Sherdog’s Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

Middleweight

1. Michael Bisping (30-7)

Bisping technically does not have a signed opponent for his second UFC title defense and remains out of commission until May. Nonetheless, it has become increasingly hard to believe it will not be Olympic silver medalist Yoel Romero, given UFC President Dana White’s affirmations and the fact that Romero has accelerated the trash talk between the two to an incredible and amusing degree.

2. Luke Rockhold (15-3)

Yoel Romero’s incredible flying knee stoppage of Chris Weidman would have made Rockhold’s path to a rematch with UFC champ Michael Bisping hard anyway, but a knee injury forced the oft-injured American Kickboxing Academy ace to the sidelines, nixing his slated Nov. 27 rematch with Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza. The former UFC and Strikeforce titleholder will need to get healthy before hopping back into the suddenly packed line of contenders at 185 pounds.

3. Yoel Romero (12-1)

Even though UFC President Dana White has publicly stated that Romero is on deck to challenge middleweight champion Michael Bisping, you can never be too comfortable in MMA. As a result, Romero has launched a multi-pronged trolling assault on Bisping. He started a mocking GoFundMe campaign to cover Bisping’s future injuries and later called into the champ’s SiriusXM Radio show to yell at him on air. It has been a delightful trip so far.

4. Chris Weidman (13-2)

After a grueling title loss to Luke Rockhold in December 2015, Weidman returned 11 months later, only to be crushed by a Yoel Romero flying knee in the third round. The former UFC middleweight champ has now taken his first two career losses consecutively, and the road does not get any easier: “All-American” has signed on to face Gegard Mousasi at UFC 210 on April 8 in Buffalo, New York.

5. Ronaldo Souza (24-4, 1 NC)

While he was a prohibitive favorite in his UFC 208 bout with Tim Boetsch, “Jacare” handled business as an elite contender should, pulling off a nasty first-round kimura -- the only finish on the entire card. Now, the question for the grappling legend becomes whether or not he will stay put or keep busy with another fight as he waits for the inevitable Michael Bisping-Yoel Romero bout to play out in hopes of getting a UFC title shot.

6. Gegard Mousasi (41-6-2)

Since going 4-0 on his 2016 Uriah Hall Redemption Tour, Mousasi has been adamant he deserves a bigger fight in the UFC's 185-pound division. The perennial multi-divisional standout will soon get his wish, as he has earned a date with former middleweight champ Chris Weidman at UFC 208 on April 8.

7. Robert Whittaker (17-4)

After a knee injury to Luke Rockhold killed a main event rematch with Ronaldo Souza, Whittaker was thrust into a headlining position in Melbourne, Australia, as his major middleweight showdown with Derek Brunson was promoted to the top of the bill. Despite a rocky start, Whittaker quickly recovered and knocked out Brunson in a wild brawl that lasted just over four minutes, earning the biggest win of his career.

8. Anderson Silva (34-8, 1 NC)

It was hard to know what to expect from Silva at 41 years old heading into his UFC 208 bout with Derek Brunson. The all-time greatest middleweight was far from his legendary vintage, but in the first and second rounds, he landed enough strikes -- and danced enough -- to convince all three judges he had won, giving him his first victory since an August 2012 stoppage of Stephan Bonnar of all people.

9. Derek Brunson (16-5)

Coming off of a wild first-round knockout loss to Robert Whittaker in November, Brunson caught a big assignment just three months later against MMA legend Anderson Silva. Despite fighting a composed bout that most thought he won, Brunson took his second consecutive loss and watched Silva walk away with a controversial unanimous verdict.

10. David Branch (20-3)

Even with a group of investors buying 60 percent of the World Series of Fighting for $25 million, the promotion faces turmoil. Branch, a free agent, publicly vacated his WSOF titles at 185 and 205 pounds and stated he was unhappy with the way his most recent fight had been handled. A winner of 10 in a row, Branch is now angling for a second run in the UFC, where he last fought in March 2011.

Other Contenders: Vitor Belfort, Rafael Carvalho, Uriah Hall, Krzysztof Jotko, Thales Leites

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