As convoluted as the lightweight division is, the welterweight division (170 lbs.) is clear as a bell. Welterweight is one of the deepest divisions in the world, and all but one elite welterweight are under contract with the UFC.
THE BEST WELTERWEIGHT IN THE WORLD
Georges St-Pierre (20-2)
Fights for: UFC
Next fight: vs. Josh Koscheck, December 11 (unconfirmed date), UFC 12x
Synopsis: Georges “Rush” St-Pierre is the best fighter in the world, period. He also has absolutely no weaknesses, and a tireless work ethic. There is nothing he can’t do, and he is better at everything than anyone else in his division.
There is no obvious game plan to defeat him. GSP is the best wrestler in his division, even though he has no amateur wrestling background. He has seriously contemplated a leave from MMA to try out for the Canadian wrestling team at the 2012 Olympics. I realize it’s just Canada, but still.
GSP is the apex of the sport. He has the perfect frame for his weight class, he’s a better athlete than anyone in his division, he’s smarter than anyone in his division, and he won’t gas until ten minutes after his opponent gasses. And I’m not even a GSP nut-hugger.
Notable Victories: Karo Parisyan, Jay Hieron, Jason Miller, Frank Trigg, Sean Sherk, B.J. Penn (x2), Matt Hughes (x2), Chuck Norris, Josh Koscheck, The Tyranny of Evil Men, Matt Serra, Jon Fitch, Thiago Alves, Dan Hardy
Conclusion: GSP is the perfect MMA fighter. And despite that, he is able to motivate himself by setting goals for himself that seem completely unobtainable. He won’t be defeated anytime soon.
STRIKEFORCE CHAMPION
Nick Diaz (22-7, 1 NC)
Fights for: Strikeforce
Next fight: TBA
Synopsis: I figure we may as well get the only non-UFC WW out of the way early. Diaz is a phenomenally talented fighter, a completely polarizing personality, and as self-destructive a figure as there is in the sport (well, him and Josh Barnett, we’ll get to him in a few days).
Diaz is one of the best BJJ guys in the world, and has been for several years. But what separates him from the rest of the BJJ guys is his unorthodox boxing game. He will throw literally 10x the amount of strikes that his opponent throws, which ruins the game plan of anyone who faces him.
His Achilles heel when he was in the UFC years ago was the dominant wrestler, but Strikeforce is so thin at WW that he won’t be tested by a wrestler anytime soon. He’s forced to fight outside of WW from time to time because Strikeforce has no credible welterweights to feed to him.
Notable Victories: Chris Lytle, Robbie Lawler, Takanori Gomi (was one of the great wins of all time, but deemed a NC after he tested positive for weed after the fight. Like I said, self-destructive), Frank Shamrock, Scott Smith, Hayato Sakurai
Conclusion: The UFC won’t touch him, despite his stature, because he’s an outspoken pot-head, not a company man, and considered by many to be a thug (he was a key player in the in-cage riot the last time Strikeforce was on CBS). He needs to find a way to clean up his image and get to the UFC while he’s still in his prime.
THE ELITE
Jake Shields (25-4-1)
Fights for: UFC
Next fight: vs. Martin Kampmann, UFC 121, September 23
Synopsis: Shields is making his UFC debut this October. Shields was the EliteXC WW champion, and then won the Strikeforce MW Championship after joining the organization. He’s a training partner of Nick Diaz, which was at least part of his motivation for moving up to MW (185 lbs). Shields hasn’t lost a fight since 2004, and hasn’t really even been in a close fight since that loss. And it’s not like he’s been fighting cans, he’s got a lot of high level notches on his belt.
Shields is one of the best wrestlers and BJJ guys in the WW division, but his striking game is sorely lacking. As mentally tough as it gets, he responded to Strikeforce bringing in Dan Henderson by slaughtering him in one of the monumental statement victories of all time. Vilified by the uneducated MMA masses, Shields is brilliant on the ground, and can finish anyone.
Notable Victories: Hayato Sakurai, Yushin Okami, Carlo Condit, Paul Daley, Robbie Lawler, Jason Miller, Dan Henderson
Conclusion: He’s being thrown into the deep end of the pool by being given Martin Kampmann. A win at UFC 121 will likely earn Shields a well deserved WW title shot. Not losing a fight in more than six years will do that for a guy, ya know?
Matt Hughes (44-7)
Fights for: UFC
Next fight: vs. Ricardo Almeida, UFC 117, August 7
Synopsis: Look at that record. 44 wins is just unfathomable in high level MMA competition. Hughes is currently regarded as the best WW of all time (even by me), but is on the tail end of his Hall Of Fame career. The Matt Hughes who fights now is no longer elite by today’s standards, but is worthy of an early mention. A dominant wrestler with solid BJJ credentials, Hughes will go down in history as physically the strongest man to ever fight at WW.
