However, Penn seems content to stay in Hawaii, train when he wants to, and help raise his children.

“I know it costs a lot of money to live that lavish lifestyle, big house, fast cars & you need big fights but sorry I’m not coming back anytime soon,” Penn exclaimed on his Twitter account yesterday.

Penn announced his retirement following a loss to Nick Diaz last year. Despite UFC President Dana White‘s attempts, as well as those like Koscheck who have tried to bait him into a bout, the native Hawaiian has yet to waiver in his contentment away from competition.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

News surrounding Penn’s potential comeback surfaced on Twitter when welterweight Josh Koscheck posted, “UFC just offered me to fight BJ Penn….I said YES!!!! Just waiting on him!!!!!! Let’s scrap bra?”

No date/location were mentioned for the possible match-up.

In addition to teasing a tilt the statement also indicates Penn will be returning at 170 pounds, not 155 as many had hoped, and Koscheck’s eye-socket was not as damaged as it appeared to be in his recent meeting with Johny Hendricks.

Penn holds an overall record of 16-8 and is a former welterweight title-holder but has struggled to find success consistently in the division over the past few years. Likewise, the 17-6 Koscheck has challenged for the belt before but never won it, going 6-4 over his last ten tussles.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

However, in relation to last weekend’s three-rounder between Johny Hendricks and Josh Koscheck at UFC on FOX 3 there hasn’t been any sort of uproar despite what many felt was a minor robbery. Whether based on his heelish personality or having won a controversial decision in his previous effort, for the most part the MMA community let it slide Koscheck was arguably more deserving of the judges’ nod than Hendricks.

As you might expect, Koscheck has not forgotten about the outcome so quickly.

“Just watched the fight again. First and third round were mine. Maybe a rematch five-round fight this time? What you say Hendricks,” asked Koscheck through Twitter.

The 13-1 Hendricks has not addressed Koscheck’s challenge yet though it seems unlikely he will oblige. With the victory on FOX he improved his current streak to four in a row and is likely a win away from solidifying a crack at the divisional title.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

During the opening round of his co-headlining clash last weekend with Josh Koscheck at UFC on FOX 3 the 28-year old Hendricks got an unwelcome close up of his foe’s finger, though not necessarily an unexpected one.

“He landed a lot because he poked my eye and I was seeing double for the first three minutes. I didn’t see clearly again until the second round. So the first round I was trying to circle away and close one eye every so often so I could get a good fix on him and try to throw,” said Hendricks in an interview with Fuel TV after the show’s conclusion. “He does it every fight. That’s just him. We knew about it. That’s why I was trying to throw and move my head out of the way. I was moving my head more this fight when I was trying to throw punches because I didn’t want to get poked in the eye because he’s always sticking that hand out there. It ended up catching me and it hurt me.”

In fact, the 13-1 Oklahoman even asked the in-ring official about the possibility before the bout had even begun, approaching him backstage to gauge what sort of action would be taken.

“I said, ‘If he pokes me in the eye, what are you doing to do?’ He said, ‘I can’t stop it, you don’t get a five-minute break, and you can’t say you can’t see, or the fight is going to be over,’” stated Hendricks, showing why he pressed through the first frame’s adversity rather than risk having the ringside doctor end things.

Clearly Hendricks’ decision was the right one as he dished out as much as he took throughout the remainder of the rumble and even a little more according to the judging panel who handed him the Split Decision win once things were said and done.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

“I feel like I’ve got a lot to prove this fight because my last fight was suspect,” said the 17-5 Koscheck in an interview with the UFC when asked about the bout with Hendricks. “A lot of people are saying, ‘Ah, Koscheck’s had an eight-year career. He’s coming to the end.’ I’ve got a lot to prove. I’ve got a lot of fights still left in me.”

In Hendricks he will be facing a 12-1 adversary on a three-fight winning streak and a recent knockout of Jon Fitch, Koscheck’s friend and former training partner. “Kos” is aware of the dangers Hendricks poses but isn’t completely convinced he’s as skilled as he’s been built up to be.

