MMA Featherweight Rankings: September Edition

 As we at CR continue our rankings, we are now heading into what many consider the weakest division in the UFC: featherweight. The reason many consider this to be the case is due to the lack of top contenders and talent. I truly believe that this isn’t the case. There are plenty of solid contenders at 145 that have yet to challenge for the title.

Let’s check them out:

Photo via MMAWeekly.com

10. Dustin Poirier – At UFC 125, Josh Grispi was going to be fighting for the belt against Jose Aldo in the first ever featherweight title fight in UFC history. Aldo injured his neck and Poirier stepped in. Those are some pretty big shoes to fill. It was very understandable at the time that “The Diamond” was such a monstrous underdog heading into the fight with Grispi. Since that dominating decision win over Grispi, he went on a 3-fight win streak over the likes of Max Holloway, Jason Young, and Pablo Garza. He ended up running into The Korean Zombie in one of the best fights in UFC history, a fight he ultimately lost via 4^th round D’Arce choke. At only 23 years old, Dustin Poirier will inevitably challenge for the featherweight strap.

9. Diego Nunes – Nunes is one of those top guys who is way under appreciated. He is one of the best fighters training out of Nova Uniao (which is saying a lot) and holds one of the most well-rounded games at 145, with a purple belt in BJJ and being mainly known for his striking arsenal. He has now fought four straight top contenders and lost two of them in very close decision losses, especially his fight with Dennis Siver. Nunes deserves more appreciation, I just hope he receives it sooner rather than later.

Photo via MMAWeekly.com

8. Erik Koch – Although his last decision win over Jonathan Brookins was far from spectacular, Erik Koch is one of the best fighters at 145. His KO wins over both Francisco Rivera and Raphael Assuncao further cement that statement. Many people believe that he doesn’t exactly deserve his title shot and I agree, to a certain extent. I believe he has the skills to become a champion in the future, so why rush the opportunity? Let him grow and he will become an even greater fighter.

Photo via MMAFrenzy.com

7. Hatsu Hioki – Many people were really confused when the consensus number-two featherweight in the world decided to turn down a title shot against Jose Aldo. He believed he wasn’t ready, and he was very right. He was then matched up against Ricardo Lamas in what many considered a relatively easy fight for the submission specialist. But, to the surprise of many, Lamas out grappled Hioki en route to a unanimous decision win. Hioki looked amazing in his last win over Bart Palaszewski in Japan, but once he hits American soil, his skills plummet.

Photo via MMAJunkie.com

6. Dennis Siver – Siver was on his way to a UFC title shot at 155-lbs. Donald Cerrone took that away with a dominant first round submission win over the German. Siver has always been one of the shorter guys at lightweight, so I personally found the drop to 145-lbs a brilliant idea. Even though he failed to make weight in his first fight at featherweight against Diego Nunes, it was his first fight at featherweight and his first time dropping down (also his Rousimar Palhares body type didn’t help). Diego Nunes is a top guy and that win instantly catapulted him into title contention. His next fight with Eddie Yagin might not get him a title shot, but if he beats Yagin, he will certainly be just one fight away.

There he is!

5. Chan Sung Jung – If The Korean Zombie isn’t one of your favorite fighters; you aren’t a true fan of MMA. Four of his last 5 fights have been “of the year” performances. When he made his Zuffa debut against Leonard Garcia at WE 48, he fought in one of the best fights in MMA history. It ended in controversy with a Garcia win and followed it with a loss to George Roop via 2^nd round KO. Once he made it to the UFC, he really found his grove. He entered the UFC avenging his controversial loss to Garcia with the first ever-performed twister in UFC history. He then pulled of a monstrous upset over Mark Hominick with a 7 second KO, tied for the fastest UFC finish. His most recent win over Dustin Poirier further cemented the fact that he has truly found his grove. He is now most likely going to be fighting the winner of Frankie Edgar and Jose Aldo.

Photo via MMAJunkie.com

4. Ricardo Lamas – Ricardo Lamas is one of the strongest fighters in the world at 145-lbs. He had a similar resurgence to that of Chan Sung Jung. Once he made his move to the UFC, his career took off. His last fight at 155, and in the WEC, ended with a 1^st round KO at the hands of Yuri Alcantara. He came back with a vicious 1^st round TKO over Matt Grice. It was brutal to say the least. He then dominated Cub Swanson with a win via 2^nd round arm triangle. The guy looks amazing at 145 and he continued his hot streak with a win over Hatsu Hioki, and he was injured!

Photo via MMAJunkie.com

3. Pat Curran – Bellator’s featherweight champion is easily the best fighter they have under contract at the moment. His last two wins over Marlon Sandro and Joe Warren are both KO of the year performances. The head kick he landed on Sandro was picture perfect and his win over Warren was quite literally, and I’m not exaggerating, the most brutal knockout I have ever seen. He landed a solid 20 unanswered knees and punches to the head. It was also one of the latest stoppages (no, it wasn’t Josh Rosenthal) that I have ever seen. In my opinion, if he were to come over to the UFC, he deserves an immediate title shot.

2. Chad Mendes – Mendes is still the one guy at 145 who has the best chance at defeating Aldo for the belt. Yeah, I know he just lost to that same guy by a first round knockout, but his wrestling is fantastic and that was his first loss, so it will certainly be a learning experience for him. His next fight should definitely be a number-1 contender’s match.

Aldo celebrating with his people.

1.Jose Aldo – Aldo has the potential to become the greatest fight of all time. Seriously. His standup is mind-numbingly fast, accurate, and powerful, and yet we haven’t even gotten a full taste of his ground game. There is no doubt that he is a top-5 pound-for-pound fighter and he will most likely become top-3 in the coming years. I’m terrified of the thought of him moving up to 155.

So what did you guys think? Let us know in the comments on what you either agreed on or disagreed on.