Sherdog’s Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

Middleweight

1. Michael Bisping (30-7)

If you thought Bisping's UFC middleweight title run was going to peak in its unpredictability with his win over Dan Henderson in October, you thought wrong. After it seemed like Yoel Romero was a lock to challenge for the title next, Georges St. Pierre un-retired; however, it turned out GSP was not interested in fighting until November. Then the UFC tried to change tack and get Bisping-Romero on the books for July, but “The Count” does not seem keen on the idea. Around and around we go.

2. Luke Rockhold (15-3)

Rockhold has been on the shelf since an injury forced him out of a rematch with Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza in November. More recently, Rockhold has spent some time training with Henri Hooft at Combat Club in Florida, but the former Strikeforce middleweight champion has really kept his name in the headlines by advocating for his fellow UFC fighters to “stand up” and not be afraid to tell their promotion to “[expletive] off.”

3. Yoel Romero (12-1)

With an 8-0 record in the UFC and wins over Derek Brunson, Lyoto Machida, Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza and Chris Weidman, there is no question that Romero is the legitimate No. 1 middleweight contender in the UFC. However, the UFC's decision to do Michael Bisping-Dan Henderson 2 in October complicated the situation. Then came the Georges St. Pierre decision to un-retire and target Bisping. Now that Bisping-GSP does not appear immediate, you would think Romero would be next on deck. Unfortunately, Bisping no longer seems interested in defending in July, leaving “The Soldier of God” to keep on waiting.

4. Robert Whittaker (18-4)

Whittaker's decision to move up to 185 pounds has paid rich dividends, leading to “The Reaper” racking up a 7-0 record in the division. After consecutive wins over Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza and Derek Brunson, the New Zealand native is getting closer and closer to a title shot, although maybe not quite the way he had hoped or imagined. With Michael Bisping possibly out until later this year, there is discussion of Whittaker meeting up with deserved top contender Yoel Romero over an interim UFC 185-pound championship, which would complicate the promotion's middleweight title picture even more.

5. Ronaldo Souza (24-5, 1 NC)

“Jacare” had been outspoken in recent months about how the UFC has conducted the middleweight division, from Michael Bisping's championship win and "The Count" defending against an aged Dan Henderson to a returning Georges St. Pierre being granted a title shot. Unfortunately for Souza, after repeatedly stating his case for crack at UFC gold, he met red-hot contender at Robert Whittaker at UFC on Fox 24 and was knocked out in the second round.

6. Gegard Mousasi (42-6-2)

Headed into the biggest fight of his career -- and the last fight on his UFC contract -- Mousasi produced results, though perhaps not the way he wanted. At UFC 210, Mousasi won his fifth straight bout, knocking out former middleweight king Chris Weidman in the second round. Unfortunately, the TKO came with massive controversy due to referee Dan Miragliotta and the New York State Athletic Commission’s mishandling of the fight-ending call. Nonetheless, “The Dreamcatcher” figures to catch a nice contract from the UFC or former promoter Scott Coker, who now presides over Bellator MMA.

7. Chris Weidman (13-3)

Weidman has suffered three straight defeats after starting his career 13-0, and following his debacle of a TKO loss to Gegard Mousasi at UFC 210 in April, “All-American” lobbied for a rematch. However, Mousasi has become a free agent, and Weidman could not pass up the chance to fight in front of a partisan crowd in Long Island, New York. The former UFC 185-pound king is due to headline UFC on Fox 25, where he takes on Kelvin Gastelum on July 22.

8. David Branch (21-3)

It was not a pretty affair, but Branch earned his 11th win in a row at UFC 211 on May 13 and remained unbeaten since a 2012 loss to Anthony Johnson by taking a split decision over Krzysztof Jotko. Even if his performance was not exactly enthusing, it gave the Bronx, New York, native a win to cement his top-10 status and saw his hand raised inside the Octagon for the first time since December 2010.

9. Anderson Silva (34-8, 1 NC)

Silva's slated June 3 pairing with Kelvin Gastelum went to hell in a hand basket when the latter tested positive for cannabinoid metabolites and was pulled from the bout. Following Gastelum's removal, Silva lobbied for an interim UFC middleweight title bout against Yoel Romero. After his demands went unmet, “The Spider” shut down his training camp entirely and removed himself from the UFC 212 bill in Rio de Janeiro.

10. Kelvin Gastelum (14-2)

Coming off of his March 11 stoppage of Vitor Belfort, Gastelum was penciled in to face former middleweight champion Anderson Silva at UFC 212 on June 3. Instead, Gastelum tested positive for cannabinoid metabolites in a post-fight drug sample, forcing him out of the bout. Instead, “The Ultimate Fighter 17” winner will get a different former middleweight champ next time out: Gastelum is scheduled to meet Chris Weidman in the UFC on Fox 25 headliner on July 22 in Long Island, New York.

Other Contenders: Derek Brunson, Rafael Carvalho, Krzysztof Jotko, Daniel Kelly, Thales Leites.

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