“I think Johny Hendricks has got some pretty good power. His wrestling is good. He’s a pretty well-rounded fighter. I don’t think he’s a complete fighter but I think he’s a pretty well-rounded fighter,” explained Koscheck of his adversary. “He can do some stand-up. He’s okay on the ground and obviously he can take the fight to the ground. And he can prevent with his wrestling.”

As far as the Fitch connection, Koscheck also added he felt it was his turn to deliver some “payback” after Fitch had done the same for him stemming from losses to Thiago Alves and Paulo Thiago.

Koscheck-Hendricks will be part of the main card broadcast with other featured fights including Alan Belcher-Rousimar Palhares, Pat Barry-Lavar Johnson, and headliners Jim Miller-Nate Diaz.

The full interview with Koscheck as well as comments from Hendricks can be found below:

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

One of those men is Josh Koscheck, an outspoken welterweight who has since started his own gym (Dethrone Base Camp) in Fresno, California. “Kos” elaborated some on the issues leading to him packing up shop and moving on in his career.

“For the record he was never my coach. He tagged along here and there but I think I’m in a better place now,” said Koscheck in an interview with MMAFighting when asked about well-known AKA trainer Javier Mendez. The 34-year old Ultimate Fighter OG said shortly after a recent win that Mendez’s self-centered attitude was one of the driving forces behind him leaving.

“Bob Cook will always be the man over there and Bob Cook comes in and trains with me a couple of times a week in Fresno when he can,” Koscheck continued before taking a shot, adding, “It’s good to be around real coaches that care, real coaches that put time in, and real coaches that put in the effort to make your fighter the best that they could possibly be. And I have that now.”

Koscheck also made sure to credit his former training partners more so than the group leading them with his past success as well as that of the school in general.

“I think the reason why everybody is so successful at the gym, over there in San Jose, is because of the training partners. I really truly believe that the training partners is why guys have fought for world titles and guys have been UFC champions like Cain (Velasquez), was because of the training partners. If you had real coaching, you would have seen a lot more champions out of that gym and I think that now, in my career, we’re going to see big improvements really quick.”

Koscheck is scheduled to face Johny Hendricks on the main card at UFC on FOX 3 in May. Both 170ers are coming off multiple wins in a row with Koscheck having the added incentive of avenging a friend Jon Fitch’s recent knockout loss to Hendricks.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Koscheck got by Mike Pierce at UFC 143 by the skin of his teeth after earning a knockout victory against Matt Hughes late in 2011. “Kos” is a former #1 contender to the UFC title, sporting a career record of 17-5 with fifteen of those wins coming in the UFC.

Meanwhile, Hendricks (12-1) scored the biggest win of his career in his last outing by dropping Jon Fitch in twelve seconds at UFC 141. Fitch is a training partner of Koscheck’s and a good friend, adding a bit of extra intrigue into the pairing. The former decorated wrestler picked up his third straight win with the performance.

UFC on FOX 3 is set to go down place May 5 from the IZOD Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The main event will feature Jim Miller and Nate Diaz with Koscheck-Hendricks likely serving as the co-headliner.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Recently Koscheck was asked for his thoughts on potential 185-pound match-ups where he responded with three specific opponents.

“I think Vitor Belfort would be a fun fight,” Koscheck replied. “I think Wanderlei Silva would be a fun fight at 185. Michael Bisping would be a great fight. I’d love to trash that guy.”

However, Koscheck’s sights are currently set on his future at 170 pounds with back-to-back wins under his belt since dropping a decision to champion Georges St. Pierre. Asked to pick between bouts with Nick Diaz or Carlos Condit, Koscheck said he expected to fight both down the road with a preferred route putting him against the Stockton scrapper sooner than later.

“I’ll smack Nick around first and then Carlos Condit second.”

Watch the full Q&A session with Koscheck below:

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

“(It) was a tough camp knowing that this was my last camp there,” Koscheck said, opting not to detail his departure from AKA.

Now, with his affiliation with the San Jose gym no longer keeping a Koscheck-Jon Fitch bout from happening, at least as far as them being teammates, it may be possible fans see the two meet inside the Octagon down the road.

