Sherdog’s Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

Welterweight

1. Tyron Woodley (16-3)

Within minutes of claiming the UFC welterweight title, Woodley said he wanted to face Georges St. Pierre or Nick Diaz -- in other words, he desired big-money fights. However, despite being the newly crowned UFC welterweight king, Woodley is not able to fully to call his own shots. As a result, he will likely wind up defending his title for the first time against Stephen Thompson at UFC 205 on Nov. 12 in Madison Square Garden. It may not be the opponent for which Woodley hoped, but if the schedule holds, he will at least get a favorable stage on which to perform: the UFC’s first show at MSG.

2. Robbie Lawler (27-11, 1 NC)

The minute it was announced for UFC 205 in November, MMA folks were in a tizzy over the slated Lawler-Donald Cerrone showdown at Madison Square Garden. Just as soon as the ink dried, however, Lawler was forced to bow out of the bout due to injury, leaving a hole in the hearts of hardcore MMA fans everywhere.

3. Stephen Thompson (13-1)

After resounding victories over onetime UFC welterweight champion Johny Hendricks and former UFC 170-pound title challenger Rory MacDonald, Thompson firmed up his position as the legitimate No. 1 contender at 170 pounds. While new champ Tyron Woodley was quick to call out Georges St. Pierre and Nick Diaz, Thompson bided his time and hoped that his promoter would smile upon him. “Wonderboy” looks to have gotten the treatment for which he was looking. Not only is he slated to face Woodley for the UFC welterweight strap on Nov. 12, but if plans hold, he will get to challenge for that title on the UFC’s first card at the legendary Madison Square Garden.

4. Demian Maia (24-6)

At 38 years old, Maia is not just beating competitors in a great weight class; he is blowing them out. With his sub-two-minute submission of Carlos Condit at UFC on Fox 21, Maia has now won six in a row, but more importantly, he is hardly getting hit while dominating the likes of Neil Magny, Gunnar Nelson, Matt Brown and now Condit from back control. Maia’s third rear-naked choke finish in his last four fights has many calling for the Brazilian to challenge for the UFC welterweight title instead of Stephen Thompson.

5. Rory MacDonald (18-4)

MacDonald spent 11 months away from the cage following his 2015 “Fight of the Year” with Robbie Lawler and took enough damage in his brutal title challenge that many wondered if the 26-year-old would be the same fighter upon his return. On June 18 in Ottawa, Ontario, MacDonald was far from vintage form, as Stephen Thompson befuddled the “Red King” for 25 minutes, earning a unanimous decision. The Canadian hit free agency after the loss and has since agreed to terms with the Bellator MMA promotion.

6. Ben Askren (15-0, 1 NC)

Askren may be on his way out of these 170-pound rankings through no fault of his own. The two-time NCAA Division I wrestling champion may be one of the very best welterweights in the world, but with One Championship realigning its weight classes, Askren figures to defend his title next at 185 pounds when his home promotion heads to Bangkok, Thailand, on Dec. 17. Askren’s bout figures to be a rematch with Brazilian rival Luis “Sapo” Santos, but again, One Championship re-designating the Roufusport star as its 185-pound champion will end his run in these rankings within a matter of weeks.

7. Carlos Condit (30-10)

Less than eight months after turning in the frontrunner for 2016 “Fight of the Year” over five brutal rounds with Robbie Lawler, Condit could not last two minutes with 38-year-old Demian Maia and his grappling prowess before being tapped with a rear-naked choke. Condit is now 2-5 in his last seven fights, and his quick, one-sided loss to Maia has “The Natural Born Killer” publicly questioning whether he will continue fighting, with the 32-year-old teasing retirement once more.

8. Kelvin Gastelum (12-2)

Fresh off a major victory over former UFC welterweight champ Johny Hendricks in July, Gastelum was originally expected to take on Jorge Masvidal in a welterweight pairing with which no one could find fault. However, circumstance struck when another former UFC 170-pound champ, Robbie Lawler, was forced out of his UFC 205 bout with Donald Cerrone due to injury, seemingly just as fast as the fight was announced. In the wake of the Lawler injury, Gastelum was pulled from his bout with Masvidal on Nov. 5 and plopped into a showdown with Cerrone on one week later at Madison Square Garden.

9. Andrey Koreshkov (19-1)

Since suffering his first and only loss in July 2013 to then-Bellator champ Ben Askren, Koreshkov has been positively dominant. While Askren’s defection to One Championship paved Koreshkov’s path to the Bellator welterweight crown, the new champ has been sterling in his last six outings, including lopsided blowouts of Douglas Lima and former UFC lightweight champ Benson Henderson. However, Koreshkov is still constrained by Bellator’s talented-but-limited 170-pound division, where he has already bested perhaps its best opposition. He will rematch Lima at Bellator 163 on Nov. 10.

10. Lorenz Larkin (18-5, 1 NC)

A former 205-pounder in Strikeforce, Larkin began his UFC career as a middleweight and went 1-4 in those five fights. Since dropping to 170 pounds, he is 4-1. He put on an absolute master class at UFC 202 against Neil Magny, who had won nine of his last 10 fights in the Octagon. Larkin is one of the UFC’s biggest wild cards at this point, and if “The Monsoon” has truly turned a corner as a welterweight, he may emerge as a viable title contender in the near future.

Other Contenders: Donald Cerrone, Jake Ellenberger, Dong Hyun Kim, Neil Magny, Gunnar Nelson Continue Reading » Lightweight