Notable Victories: Carlos Newton (x2), Hayato Sakurai, Sean Sherk, Frank Trigg (x2), Georges St-Pierre, Royce Gracie, BJ Penn, Chris Lytle, Matt Serra, Renzo Gracie
Conclusion: Even nearing the end, Hughes is a borderline Top-10 WW right now. While few if any observers believe he has a title run left in him, he can certainly continue to make some noise in the division.
Jon Fitch (22-1, 1 NC)
Fights for: UFC
Next fight: vs. Thiago Alves, UFC 117, August 7
Synopsis: Jon Fitch is really, REALLY hard to enjoy. He’s a dominant wrestler who tends to get on top and stay on top for fifteen minutes. It’s been more than three years since a Fitch fight, win or lose, has ended by KO or submission. If Fitch is fighting, it’s going to go to a decision. Even I, the biggest Jake Shields supporter, am losing patience with Fitch.
Lest we sell Fitch short, he is extremely adept at what he does, which is to win fights and make his opponents look clueless. And no one can question his heart, as he took a hellacious beating at the hands of GSP and didn’t stop for even one moment. He’ll have the chance to convert the skeptics, as he faces exciting striker Thiago Alves on August 7.
Notable Victories: Thiago Alves, Diego Sanchez, Paulo Thiago
Conclusion: He is the Gray Maynard of his division. Most people consider Fitch and Alves to be top four welterweights (along with Shields and GSP), but no one is clamoring for either Fitch or Alves to get another title shot. Fitch is stuck in limbo right now, and even a win over Alves isn’t going to change that.
Thiago Alves (16-6)
Fights for: UFC
Next Fight: vs. Jon Fitch, UFC 117, August 7
Synopsis: Alves is a huge WW who cuts as much weight as anyone in the division just to be able to weigh in at 170 lb. “The Pitbull” is a devastating striker, despite standing only 5’9” with a less than 70” reach. He has KO power in both hands and and both legs.
Alves’ stand-up game is based around his fantastic Muay Thai. He also possesses an underrated BJJ game as well. He is the rare fighter to have started his MMA career 0-2 and still fought through to become a star. He had a seven fight undefeated streak until just over a year ago when he lost his title shot to GSP. Alves was thrashed from pillar to post in that fight, but like Fitch and Dan Hardy, who both also lost five round decisions to the champ, he showed tremendous heart in that fight. He’s been absent from fighting for over a year due to various medical issues.
Notable Victories: Chris Lytle, Karo Parisyan, Matt Hughes, Josh Koscheck
Conclusion: Alves is trapped in Fitch hell. He’s a consensus elite fighter, but he’s not going to be seeing another title shot anytime soon. He differs from Fitch in that his style is completely opposite, so if he wins he’s more likely to get a second shot than Fitch would be if he were to defeats Alves.
Josh Koscheck (15-4)
Fights for: UFC
Next Fight: vs. UFC WW Champion Georges St-Pierre, December 11 (unconfirmed date), UFC 12x
Synopsis: Koscheck turned heads when he debuted on Season One of TUF. Despite being a completely one-dimensional wrestler, he was portrayed (accurately) as the cocky bad boy of the house. His time on TUF was most noted from breaking Chris Leben’s psyche, and then hosing him while Leben slept on the back lawn of the house.
Koscheck loves playing the heel role, and knows how to get people to want to pay money to see him get beat down. Unfortunately for those fans, Koscheck has developed a fantastic all-around game and is very difficult to defeat. He has one punch KO power in his hands, and has a head kick TKO on his record as well.
“Kos” lost to GSP in 2007 when GSP was not the WW champion. The two are currently taping the next season of TUF as opposing coaches, and will face off for GSP’s title on a (rumored) December 11 event.
Notable Victories: Diego Sanchez, Chris Lytle, Frank Trigg, Anthony Johnson, Paul Daley
Conclusion: Despite Koscheck’s reputation as being a bad boy, he will fight anyone in the division at anytime. He took losses to Thiago Alves and to Paulo Thiago in part because he took the fights on short notice. An absolute gym rat, Koscheck is always in phenomenal shape. He trains with fellow welterweights Fitch and Mike Swick at the American Kickboxing Academy, a fact that drives Dana White bonkers as he’s tried forever to make Kos and Fitch fight.
THE NEXT LEVEL
Martin Kampmann (17-3)
Fights for: UFC
Next Fight: vs. Jake Shields, UFC 121, October 23
Synopsis: Martin Kampmann is one of the most well rounded fighters in any weight class. Kampmann is adept at both Muay Thai and submission grappling. His roots are in Muay Thai, but when he came to the UFC as a middleweight he debuted with three submission victories and a decision over a BJJ Black Belt in Thales Leties.