UFC President Dana White told Koscheck at the post-fight press conference, “Now I’m doing the Jon Fitch fight,” (thanks to MMAjunkie). White said Koscheck replied back, “Good luck with that,” though it appeared White was semi-joking and explained he would never make the match-up just to make it.

Koscheck earned his second straight win at UFC 143 since a decision loss to Georges St. Pierre by scoring a closely contested decision victory over Mike Pierce. The 34-year old landed more takedowns than Pierce in earning the judges’ nod. He is now 5-1 in his last six and hinted at being ready to face Carlos Condit – the new interim UFC welterweight champ – if he decides to take a fight before unifying the titles with St. Pierre.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

The heated adversaries have been at it at some time, a situation starting when Pierce called Koscheck out online after the American Kickboxing Academy’s original opponent (Carlos Condit) was moved to a main event match-up with Nick Diaz. The newly created rivals spoke about one another last week at the open workouts for tonight’s event where, as you might suspect, flattery was not on the menu.

“I didn’t really know who this guy was when I agreed to fight him,” said Koscheck when asked about Pierce. “I remember he fought Jon Fitch but not too well. I think I remember that fight, he didn’t get anything going until the very last minute. I know he called me out, so he must think he can win… but they all think that until I punch them in the face.”

“Josh Koscheck knows who I am,” Pierce replied to the assertion. “He’s pretending he doesn’t because he is Josh Koscheck and that’s what he does: he acts like this all the time. He’s a bit of a jerk and that’s his personality and that’s just who he is and what gets him noticed.

“I hope he is overlooking me because Jon Fitch beat me,” he continued. “That was two years ago and I am a much better fighter now and, for that fight, I had a family issue to take care of which distracted me. I hope Josh is underestimating me, but I doubt it. I’ve been waiting and trying for an opportunity like this for years.”

Ultimately, Koscheck made it clear he doesn’t care who he’d paired against as long as his check from the UFC clears, meaning his verbal jabs at Pierce aren’t necessarily as personal as the 13-4 grappler is taking them.

“I get paid the same whether I am fighting Mike Pierce or Carlos Condit, so I don’t care who I fight,” bottom-lined Koscheck. “I am a gold digger, I fight for money. You’d be a dumb SOB to fight for free but I do enjoy my job and I fight my ass off. I have a big mouth and I don’t want to lose and I want to look good out there.”

See walks the walk tonight when Pierce-Koscheck fight on PPV at 10:00 PM EST with Facebook/FX prelims starting three hours earlier.

Check out video of the weigh-in exchange below:

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

The fight was confirmed by Pierce on his Twitter account.

The two were actually scheduled to fight in January 2010, but Koscheck instead fought Anthony Johnson at UFC 106 while Pierce challenged Jon Fitch at UFC 107.

Never one to turn down a fight, Koscheck stepped up on short notice to defeat Matt Hughes at UFC 135 by KO in the dying seconds of the first round. Prior to that, the Ultimate Fighter 1 alumni was on the shelf for nine months due to a orbital injury suffered in his welterweight title bout against St. Pierre. “Kos” will step into the Octagon for the 20th time in his career at UFC 143 and will be searching for his 14th UFC career. He already holds wins over the likes of Diego Sanchez, Chris Lytle, and Frank Trigg.

Pierce will be looking for his second straight victory, having notched a win over Paul Bradley at UFC on FOX 1 this past November. The Oregon native made his UFC debut in September 2009, where he upset former WEC stand out Brock Larson. After losing to Fitch, Pierce rattled off three straight victories before falling to Johnny Hendricks by Split Decision at UFC 133.

UFC 143: Diaz vs. Condit is scheduled for February 4 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. The night will be headlined by an interim welterweight title fight between Diaz and Condit.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Koscheck Tweeted that he has signed the bout agreement for the fight and posted a picture to offer proof.

