UFC latest pound for pound rankings

Source : Dave Doyle, Yahoo! Sports

Jon Jones has long been considered the biggest threat to break up Anderson Silva and Georges St. Pierre’s duopoly over the top two spots in the Yahoo! Sports pound-for-pound poll.
At this point, you don’t need me to go into all the reasons why, as the UFC light heavyweight champion’s status as “The Chosen One” has received more hype than anything this side of “Moneyball.”
But what might come as a bit of surprise is how fast Jones has gotten himself into position to knock on the Big Two’s door. Jones’ dominant victory over Quinton “Rampage” Jackson on Sept. 24, on the heels of a similar destruction of Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, has made it clear Jones could be in for the sort of championship run that at some point stops being called a “reign” and transitions to an “era.”
Silva and St. Pierre’s lock on the top spots remain secure for now, as for the second straight month they were unanimous picks among the 21 voters for first and second, respectively. But Jones’ win over “Rampage” nudged him into the No. 3 spot, with 153 points, one ahead of UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo.
The breakdown: Jones had 12 third-place votes; five fourths; two fifths and two sixths. Aldo received eight thirds, 10 fourths and three fifths (if you’re curious, the other third-place vote went to UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar).

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Does Aldo deserve to be bumped down to fourth? I personally voted Aldo third and Jones fourth, as I feel the two boast similar all-around skill sets, and that Aldo, by spending so much time in the WEC, didn’t have the benefit of the UFC spotlight to showcase his abilities until recently. And it doesn’t help that Aldo wasn’t able to put away Mark Hominick in his most recent fight. Either way, two things are clear: One is that Jones is steadily pushing his way toward No. 1; the other is that Aldo, with a title defense on Oct. 8 against Kenny Florian, can demonstrate whether he belongs in the conversation with Silva, St. Pierre and Jones.

T-9. Gray Maynard
Points: 37
Affiliation: UFC
Weight class: lightweight
Hometown: Las Vegas
Record: 10-0-1, 1 no-contest (draw in previous fight)
Last month’s ranking:T-9
Most recent result: vs. Frankie Edgar, majority draw, Jan. 1


T-9. Gilbert Melendez
Points: 37
Affiliation: Strikeforce (lightweight champion)
Weight class: lightweight
Hometown: San Francisco
Record: 19-2 (won past five)
Last month’s ranking:T- 9
Most recent result: def. Tatsuya Kawajiri, R1 TKO, April 9

8. Jon Fitch
Points: 37
Affiliation: UFC
Weight class: welterweight
Hometown: San Jose, Calif.
Record: 23-3-1, 1 no-contest (draw in previous fight)
Last month’s ranking: 8
Most recent result: majority draw vs. B.J. Penn, Feb. 21

7. Cain Velasquez
Points: 70
Affiliation: UFC (heavyweight champion)
Weight class: heavyweight
Hometown: Salinas, Calif.
Record: 9-0 (won past nine)
Last month’s ranking: 7
Most recent result: def. Brock Lesnar, R1 TKO, Oct. 23

6. Dominick Cruz
Points: 107
Affiliation: UFC (bantamweight champion)
Weight class: bantamweight
Hometown: San Diego
Record: 17-1 (won past seven)
Last month’s ranking: 6
Most recent result: def. Urijah Faber, unanimous decision, July 2

5. Frankie Edgar
Points: 115
Affiliation: UFC (lightweight champion)
Weight class: lightweight
Hometown: Toms River, N.J.
Record: 13-1-1 (draw in previous fight)
Last month’s ranking: 5
Most recent result: split draw vs. Gray Maynard, Jan. 1

4. Jose Aldo
Points: 152
Affiliation: UFC (featherweight champion)
Weight class: featherweight
Hometown: Rio de Janeiro
Record: 18-1 (won past 11)
Last month’s ranking: 3
Most recent result: def. Mark Hominick, unanimous decision, April 30

3. Jon Jones
Points: 153
Affiliation: UFC (light heavyweight champion)
Weight class: light heavyweight
Hometown: Endicott, N.Y.
Record: 14-1 (won previous five)
Last month’s ranking: 4
Most recent result: def. Quinton Jackson, R4 submission, Sept. 24

2. Georges St. Pierre
Points: 189
Affiliation: UFC (welterweight champion)
Weight class: welterweight
Hometown: Saint-Isidore, Quebec
Record: 22-2 (won past nine)
Last month’s ranking: 2
Most recent result: def. Jake Shields, unanimous decision, April 30

1. Anderson Silva
Points: 210 (21 first-place votes)
Affiliation: UFC (middleweight champion)
Weight class: middleweight
Hometown: Curitiba, Brazil
Record: 29-4 (won past 14)
Last month’s ranking: 1
Most recent result: def. Yushin Okami, R2 TKO, Aug. 27