What Does The Future Hold For The UFC Middleweight Division?
The UFC middleweight division has a long and storied past, but it may be at it’s deepest point ever right now. The irony is apparent, as former divisional king Anderson Silva was beaten twice last year by new champion Chris Weidman, and has been sidelined since December of 2013. It seems that in ‘The Spider’s’ absence the division has grown very strong.
Former light-heavyweight boss Lyoto Machida is next in line for the shot, and will take on ‘The All-American’ at UFC 175 for the chance of winning his second UFC title in a new weight class. That’s not all though, the top end of the division is looking stronger than it has in a long time, and there are plenty of talented underdogs scattered thereafter.
Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ de Souza has surged through the rankings to the fourth spot, and is looking like a very dangerous beast right now; with extremely high-level grappling, Souza has added some solid striking and knockout power to his arsenal. A potential match with Vitor Belfort could well be on the cards for the Brazilian gator.
On the subject of ‘The Phenom’, he adss another interesting element to the equation. Belfort has been on a hot streak as of late, earning three knockouts in 2013 and making a solid claim for a title shot. As Machida stepped in for Belfort in the wake of the TRT ban, we could well see ‘The Phenom’ take on the winner of UFC 175’s title fight.
Luke Rockhold is back in the mix after scoring two first round finishes against Costas Philipou and Tim Boetsch, and the former Strikeforce boss is looking like he has found his feet in the UFC. After a devastating 2013 KO loss to Vitor Belfort, there are plenty of options for ‘Rocky’ given his recent showings. All this and we haven’t even considered Anderson Silva.
Early estimates see Silva returning in late 2014/early 15, so what if Machida is the champion at that point? Well, an obvious guess would be to make Silva vs. Weidman III as a number one contender bout, especially considering Silva and ‘The Dragon’ have said they wouldn’t fight each other in the past. Or perhaps Silva vs. Belfort II?
Tim Kennedy rounds off a solid top six after his decision win over mainstay Michael Bisping, and we still have Mark Munoz, Yoel Romero, Francis Carmont, Gegard Mousasi, Brad Tavares, Thales Lietes, Tim Boetsch, ‘The Count’ and Costas Philipou battling it out in a cut-throat top 15 at middleweight. The future is bright at 185 pounds, but it is as dangerous as it’s ever been. Not to take anything away from Silva’s reign at the top, but bouts against Travis Lutter for the title, and Stephen Bonnar and Forrest Griffin at 205 pounds would suggest that the division may have been short of a contender or two back then.
