FanHouse ShinyaAoki

We've been handing out our half-year MMA awards, so here's my take on the biggest upset of the last six months.

As is often the case in MMA, there were plenty of upsets to choose from. But at the end of the day, I had to go with Joe Warren defeating Kid Yamamoto via split decision at Dream.9 on May 26 (part one of the fight is above; part two is here.)

Shinya Aoki is one of the best lightweights in mixed martial arts, and he's the most exciting submission artist in the sport. And Aoki, who fights in the Japanese Dream promotion, is also well known for the colorful spandex pants he wears in the ring. But don't dare ask Aoki whether those pants help him apply those exciting submissions.

It was a big weekend for the lightweights in MMA, with Eddie Alvarez winning the Bellator lightweight tournament on Friday night (above) and Diego Sanchez beating Clay Guida by split decision in a fight of the year candidate Saturday at the Ultimate Fighter Finale.

So what's next for Alvarez and Sanchez? Bellator will have to work hard to attract some top-notch lightweights to challenge Alvarez in their second season (I'm hoping they sign Joachim Hansen), while Sanchez thinks he's earned a shot at the UFC lightweight belt (but I think he should fight Gray Maynard first). My list of the Top 10 lightweights in MMA is below.

After a weekend in mixed martial arts that saw big lightweight fights in both the UFC and Dream, it's time to revise our list of the Top 10 lightweights in MMA. Frank Edgar is new on our list after his impressive UFC 98 win over Sean Sherk, while Gesias "JZ Calvan" Cavalcante has dropped off the list after a disappointing loss to Tatsuya Kawajiri at Dream 9. The full Top 10 is below.

This past year has been one to forget for Gesias Cavalcante. Once considered one of the best lightweight fighters in the world, "JZ" hasn't competed since losing to Shinya Aoki last April at DREAM.2 in Saitama, Japan. After taking some time off to get healthy, his next two fights were either canceled or postponed.

On May 26, he finally returns to action against veteran Tatsuya Kawajiri at DREAM.9, with the American Top Team member looking to prove that he is as relevant as ever in the 155-pound division. Looming on the horizon is a chance to avenge losses to current DREAM lightweight champion Joachim Hansen or Aoki, and that alone is enough to fuel the Brazilian fighter.

FanHouse spoke to JZ about his time away from MMA and sharing the DREAM.9 spotlight with the likes of Jose Canseco. The full interview is below.

The video of the Shinya Aoki vs. Fedor Emelianenko special sparring exhibition is now available after M-1 Global posted it on the web, and I guess my feeling after watching it is the same as my feeling before: It's basically just a silly waste of time.

Welcome to another FanHouse MMA podcast, where we had another good conversation about the week that was in MMA.

Among this week's topics were Kyle Maynard's MMA debut, the future plans of Bobby Lashley, the bizarre sparring exhibition between Fedor Emelianenko and Shinya Aoki, the June 27 fights of Tom Atencio and Andrei Arlovski and the possible retirement of Chuck Liddell. Listen below.

Two of the best MMA fighters in the world are returning to the ring next week to face off against each other in what is being referred to as a "special sparring exhibition" but sounds more like a silly waste of time for everyone involved.

Fedor Emelianenko, the best heavyweight in MMA, is going to grapple with Shinya Aoki, one of the world's best lightweights, at Wednesday's M-1 Challenge event in Japan. The official announcement of the meeting said the rules of the competition are still being negotiated, but it sounds like it's going to be five minutes of the two fighters trying out submission holds on each other.

Although hardly anyone in the United States saw the fights, two of the top five lightweights in MMA were in action this weekend, as Shinya Aoki lost at Dream 8 and Eddie Alvarez won in the debut of the new Bellator promotion. That means it's time to revisit our list of the Top 10 lightweights in MMA.

The first question is whether it's fair to drop Aoki on the lightweight list when he lost to a bigger opponent in the Dream Welterweight Grand Prix. I think it is fair. I'm not impressed with Aoki's performance, and I can't pretend the fight didn't happen just because it didn't happen at lightweight.

Above: Sakurai vs. Aoki at Dream.8.

I love watching Shinya Aoki fight. He has such a unique style, and is such a submission wizard, that he'll always have a place in MMA. But at Dream 8, it was abundantly clear that while Aoki is a great submission grappler, he isn't a great mixed martial artist.