Lightweight 8-17-09

Rank

Fighter

Comments

1.

BJ Penn

If the Prodigy can wreck Diego Sanchez later this year, maybe he should go back up to welterweight. Because honestly, there are no lightweights in the UFC who can deal with him right now. He's a complete fighter with a fearsome killer instinct, and watching him at his best is watching a true warrior at work.

2.

Shinya Aoki

Look, Shinya, you know you're our boy. So please promise us: No more dull kickboxing clinics like the one you had against Vitor Ribeiro at DREAM.10. Backpacking motherfuckers and twisting them in knots is your bread and butter. And we probably don't need to tell you that trading bombs wouldn't be the wisest strategy against Joachim Hansen during your rubber match in October. So snap out of it.

3.

Eddie Alvarez

 

4.

Tatsuya Kawajiri

Always dangerous and always entertaining, Crusher picked up one of the biggest wins of his career at DREAM.9 when he out-muscled Gesias Cavalcante to a unanimous decision. His strong wrestling and ground-and-pound set him apart from most Japanese fighters, and as we saw in his legendary 2008 fight against Eddie Alvarez, he can swing the hammers when he needs to.

5.

Joachim Hansen

 

6.

Diego Sanchez

As a welterweight, he was a perennial threat. As a lightweight, he’s within spitting distance of his first UFC title. He’s intensely positive, and positively intense, and Stevia has melted his body down into a 155-pound killing machine, player. Will BJ be able to handle the Yes Man?

7.

Kenny Florian

 

8.

Gesias Cavalcante

 

9.

Frank Edgar

Let's be real: Sean Sherk's days of winning big fights are behind him, and we might as well replace the Muscle Shark with the guy who shut him out at UFC 98. Edgar has had a killer run in the Octagon, and even though he dropped a decision to Gray Maynard last year, Edgar's wins have been more impressive than Maynard's, both in level of competition and entertainment value. Still, both guys need to start finishing fights if they hope to become fan-favorites.

10.

Josh Thomson

We'd advise the Punk to watch his back down here. After Gilbert Melendez avenged his first career loss at "Carano vs. Cyborg" in masterful fashion, he's itching to get a crack at the last guy who beat him. Between Thomson's leg/toe injuries, and Melendez's momentum, their second meeting might not have such a happy ending for the reigning Strikeforce lightweight champ.