For the first time since his loss to Forrest Griffin more than two years ago, Shogun Rua can legitimately be called one of the top 10 fighters in MMA -- and it took a loss to get him there.
Rua's unanimous decision loss to Lyoto Machida in the main event at UFC 104 was a fight that most people thought he deserved to win, and a fight that makes one thing very clear: Shogun is back.
But where does Shogun fit in our list of the Top 10 pound-for-pound fighters in MMA? Find out below.
I've been banging the drum for a couple years saying the UFC needs to give Yushin Okami a shot at middleweight champion Anderson Silva. You won't be hearing that from me anymore.
After Chael Sonnen thoroughly dominated Okami with a unanimous decision win on Saturday night at UFC 104, Okami took a tumble in my rankings of the top 10 middleweights in mixed martial arts. So how far did Okami fall, and what does the middleweight picture look like now? My rankings are below.
Lyoto Machida is still the light heavyweight champion of the UFC, but not many people agree with the three judges who allowed him to keep his belt after 25 minutes in the Octagon with Shogun Rua on Saturday night.
So does Machida keep his status as the top light heavyweight in MMA in my latest Top 10? He does, but Shogun also moves up in the rankings after a very close fight with the champ. The full rankings are below.
If the Lyoto Machida-Shogun Rua fight at UFC 104 had gone the way everyone expected -- Machida handily defeating Shogun to retain his title -- the UFC would have faced a quandary with its light heavyweight division. Machida would be perceived as so dominant that there wouldn't be any particularly interesting fights for him, and the stacked UFC light heavyweight division might have started to feel a little stale.
That's why Machida's controversial unanimous decision victory on Saturday night was a great thing for the UFC: It sets up a Rua-Machida rematch that will be a bigger fight than the first one, and it buys time for the UFC to re-establish some of its other light heavyweights as contenders to take on the Rua-Machida 2 winner.
Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.
Anderson Silva is considered by many as the No. 1 pound-for-pound MMA fighter on the planet. In this FanHouse exclusive we ask him what would happen if he and Fedor Emelianenko were to fight and what the secret to his success is.
Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.
Every MMA fan knows the shirts the fighters wear are part of who they are and what they represent, and companies like Silver Star not only dress some of the world's best fighters, but they also sponsor them, letting the athletes focus on what's important. Fighting.
In this FanHouse exclusive, we stop by a Silver Star fashion show in Hollywood, Calif. to speak with founder Luke Burrett and fighters Anderson Silva, Rashad Evans, Shane Del Rosario and Kimo Leopoldo. Check out the video after the jump.
The fight is a rematch of an April 2006 contest, which Ortiz (15-6) won in a tight split-decision.
Coleman was forced to withdraw from the bout just days ago, leaving the UFC scrambling for a replacement. Griffin (16-6), like Ortiz a former light-heavyweight champion, should be considered by most a worthy choice.
In a wide-ranging interview on ESPN's Jim Rome Is Burning, UFC President Dana White talked about why Kimbo Slice is in the UFC, why Fedor Emelianenko could still end up in the Octagon and why Herschel Walker never will -- and he said a fight between middleweight champion Anderson Silva and light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida could happen in 2010.
On his way to what he believes will be a star turn during Oct. 10's WEC interim lightweight title matchup with old friend Donald Cerrone, Ben Henderson is intent on staying humble.
During the first time he starts referring to himself in third-person in an interview, Henderson abruptly stops, apologizes and gives his permission to offer him a dirty look at any repeat. (It never comes.) At a table in a hotel eatery, he politely answers questions as the minutes tick by, well aware that he has missed his airport shuttle, but never letting on. So when he states his grand intentions, it's no surprise he qualifies them with tinges of modesty.
"I'm not the fastest, the biggest or the strongest. I'm a mediocre-sized 155-pounder," he said. "I don't think I have any God-given abilities that put me above and beyond anyone else. I'm just highly motivated. I want to be the best, and I will be the best. That's it."
Forrest Griffin hasn't been heard from much since his UFC 101 loss to Anderson Silva, but that's not to say he hasn't been keeping himself busy. The former UFC light heavyweight champion recently got married, released a new iPhone app and has been working on his second book, not to mention planning his upcoming honeymoon.
FanHouse spoke to Griffin on Thursday about the big changes in his life and when he expects to return to action. The full interview is below.
For the first time since his loss to Forrest Griffin more than two years ago, Shogun Rua can legitimately be called one of the top 10 fighters in MMA -- and it took a loss to get him there.
If the Lyoto Machida-Shogun Rua fight at UFC 104 had gone the way everyone expected -- Machida handily defeating Shogun to retain his title -- the UFC would have faced a quandary with its light heavyweight division. Machida would be perceived as so dominant that there wouldn't be any particularly interesting fights for him, and the stacked UFC light heavyweight division might have started to feel a little stale.
Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos. 
Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos. 
Forrest Griffin has stepped into the UFC 106 slot vacated by Mark Coleman due to injury, and will take on the returning Tito Ortiz, according to a report from Yahoo Sports, citing confirmation from UFC President Dana White.
On his way to what he believes will be a star turn during Oct. 10's WEC interim lightweight title matchup with old friend Donald Cerrone, Ben Henderson is intent on staying humble.
Forrest Griffin hasn't been heard from much since his UFC 101 loss to Anderson Silva, but that's not to say he hasn't been keeping himself busy. The former UFC light heavyweight champion recently got married, released a new iPhone app and has been working on his second book, not to mention planning his upcoming honeymoon. 
