Fighters.com October Heavyweight Rankings

Fighters.com’s fifth-ranked heavyweight “The Natural” Randy Couture (16-8) will return to the Octagon in Las Vegas 15 November to defend his UFC title…versus barely vetted Brock Lesnar (2-1).

Known for struggling versus the biggest of the big, one can’t help but feel like this match-up is a little “F-you” care of UFC President Dana White for Couture’s year-long contract hold-out.

If Couture wins, so what?  He beats an ex-pro wrestler with three fights.  If he loses…psst, retirement?  Psst, too old?  Hear the whispers?

(Of course, White, Couture, and Lesnar will make out big in PPV dollars for the match-up; so, I don’t feel too sorry for Couture.)

The match-up delivers a pair of residual “F-yous” to the two Brazilians who’ve earned the fight versus Couture in the Octagon.

Second-ranked “Minotauro” Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira‘s (31-4-1) interim UFC title defense versus Frank Mir (11-3) has been downgraded to a fight for top contendership in the promotion, the winner getting first crack at the winner of Couture v Lesnar.

Fourth-ranked “Vai Cavalo” Fabricio Werdum (11-3-1), who was passed over in favor of Mir, then passed over in favor of Lesnar, has been relegated to welcoming countryman “Cigano” Junior dos Santos (6-1) into the Octagon in Chicago 25 October.

Werdum has evidently been promised a title shot too, some day…

It’s hard to be Brazilian in the UFC’s heavyweight division.

Coming off a quick “W” over Justin McCully (8-4-2) in Las Vegas 5 July, eight-ranked “Napao” Gabriel Gonzaga (9-3) also get’s to throw a “Welcome to the Big Time” party for Josh Hendricks (15-4) on the same Chicago card.

Meanwhile, former UFC champ third-ranked “Pitbull” Andrei Arlovski (14-5) has gone from Octagon snoozer to the hardest working man in the heavyweight division.

In Sunrise, north of Miami, 4 October, Arlovski took out another former IFL champ, “Big Country” Roy Nelson (13-3), with a right hook, making five straight wins for the Belarussian.

Arlovski picked up the big prize of challenging Fighters.com’s Heavyweight Champion “Last Emperor” Fedor Emelianenko (28-1) on Affliction’s January card, rumored to be in Anaheim, east of Los Angeles, 24 January.

Sixth-ranked “Babyface Assassin” Josh Barnett (23-5) evidently declined the fight for reasons fans would never understand, which is a shame because he slides down three spots this month due to lack of top ten competition in the last two years.

Ninth-ranked Sergei Kharitonov (16-3) returned from a year-long layoff to quickly dispatch “Titan” Jimmy Ambriz (13-10-1) in Saitama, north of Tokyo, 23 September.

Tenth-ranked Aleksander Emelianenko (13-3) will fight Sang Soo Lee (9-4) in St. Petersburg 21 November.

Seventh-ranked “Maine-iac” Tim Sylvia (24-5) has no rumored or confirmed fights.

October Heavyweight Rankings

1. “Last Emperor” Fedor Emelianenko (28-1)

Emelianenko took his right-left combo and used it to erase “doubt” from Fighters.com’s rankings when he dismantled Sylvia.  The depth of his recent opposition remains shallow; but, taking Sylvia apart quicker than anyone else earns him the Fighters.com Heavyweight Championship.

2. “Minotauro” Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (31-4-1)

It ain’t pretty! Nogueira has turned “blocking punches with your face” into a winning strategy versus top teners Sylvia, Barnett, and Werdum in the last two years, earning him the Fighters.com’s top contender spot.

3. “Pitbull” Andrei Arlovski (14-5)

“Pitbull” got his bite back versus Ben Rothwell and Roy Nelson, adding the KOs to a UD over Werdum and a pair of wins over lesser competition.  Arlovski will need all the bite he has versus Emelianenko in January.

4. “Vai Cavalo” Fabricio Werdum (11-3-1)

“Vai Cavalo” spanked Gonzaga like a bad monkey in January, then played a samba on Brandon Vera‘s head in June, but it didn’t earn him a title shot in the UFC.  Go figure!

5. “The Natural” Randy Couture (16-8)

The best strategist in a weight class of brutes returned to solve the 6’8″ riddle of Sylvia over five grueling rounds to reclaim UFC’s title, then forced Cro Cop-slayer Gonzaga to wish MMA had timeouts in a bloody three-round TKO.  Does he have a winning strategy versus physical phenom Brock Lesnar?

6. “Babyface Assassin” Josh Barnett (23-5)

“Babyface Assassin” is on a tear with a KO of Pedro Rizzo, UD over Jeff Monson, and submission of Hidehiko Yoshida, but no recent work at the top of the division.  Unfortunately he declined the biggest fight at heavyweight: Emelianenko.

7. “Maine-iac” Tim Sylvia (24-5)

The oft maligned “Maine-iac” has meshed his stature with world-class striking, championship cardio, and a Jeff Monson-tested ground game. His losses are only to legends Emelianenko, Nogueira, and Couture.

8. “Napao” Gabriel Gonzaga (9-3)

After mauling Mirko Filipovic in Manchester, “Napao” risks becoming a footnote in MMA history with consecutive stoppage losses to Couture and Werdum.  The big man has the tools to remain top ten for years to come, but does he have the heart?

9. Sergei Kharitonov (16-3)

Kharitonov followed consecutive first-round stoppages of Michael Russow and Alistair Overeem with a year-long layoff before returning to add Jimmy Ambriz to the first-round stoppage list.

10. Aleksander Emelianenko (13-3)

Fedor’s li’l bro’ isn’t lost in the shadow of “The Last Emporer”. In the last two years, the man with the coldest stare down in MMA has outclassed his brother in competition, losing only to top ten heavies.