After being muscled around by Nathan Marquardt, Kampmann dropped to welterweight. He’s been close to a WW Title shot ever since but hasn’t been able to get over that hump yet. He will be a stern test for Jake Shields at UFC 121, and will be worthy of his long awaited title shot with a victory.
Notable Victories: Thales Leites, Carlos Condit, Paulo Thiago
Conclusion: Kampmann is one of my favorite fighters to watch, in small part because he and my wife both share Danish heritage. Kampmann is comfortable standing and on the ground, so he’s never a fish out of water. The Shields fight will be the biggest opportunity of his career.
Carlos Condit (25-5)
Fights for: UFC
Next Fight: vs. Dan Hardy, UFC 120, October 16
Synopsis: The aptly nicknamed “Natural Born Killer,” Condit is the most relentless fighter in the sport. When you watch a Condit fight, you know that you’re going to see pure aggression for every moment of the fight. Condit was the WEC WW Champion before Zuffa melded that division into the ranks of the UFC.
Condit lost a close split decision in his UFC debut to Martin Kampmann, in a fight which was my favorite of 2009. He has rebounded with a close decision victory over Jake Ellenberger and a fantastic come from behind TKO over Rory MacDonald in June, the latter of which is my favorite fight of 2010. Condit is adept at all phases of MMA. He is ferocious by nature, and when he smells blood he is constantly looking for the kill.
Notable Victories: Frank Trigg, Brock Larson, Rory MacDonald
Conclusion: Condit is lacking that seminal victory which would propel him into superstardom. If he is able to launch his career into that upper echelon of top contenders he is likely to be well loved by the masses due to his vicious fighting style.
Dan Hardy (23-7, 1 NC)
Fights for: UFC
Next Fight: vs. Carlos Condit, UFC 120, October 16
Synopsis: Look, just make a point to watch his next fight against Carlos Condit. It will be on Spike TV, so you won’t have to pay to see it. Don’t listen to people who criticize the whole of the card, because THIS fight is a fight which will sell the sport to you.
That said, Dan “The Outlaw” is one of the best British fighters in the world. He is renowned for his tremendous KO power in both fists, and he sure does like himself a lot. He was fast tracked to a WW title shot after only four UFC victories, three of which were decisions. Hardy’s most recent fight was a slaughter at the hands of GSP (there’s that name again) where Hardy was almost finished multiple times. To his credit, Hardy showed massive cajones in that fight.
Notable Victories: Marcus Davis, Mike Swick
Conclusion: The ultimate case study of being the right guy at the right place at the right time, Hardy had his shot and didn’t measure up. Hardy is a top ten WW, but he’s lacking the skills necessary to be among the elite of the division.
Paul Daley (24-9-2)
Fights for: Free Agent
Next Fight: vs. TBA, Shark Fights 13, September 11
Synopsis: Daley has become notorious for punching Josh Koscheck in the face five seconds AFTER the end of their fight at UFC 113. Daley was summarily dismissed from the UFC as a result of this borderline criminal activity. As a fighter, he is Dan Hardy; they are one in the same. Daley’s likely a little bit better than Hardy, but has deemed himself irrelevant with his infantile cheap shot at the end of his fight with Koscheck at UFC 113 in May, 2010.
Notable Victories: Martin Kampmann, Dustin Hazelett
Conclusion: Daley couldn’t handle being controlled by Koscheck for fifteen minutes, so he decided that the best way to handle that fact was to just go and make himself irrelevant. Done and done.
Paulo Thiago (13-2)
Fights for: UFC
Next Fight: vs. Diego Sanchez, UFC 121, October 123
Synopsis: Thiago burst onto the scene with a fantastic one punch KO against Josh Koscheck in his UFC debut. Thiago is a BJJ black belt who also has KO power in his fists, even if his striking is less than technically perfect. He can’t be fazed as in his day job he is a member of BOPE, the elite Brazilian special police force. He literally disarms the toughest drug runners in Brazil, which makes punching Josh Koccheck and choking Mike Swick seem like a walk in the park. Coming off a fifteen minute dismantling at the hands of Martin Kempmann, Thiago has recently signed to face TUF Season One victor Diego Sanchez.
