Penick's Take
PENICK: Fedor's loss means the top fighter in each division now in the UFC
Jun 27, 2010 - 3:04:42 PM PENICK: Fedor's loss means the top fighter in each division now in the UFC

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

If there was one unquestionable winner after last night's Fedor Emelianenko vs. Fabricio Werdum bout, besides Werdum himself, it was the UFC. The debate is now over for those who wish to point to fighters outside of the organization to make the argument that the UFC doesn't contain the best in every division, and Zuffa as an organization now holds the #1 fighter in each division from heavyweight down to bantamweight.

The argument has been made that the UFC lost as well because of the fact that a massive Fedor vs. Brock Lesnar fight won't come to fruition (or if it does it will lose some of the mystique it would have had), but at best that fight was only a pipe dream and it was M-1 Global that kept it from happening.

But back to the issue at hand, with Fedor's loss he is out of the #1 spot in the heavyweight division. There are plenty that believe otherwise, and that he's still the #1 heavyweight despite losing, but that's just not the case.

Fedor is still the best heavyweight that's ever competed in the sport. A loss or two at the tail end of his career won't change that. But he cannot be considered the #1 heavyweight in the rankings of today, not anymore. Resume is a part of what sets up where people fall in the rankings, but when the knock on Fedor has been the questionable levels of competition he's faced since 2005 this loss absolutely takes him from the top spot.

That spot will be claimed by the winner of next weekend's UFC 116 main event between Brock Lesnar and Shane Carwin for the UFC Heavyweight Championship. With Fedor's loss that bout is truly for the "Undisputed" Heavyweight Championship.

The other major victory for the UFC is the fact that not only are the #1 fighters in each division under their roof, but to claim that spot a fighter will have to go through the UFC. That's what makes this so huge. A fighter cannot and will not claim a #1 spot in any division if they're not fighting for Zuffa.

With that distinction, there are only a few super fights left to be made with fighters outside of the organization, and with the vast majority of the best fighters in these weight classes in the UFC it means the best will continue to fight the best.

Fedor's loss has repercussions for the entire MMA landscape, and while Fabricio Werdum was the victor on Saturday night, the UFC still comes out on top.

RELATED STORY: PENICK: Fedor Emelianenko's loss to Fabricio Werdum quite possibly the best thing to happen to Scott Coker: [CLICK TO READ FULL ARTICLE]