The middleweight tournament begins to see if anyone can stop Anderson Silva (who knocked out James Irvin with his eyes closed and his back to him apparently.)
Today's featured division is the middleweights, where one man clearly stands above the rest. Anderson "The Spider" Silva is considered the undisputed best fighter at 185 pounds and the best fighter in the world regardless of weight.
He has torn through the UFC middleweight division, which as you will see in a second is pretty weak for the most part. Of the 16 fighters in this tournament, only 7 are from the UFC. That's not a terrible number, but I would love to see Silva take on some of the guys that are going to be in this tournament.
A quick disclaimer before I unveil the pools. Dan Henderson and Rich Franklin ARE NOT in the tournament because their last fight was in the light heavyweight division. I am trying my best just to include current middleweight fighters. So even though Henderson is moving down, he is excluded.
Pool A
#1. Anderson Silva
#2. Michael Bisping
#3. Thales Leites
#4. Denis Kang
Pool B
#1. Gegard Mousasi
#2. Paulo Filho
#3. Vitor Belfort
#4. Jason Miller
Pool C
#1. Robbie Lawler
#2. Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza
#3. Matt Lindland
#4. Benji Radach
Pool D
#1. Demian Maia
#2. Cung Le
#3. Yushin Okami
#4. Nate Marquardt
Heres a little breakdown of each pool.
Pool A: As stated earlier, Anderson Silva is the clear cut No. 1 fighter in this division and probably the world. Michael Bisping was always a good fighter at light heavyweight, but since coming down in weight he has looked even more explosive and deadly. Thales Leites is the No. 1 contender for Silva's strap and while I think it is a little early, he is 14-1. Denis Kang is loaded with potential and is dominant at times, but he slipped to a 4-seed after losing his UFC debut.
Pool B: Gegard Mousasi is just a winner plain and simple. 24-2 and the DREAM middleweight grand prix champion. He is the real deal. Paulo Filho was tagged as the man to beat Silva, but a loss to Chael Sonnen put those talks to an end. Filho is still extremely good and has only one loss. Vitor Belfort has incredible hand speed and has defeated top fighters from heavyweights to middleweights. Jason Miller is a tough guy that never gives up. He fights the best around and is always competitive.
Pool C: Robbie Lawler holds a title, which he means he gets a 1-seed. He is one of the best on his feet and his takedown defense is top-notch after training with Matt Hughes. Ronaldo Souza is a jujitsu ace and made it to the finals of DREAM's grand prix before losing to Mousasi. He is 10-2 and has a bright future. Matt Lindland was the best in the world at one time and an Olympic silver medalist in wrestling. Benji Radach won all but one fight in the IFL and has a win over Murilo Rua. Another tough out at 19-4.
Pool D: Some may say its too early to give Demian Maia a 1-seed, but a 10-0 record with eight submissions is impressive. His ground game could be the best in the world when it comes to MMA. Cung Le is undefeated and for all I know he might never lose, but his inactivity gave him a 2-seed. Yushin Okami is a punisher, and while not always exciting he wins a lot. He is 7-1 in the UFC and its time he gets a shot. Nate Marquardt is very experienced and his domination in Pancrase has to be seen. Wins by a flying knee and broken arm are always impressive.
The snubbed: Murilo "Ninja" Rua, the brother of Mauricio Rua, has a lot of talent but always seems to lose when he fights the elite competitors. Chael Sonnen has a win over Paulo Filho, but 10 losses, including three to Jeremy Horn, keep him out. Joey Villasenor is a fighter I really enjoy and I think he is one big win away from making a tournament like this.
As always, I will post a full breakdown of the tournament a little later in the day.
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