Las Vegas, NV– As the UFC enjoys its ongoing success, it boasts a huge roster full of some (or most) of the best fighters in the world. From lightweight (155 lbs) to heavyweight (206-265), all the divisions are seemingly stacked with talent. One thing however that could be argued-as a good thing or a bad thing, is that amongst all this talent, there are a select few who are ULTRA talented; pure superstars of the sport. So the question remains, who are these guys? Well, if you follow the sport at all you will probably already know most or all the names I am about to lay out here.
STARTING WITH PHENOM B.J. PENN
First, let’s start at lightweight. In that division we have the aptly named prodigy B.J. Penn (14-5-1, 5 KOs, 6 SUBs). Penn seems to be virtually unbeatable at lightweight and hasn’t lost at that weight in nearly eight years, which was a loss against Jens Pulver (22-12-1, 13 KOs, 3 SUBs), one he would later avenge. Next up we will move to the welterweight division. There we have the seemingly unstoppable, super athletic Georges St. Pierre (19-2, 8 KOs, 4 SUBs). In the same case as B.J., I can’t see anyone beating him right now.
FIGHTERS IN UFC DRINK URINE TOO!
Now let’s move on to middleweight (185). Here we have yet another pound for pound fighter in Anderson Silva (25-4, 15 KOs, 4 SUBs). Silva is a human wrecking machine with uncanny striking ability utilizing his Muay Thai skills to the max. He also has great natural reflexes and seems to pulverize all of his opponents he has faced in the UFC. At light heavyweight (205), we have the undefeated Lyoto Machida (15-0, 5 KOs, 2 SUBs). Yes, it may be true like boxer Juan Manuel Marquez (50-4-1, 37 KOs) he drinks his own urine, but he certainly is doing something right as his elusive style has befuddled opponent after opponent. Finally let’s check out the heavyweight division. This one is another obvious pick as it is the UFC’s newest cash cow Brock Lesnar (4-1, 2 KOs, 1 SUB).
CHAMPS IN FOR LONG TITLE RUNS?
So what do all these men have in common? They are all the champions of their division. The point I am trying to make is it seems that every single one of the UFC’s division is locked down. I don’t see anyone beating any of these men any time soon. Some of these guys have formidable challenges coming their way, as Machida prepares for Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (18-3, 15 KOs, 1 SUB) at UFC 104 slated for Oct. 24th, Lesnar prepares for Shane Carwin (11-0, 6 KOs, 5 SUBs) at UFC 106 on Nov. 21st and Penn sets his sights on Diego Sanchez (21-2, 6 KOs, 9 SUBs) at UFC 107 tentatively scheduled for Dec. 12th.
ONE THING: MMA GUYS CAN LOSE MANY WAYS
But even though all these opponents are extremely solid, all certainly A level fighters, I don’t think any of them will be able to touch the titleholders. The UFC may experience a long and interesting future with not just one champion dominating a division, but five champs dominating all five divisions! Only time will tell what will happen, but for now, all of the UFC’s divisions are locked up!
Matthew Grizzle