Condit’s had a roller coaster ride in division over the past couple of months. Originally scheduled to fight B.J. Penn in the co-main event of UFC 137, Condit was moved to the main event against champion Georges St. Pierre in place of Nick Diaz, who remained on the card to fight Penn. Unfortunately for Condit, St. Pierre had to pull out of the fight with knee injury just a week before the event. UFC president Dana White contended that Condit would remain the next challenger for the belt, no matter the outcome of Diaz vs. Penn. The Stockton native went on to dominate the Hawaiian prodigy, winning a unanimous decision, at UFC 137 and after his victory accused St. Pierre of ducking him and faking an injury.

The comments upset the champion so much that he asked to fight Diaz instead of Condit in his next bout.

With GSP’s decision to take on a different opponent, that left Condit without a fight. Enter Koscheck. The Ultimate Fighter 1 alum was willing to step in for St. Pierre and fight Condit at UFC 137, but nothing ever came of Koscheck’s challenge. Now, with St. Pierre taking on Diaz on the same night, Koscheck will get his wish.

Both men are coming off first round Knockout of the Night victories, with Koscheck finishing Matt Hughes at UFC 135 and Condit blasting Dong Hyun Kim at UFC 132.

UFC 143 is scheduled for February 4 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Now, it appears Condit is destined for a date with former top contender Josh Koscheck at UFC 143 in February. The event should also feature St. Pierre’s title defense against Diaz. At last night’s UFC 138 post-fight press conference, UFC president Dana White had the following to say on the subject:

“Right now, Carlos Condit wants to fight,” the UFC President explained. “He wants to fight on the same card as GSP and Diaz, so we’ll see what happens….It could be with Koscheck. Condit wanted that fight.”

Koscheck is coming off a first round knockout victory over UFC legend Matt Hughes last September in a fight he took on short notice following an extended layoff due to the injury he sustained in his defeat to St. Pierre last year.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

“Kos” made a plea to UFC President Dana White to replace an injured Georges St. Pierre when the UFC welterweight king was forced out of a planned fight with Condit last weekend. However, Condit decided to remain on the sidelines and wait for his crack at St. Pierre’s championship that ultimately never came.

Now that Condit has been passed over by Nick Diaz he will have to take another fight – and win it – before he can fight for the divisional belt. As such, Koscheck has stepped in once again, asking to meet Condit over Super Bowl Weekend when Diaz-GSP takes place.

“Just thinking! That dude (Condit) should of took the fight with me on a week notice (because) if he HAD a chance to make it a close fight, it was then. NOW zero chance,” Koscheck wrote. “Just for the record, I’ll be ready to fight again by Feb. 4:) Training for (blank)????”

The 16-5 Koscheck defeated Matt Hughes at UFC 135 earlier this year in his return to action since falling to St. Pierre. Koscheck suffered a broken orbital bone in the loss to GSP and was forced to sit on the sidelines for an extended period to recover. The curly-coiffed Californian can lay claim to a number of solid wins in the UFC including past victories over Diego Sanchez, Anthony Johnson, Chris Lytle, and Paul Daley.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

“Kos” defeated Matt Hughes in September with a devastating knockout in his first fight back since suffering a broken orbital bone in a loss to GSP. Names like the UFC Hall of Famer‘s are what drives Koscheck now.

“I want to fight the guys at the top,” said Koscheck, in a recent interview with MMANation. “That’s where I want to be. I want a big fight, my next fight to be a big fight. Who could it be? Maybe a Nick Diaz, maybe a B.J. Penn, Carlos Condit, maybe someone at 185 pounds. There are a lot of good guys at 185 pounds.”

Diaz, Penn and Condit are all competing at UFC 137 later this month, so the timing for a bout next year between Koscheck and any of the three could fit. Prior to replacing Diego Sanchez for the Hughes bout, Koscheck called out several middleweights, including Stephan Bonnar.

Diaz and Penn meet in the co-main event, while Condit takes on St-Pierre for the 170 pound division’s championship.

“I’d definitely like to fight some of those guys,” Koscheck said. “I want big names and big fights.”

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

The American Kickboxing Academy staple recently spoke about the injury, providing graphic detail on exactly how bad it was, as well as how he spent his time on the sidelines and how he sees his fight tonight at UFC 135 with Matt Hughes will go.

