March Madness: The Light Heavyweights

Rashad Evans is the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion and No. 1 overall seed in my March Madness tournament.

Fedor Emelianenko took home the gold in the heavyweight division for "The First Round March Madness Tournament" yesterday, so today it is the light heavyweights turn. 

This should be an interesting tournament for a few reasons. The parity in the division makes it difficult to consider any fighter a true No. 1 overall seed, unlike the clear dominance of Emelianenko in the heavyweight division. 

There also isn't as much international flavor in this division since the UFC pretty much has all the top light heavyweights. In fact, only four fighters from outside the UFC will be in this tournament, though one of those men will be a No. 1 seed. 

So here is the breakdown of the tournament.

Pool A

#1. Rashad Evans

#2. Renato "Babalu" Sobral

#3. Vladimir Matyushenko

#4. Ricardo Arona

Pool B

#1. Quinton Jackson 

#2. Rich Franklin

#3. Forrest Griffin

#4. Brandon Vera

Pool C

#1. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira

#2. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua

#3. Wanderlei Silva

#4. Thiago Silva

Pool D

#1. Lyoto Machida

#2. Dan Henderson

#3. Keith Jardine

#4. Chuck Liddell

Let me offer a quick breakdown of how I came to these selections.

Pool A: Rashad Evans is the only fighter holding a meaningful world title in this weight class right now so he earned the No. 1 overall seed. I mentioned four fighters from outside the UFC would be in the tournament and three of them are in this pool. "Babalu" used to be a force in the UFC before jumping to Affliction where he is still a force. Matyushenko is a former IFL champion and Ricardo Arona was considered the best light heavyweight in the world at one point and was one of Pride's top fighters. This will be tough for Evans. 

Pool B: "Rampage" was the No. 1 contender for Evans' title before getting sidelined with an injury. Despite a loss to Forrest Griffin, he has been red hot. Rich Franklin jumps up and down between this weight and middleweight, but he is one of the best no matter what weight. Griffin is a former UFC champion and a tough out. Vera is the most physically gifted fighter in the division if he can put it all together. 

Pool C: Antonio Rogerio Nogueira is the little brother of former UFC heavyweight champion Antonio Nogueira. He is just as dominant as his older brother and is the best light heavyweight not in the UFC. "Shogun" Rua was going to be the best fighter in the world until a knee injury sidelined him and hampered him in a fight against Griffin. Wanderlei Silva is one of the best strikers in the world. Thiago Silva is a hot prospect with only one loss to Lyoto Machida. 

Pool D: Speaking of Lyoto Machida, he gets the last No. 1 seed with his undefeated record and title shot looming. Dan Henderson is an extremely dangerous fighter and is like Franklin in that he can fight at multiple weights. Keith Jardine is a tough fighter and is always willing to fight the best competition. Just like Randy Couture took the "legend" spot in the heavyweights, Chuck Liddell steps in the legend spot for this weight class. It wouldn't be right if he wasn't in it. 

The snubbed: I wish I could add more fighters, but I cannot. Luis Cane barely missed it as he only has one loss and it was by disqualification. But his body of work isn't as impressive as Brandon Vera's so he is on the outside. Matt Hamill and Jon Jones are two promising fighters, but again not experienced enough. Rameau Sokoudjou has wins over Arona and Nogueira, which is very impressive, but a record of 5-4 isn't good enough. Tito Ortiz gave Liddell a run for the "legend" spot, but his losses to Liddell and inactivity hurt his chances. 

Later today I will have the complete breakdown of this tournament.