Your WelterWeight Rankings

I'd like to see everyone's WW rankings.  Since last we gathered to compare WW notes, we have seen the following fights, to help us figure out our rankings.

GSP / Condit, MacDonald / Penn, Swick / Brown, Fitch / Silva, Hendricks / Kampmann, Maia / Story, Head / Ebersole, Maia / Kim, Hardy / Ludwig, 

For the moment, I am not ranking Penn, since I think he may very well retire.  He isn't going back to LW.  Sanchez has dropped down to LW, Charlie Brenneman has been released, Matt Hughes is retired without an announcement, Matt Serra has gained weight to 200 and shows no interest in fighting again, Jake Shields has moved back up to his natural weight class (MW) and Nate Marquardt was released.

And coming up just down the road, we have GSP / Diaz, Fitch / Maia, Erick Silva / Hieron.  And likely Condit vs. MacDonald rematch.

At the moment, the following WWs are not scheduled yet for their next fights.  Jake Ellenberger, Marty Kampmann, Johny Hendricks, Rick Story, John Hathaway, Paulo Thiago, Dong Hyun Kim, Amir Saddollah, Dan Hardy, Mike Swick, Matt Brown, Brian Ebersole, Aaron Simpson.

On the injured list presently are: Siyar Bahadurzada, Josh Koscheck, Thiago Alves.

How do I post this while triggering the automatic Rankings Display?  I have no idea.


Here are my 11-20 WW rankings.

11. John Hathaway
12. Dong Hyum Kim
13. Thiago Alves
14. Paulo Thiago
15. Amir Sadollah
16. Aaron Simpson
17. Nate Marquardt
18. Erick Silva
19. Siyar Bahadurzada
20. Rick Story
21. Dan Hardy
22. Paul Daley
23. Brian Ebersole
24. Matt Brown
25. Mike Swick
26. Karo Parisyan

* Edited at 12.15.2012, 9:55 AM ET *

So Johny Hendricks knocks out Jon Fitch in 12 seconds yet Hendricks is 6th and Fitch is 2nd?

Rankings are all subjective but that's wrong, Fact.

@Jaff  Yes.  I never dropped Fitch based on 1 fight.  Let's not get bogged down over 1 person.

Also Amir Sadollah (one of my favorite fighters) is 15th yet the man he just lost to, Dan Hardy, is 21st?

Little sense is being made.

As usual, I show my hand, and no one shows their rankings or Top 20.  Just nit-pik me to death.  

This was supposed to be FUN, Jaff.

@Bill Nate Marquardt at 17th? 

I haven't updated mine lately at all, but my top 5 would be:

1. GSP
2. Carlos Condit
3. Nate the Great
4. Johny Hendricks
5. Rory MacDonald

Interesting.  Lots of Marquardt love going on here.  Didn't expect that.  

Since Diego's going back to lightweight he'll soon drop off.  I have Demian Maia at 11, so he'll bump up.  Marquardt's a beast, but he doesn't make my list until he beats a higher ranked welterweight.

* Edited at 12.15.2012, 11:21 AM ET *

@Bill - Kim is supposedly fighting Siyar in Japan, but I don't think it's official yet.

It's basically official. 

Siyar tweeted:
DONG HYUN KIM, I'M COMING FOR YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

@Bill what's with the no Marquardt love? 

Mine



The consensus rankings are:
1) GSP 
2) Condit 
3) Hendricks 
4) Rory 
5) Fitch 
6) Kampmann 
7) Ellenberger 
8) Kos 
9) Nick 
10) Marquardt 

WW is a great division to discuss rankings. When we list them in order like this, it gives the mistaken impression that there are equal "distances" between each ranking. In reality there are different levels where many fighters are bunched together while some are clearly better or clearly worse. As can be seen in the consensus and each ranking in this thread, GSP is on his own level while the rest of the top 10 and several of the top 20 are all close enough that styles and other factors make them tossups while GSP by decision is THE most reliable pick in tapology history.

* Edited at 12.15.2012, 12:46 PM ET *

My 11-25 are:

11) Silva 
12) Marquardt 
13) Story 
14) Alves 
15) Kos
16) Akiyama 
17) Hathaway 
18) Pierce 
19) Hieron 
20) Kim 
21) Woodley 
22) Siyar 
23) Pyle 
24) Baczynski 
25) Mein

@Bill.. if you would have made this topic in the actual Ranking Forum, it would have auto popped everyone's ranking so they don't have to go search for their img code and paste... just a friendly FYI.  Here is mine:

 

I need to update mine... Alves doesn't belong there.  I'd either put Nate or Maia there at 10.

http://www.tapology.com/profiles/analias/my-rankings/current-top-ten-welterweight-mma-fighters-170-pounds

Alright, Gentlemen.  Neat.  Several things.

I appreciate everyone reinstating Fitch back into your Top 10's as most of you said you would if he gave a great accounting of himself in the Erick Silva fight.  So, thanks for that.

With respect to Nate Marquardt, since he's not even back in the UFC yet, I am waiting for his return.  I am very happy he is going to be back where he belongs.  Hope Dana White can forgive him his testosterone replacement therapy.
Nate was a massive MW, now he will be a super-massive WW.  Don't know how he makes the brutal weight cut.  He 
walks around between 200 - 210.  

I didn't know how to bring out our auto-rankings.  This site is still sophisticated to me and I don't know a lot of things.

UFC 158 is going to determine a lot of things to bring clarity to our rankings.  I fully expect Nick Diaz to drop, Rory MacDonald to rise, and Johny Hendricks to further solidify his status, and the UFC will be out of excuses to give him his title shot.  Assuming GSP is willing to further delay his ascendancy to MW.  Which I fully expect him to do.  He DOES lack enthusiasm for the big super-fight with Anderson.

Wouldn't it give us all juicy subject material if we all posted our Top 20's instead of our Top 10s?  Hint.  If we all asked the Moderators for an auto-ranking of Top 20 instead of Top 10, maybe they would accommodate us.