“It was definitely a horrible injury,” the polarizing pugilist explained in an interview with the UFC. “I remember being in the hospital begging for morphine. It would wear off and I’d be like ‘hey nurse,’ – I’d track down anybody I could (and ask) ‘Hey guys, can you shoot me up again? The pain’s coming back.’”

However, as painful as the damage may have been, Koscheck revealed he never once thought about quitting in his fight against GSP and wouldn’t even do so when looking back on the bout.

“Us as fighters, we go and we want to fight no matter what. I felt that if I could just get one good one on his chin, I felt like I could put him to sleep,” the 33-year old explained before playfully adding, “But it was a tough fight. My depth perception was way off. I remember at one point, I took a shot and I wasn’t even close to him. He was like ten feet to the left. But it is what it is, and I just tried to grind out the fight.”

As far as why he’s so amped about fighting Hughes, Koscheck again referred to the former champion’s past behavior.

“When he was on top, it was said that he wouldn’t give any of the AKA guys a shot at him. He didn’t want to give us an opportunity and he called us all kids and was totally disrespectful. But this isn’t a personal fight, this is just a fight that the fans wanted to see for a long time, and now we’re getting the opportunity to do it.”

Koscheck elaborated on putting his emotions aside, saying he still viewed Hughes as a threat even if he’s coming off a first frame knockout loss, saying, “This guy has been training for a long time for Diego Sanchez, and I think everybody can be dangerous.”

Regarding the fight’s outcome, “Kos” concluded, “In the sense of getting knocked out by (him), I don’t think that’s gonna happen, but I definitely think he has the potential to get a submission or takedowns, so he’s definitely a dangerous fighter and I’m taking him very seriously. I’m going to have a great gameplan for this fight, I just have to stick to the gameplan, and I should come out a winner.”

You can catch Koscheck vs. Hughes, as well as a headlining title-tilt between light heavyweight champ Jon Jones and former belt-wearer Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, when UFC 135 goes live on PPV starting at 9:00 PM EST.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

“Kos” hasn’t competed at 185 pounds since his run on the first season of the Ultimate Fighter but has publicly toyed with the notion a few times in regards to old cast-mates Chris Leben and Stephan Bonnar.

Koscheck’s rivalry with Leben is well-documented though a match-up between the two in San Jose is highly unlikely as “The Crippler” is already scheduled to face Mark Munoz in the main event of UFC 138.

However, Bonnar’s schedule is clear at the moment and he has said in the past he would be willing to “drop a lot of weight” to fight Koscheck. The heat between the two started after the American Kickboxing Academy staple filed a lawsuit against Bonnar’s apparel company in relation to a “Trash Talkin’ Kids” T-Shirt featuring his likeness labeled “Josh Kosh M’gosh”.

Koscheck quickly fired back, calling Bonnar a “pussy” and adding, “That’d be a nice, easy comeback fight. I’d like to have a nice warm-up fight and Stephan Bonnar would be that fight… It’s probably also a publicity stunt for Stephan, because nobody knows who the hell he is and he hasn’t won any fights in a long time, so he’s probably just trying to get some media attention.”

Whether or not the two “trash talkin kids” will meet at UFC 139 will certainly come to light over the coming weeks but what appears certain is Koscheck’s presence on the California card. Other bouts booked for the show include Urijah Faber vs. Brian Bowles and Martin Kampmann vs. Rick Story. Cain Velasquez, an AKA teammate of Koscheck’s, is also rumored to be defending his heavyweight belt at the event against top contender Junior dos Santos.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC/TRASHTALKINKIDS

Koscheck via confirmed the guesswork on Sunday via Twitter, saying he was in Boston to have a broken orbital bone fixed and then planned to head home and recover.

The orbital bone is the socket in the skull where an individual’s eye is positioned. Though no official timetable has been mentioned for Koscheck’s return, past orbital fractures in MMA have generally resulted in at least sixty-day suspension from the ring.

