3)

Whether injury, energy, or focus was the issue, Rua debuted in the UFC with a loss to then-struggling Griffin after earning the kudos of many with PRIDE wins over the likes of Alistair Overeem and Kazuhiro Nakamura.

9. “Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Tito Ortiz (15-5-1)

Ortiz has served as gate keeper to the UFC gold in a win over Griffin and draw with Rashad Evans, but was unable to last three full rounds with then champ Liddell.

10. “The Axe Murderer” Wanderlei Silva (31-8-1)

It has been a bloody mess for “The Axe Murderer” the last two years, but he’s been the victim of two of the best light heavyweights in the world in Henderson and Liddell.