Notable Victories: Josh Koscheck, Mike Swick
Conclusion: It’s hard to know what to make of Thiago after Kampmann controlled him on the mat in June. He didn’t look good in his debut fight until the moment he caught an overconfident Josh Koscheck’s chin. We’ll know more after his fight against Sanchez in October
THE POOL
The Pool of Welterweights contains two distinct classes of fighters; veterans and young bucks. The most renowned of the veterans is Matt “The Terra” Serra. Serra won TUF Season Four, which was a season where former UFC fighters competed for a title shot. Serra took that golden ticket and redeemed it by shocking the world and knocking out GSP in the first round of their title fight. Serra lost the rematch, but no one can take that win from him. He’s one of the best BJJ guys on the planet, and has fantastic KO power in his fists. The man he defeated in the TUF finale, Chris “Lights Out” Lytle, is one of the most exciting fighters in UFC history. Since losing to Serra in 2006, Lytle has won Fight of the Night four times, Submission of the Night twice (and got HOSED out of a third at UFC 116), and even one Knockout of the Night. Chris Lytle is the most likely UFC fighter to deliver a memorable fight. Diego “Nightmare” Sanchez is another guy who is going to give a great fight every time out as well. His LW debut against Clay Guida was one of the craziest fights of all time. Sanchez has struggled lately, and is on the precipice of a three fight losing streak. Mike “Quick” Swick fought as a LHW on Season One of TUF, and has since cut to WW. Swick is fun to watch, but is risking becoming a gatekeeper if he doesn’t get a big win on his resume soon. Ricardo “Big Dog” Almeida is the last of the veterans I will list here. Almeida made his name in the MW division in the early days of the UFC and in Japan with Pancrase, but then abruptly retired in 2004 to focus on his BJJ academy in New Jersey. Returning to the UFC in 2008, Almeida has gone 3-0 since dropping down to 170. A win over Matt Hughes at UFC 117 would put him on the brink of contention.
John Hathaway became the next big thing when he destroyed Diego Sanchez in May of 2010. A dangerous fighter both standing and on the mat, Hathaway looks to buld some momentum by defeating journeyman Mike Pyle at UFC 120 in front of his English brethren. Anthony “Rumble” Johnson is a huge WW with tremendous potential, but his future is at middleweight, and maybe eventually Light Heavyweight. Rory MacDonald could be the next big thing in the WW division. Only 20 years old, MacDonald is the first of a new wave of MMA fighter who has come into the sport training in all elements of the sport rather than coming to the sport from one discipline and then getting up to speed on other elements. MacDonald could be a champion in 4-5 years. Ben Askren is one of the most renowned wrestlers in NCAA history, and has recently become the Bellator Season Two Welterweight Tournament Champion. Askren has all the talent in the world, and could very well be the next big thing.
MY CURRENT LIGHTWEIGHT RANKINGS:
1. Georges St-Pierre
2. Jake Shields
3. Jon Fitch
4. Thiago Alves
5. Josh Koscheck
6. Martin Kampmann
7. Carlos Condit
8. Nick Diaz
9. Paulo Thiago
10. Matt Hughes
UFC WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPIONS
1. Pat Miletich
a. Defeated Mikey Burnett at UFC Brazil to become the first UFC WW Champion
b. Defeated Jorge Patino at UFC 18
c. Defeated Andre Pederneiras at UFC 21
d. Defeated John Alessio at UFC 26
e. Defeated Kenichi Yamamoto at UFC 29 (Stripped of the title when he left the UFC)
2. Carlos Newton
a. Defeated Pat Miletich at UFC 31 to win vacant WW Championship
3. Matt Hughes
a. Defeated Carlos Newton at UFC 34 to win WW Championship
b. Defeated Hayato Sakurai at UFC 36
c. Defeated Carlos Newton at UFC 38
d. Defeated Gil Castillo at UFC 40
e. Defeated Sean Sherk at UFC 42
f. Defeated Frank Trigg at UFC 45
4. B.J. Penn
a. Defeated Matt Hughes at UFC 46 to win WW Championship (Stripped of title when he signed with K-1)
5. Matt Hughes (Second reign)
a. Defeated Georges St-Pierre at UFC 50 to win vacant WW Championship
b. Defeated Frank Trigg at UFC 52
c. Defeated B.J. Penn at UFC 63
6. Georges St-Pierre
a. Defeated Matt Hughes at UFC 65 to win WW Championship
7. Matt Serra
a. Defeated Georges St-Pierre at UFC 69 to win WW Championship
8. Georges St-Pierre (Second reign)
a. Defeated Matt Serra at UFC 83 to win WW Championship (Defeated Matt Hughes at UFC 79 win Interim WW Championship during Serra’s reign while Serra was injured.)
b. Defeated Jon Fitch at UFC 87
c. Defeated BJ Penn at UFC 94
d. Defeated Thiago Alves at UFC 100
e. Defeated Dan Hardy at UFC 111
[Georges St. Pierre art by Cory Gould (c) MMATorch.com]
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