FanHouse Babalu

After his victory over Wanderlei Silva at UFC 99, Rich Franklin is now on my list of the Top 10 light heavyweights in mixed martial arts -- and Silva is off it. But what's next for Franklin? I'd love to see him get a Top 10 opponent, but most of the rest of the Top 10 are already committed to other fights: Lyoto Machida vs. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson vs. Rashad Evans, Forrest Griffin vs. Anderson Silva, Keith Jardine vs. Thiago Silva.

I think the best option is to match up Franklin with Luiz Cane, and I think a dark horse possibility is Franklin vs. Tito Ortiz, if Ortiz returns to the Octagon. In any event, my list of the top 10 light heavyweights in MMA is below.

Now that Lyoto Machida has won the UFC light heavyweight title, there's a growing sense that we're headed into -- in the words of Joe Rogan -- a Machida Era: A time when Machida simply dominates the light heavyweight division and defends the belt several times in a row.

But as great as Machida is, everyone can be beaten. So which fighters would have a chance of beating Machida at 205 pounds? My list is below.

My new list of the Top 10 light heavyweights in mixed martial arts reflects the changing landscape after UFC 97, with Shogun Rua moving up and Chuck Liddell moving out.

I'm sorry to see Liddell go, but at this point I don't think there's any point in ranking him because I think it's probably safe to say he's no longer an active mixed martial artist. Even if I were counting him as an active fighter, I don't think he'd be in my Top 10 anymore. Shogun is now in my Top 5, and I'm very excited to see what he does next. Top 10 below.

Does Lyoto Machida deserve a light heavyweight title shot after knocking out Thiago Silva? I'd argue that not only is Machida deserving of a title shot, but he's already the best light heavyweight in the world.

The UFC's light heavyweight division is stacked, and if the next title fight features Quinton "Rampage" Jackson vs. Rashad Evans it will be a great one, but my own list of the Top 10 light heavyweights has Machida at the top. The full list is below.

Welcome to the FanHouse live blog of tonight's Affliction: Day of Reckoning pay-per-view undercard, where we'll have live updates and round-by-round scoring of all the fights: Josh Barnett vs. Gilbert Yvel, Matt Lindland vs. Vitor Belfort, Renato Babalu Sobral vs. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, Kirill Sidelnikov vs. Paul Buentello, Jay Hieron vs. Jason High and Dan Lauzon vs. Bobby Green.

If you just want to know who won the fights and how, check out the Affliction results post. The pay-per-view show and the live blog have started below.

Renato "Babalu" Sobral was once a popular fighter in the UFC, and he challenged Chuck Liddell for the light heavyweight title in the main event at UFC 62.

But Babalu's stock in the MMA world plummeted at UFC 74, when he refused to let go of an anaconda choke after David Heath tapped out. The Nevada State Athletic Commission docked his pay, and the UFC kicked him out of the organization.

Babalu has fought three times for three different organizations since then, and he will fight Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou at the Affliction: Day of Reckoning event on January 24. But while Babalu's career isn't in the same place it once was, he says he's content.

A week ago I wrote that I thought American fans were likely to ignore the first Affliction mixed martial arts show. As Affliction tries to make sure that doesn't happen, they've released the first promotional video:

That video is a good sign: The production values are solid, they've spared no expense (the voice of Michael Buffer ain't cheap), and, most importantly, they're keeping the focus on the simple fact that they've got a great lineup of fighters.

Still, you have to wonder: Will it all add up to enough pay-per-view buys to make this show a success? Fedor Emelianenko vs. Tim Sylvia is a very good heavyweight fight, and Matt Lindland, Josh Barnett and Renato "Babalu" Sobral are all appealing names on the card. But it's not UFC. And so far, no MMA promotion other than UFC has succeeded in the United States.