While Koscheck may not be a fan-favorite, even his detractors can’t doubt his heart after suffering the painful injury in the bout’s opening round, then continuing to compete for the remainder of the match-up, even opting to decline the ringside physician questioning whether or not he wanted to keep going though he was clearly down on the judges scorecards at that point.

The decision loss was the fifth defeat of the Ultimate Fighter Season 1 alumnus’ career and broke a three-fight win streak. He holds past victories in the Octagon over respected adversaries such as Diego Sanchez, Chris Lytle, and Paul Daley.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

“What I said on the show was for entertainment and nothing more than that,” said Koscheck on Monday during a media call. “I’m about making money. People will tune in on Saturday because they want to see St. Pierre kick my ass.”

All of the trash talking has seemingly got to St. Pierre who says, “What Josh said about me motivated me for the training. The fact that he was arrogant with me affected my preparation. I’m the best GSP I’ve ever been.” Although St. Pierre said nothing to motivate Koscheck, he didn’t need to. “I don’t need someone to get under my skin to train harder. I’m always motivated to train. I don’t need any motivation from GSP to want to kick his ass,” said the welterweight challenger.

Despite the show being over and the fight being less than a week away, Koscheck is still doing what he can to put some extra money in his pocket, and that includes calling St. Pierre out on his fighting style. “Is GSP going to be a boring Greg Jackson fighter and take me down or is GSP going to have the ball to stand with me? We’re going to see.”

St. Pierre has been often criticized as of late for failing to finish his opponents. After only going to a decision four times in his first eighteen professional fights, St. Pierre has seen the scorecards three of his last four times inside the Octagon.

That’s something St. Pierre is hoping to correct on Saturday. He’s been working with famed boxing trainer Freddie Roach on improving his punching power. In a recent interview, Roach predicted that St. Pierre would KO Koscheck with a left hook.

Koscheck is not impressed with St. Pierre’s training with Roach or Roach’s prediction.

“Working with Roach is all good and all but (he) can’t work on strengthening your chin….My mom predicts a second round left-hook KO for me,” said Koscheck.

Even though he’s venturing into enemy territory, Koscheck looks at this as just another fight and feels no pressure to try and back up all he’s said. “I talked a lot of crap on The Ultimate Fighter…I got under St. Pierre’s skin…he says he’s at his best. What a great story right? Now I gotta go out there and I gotta perform.”

On December 11th all of the trash talking and jokes come to an end when Koscheck and St. Pierre meet at UFC 124 in Montreal, Canada for the UFC Welterweight Championship.

When I became an editor at Five Ounces of Pain, one of my first orders of business was to re-establish the site’s rankings. Throughout this week I will be providing a list of fifteen Mixed Martial Artists currently competing in a specific weight-class with the intention of subjectively sorting out the involved names from “exceptional” to “pretty frakkin’ good!”

As already alluded to, I’m well-aware that these kinds of lists are not doctrine and won’t insult you by pretending my set of names should be the mirror reflection of your own. In some divisions, it’s difficult to determine who the #1 fighter actually is and the reality is that a sport like MMA thrives on its unpredictable nature. When two finely-tuned individuals step into a cage and let loose the difference between consciousness and looking up at the ceiling is a matter of milliseconds no matter who is ranked where.

That being said, I invite you all to join in on the discussion in the “Comments” section below the article.

Welterweight is a tricky poundage to ponder. While a certain Canadian who recently got an ESPN commercial appears to be the easy favorite for the chief slot, even he has faltered in the past to lesser opposition and has a newly-signed, former middleweight champ hot on his heels. There’s also a sneering, sublimely talented Boilermaker and a son of Stockton to consider towards the top. The rest seem to be poised for “5A” and “5B” designations or are at least skilled enough to dethrone even the best 170er out there under the right circumstances.

And away we go…

1. Georges St. Pierre (20-2)

Was there ever any doubt St. Pierre would be sitting atop the list? While GSP has recently earned a reputation for essentially being too good, and capitalizing on his ability to control opponents in an intelligent fashion, the truth is he’s turned in finishing performances in three of his last six fights and nearly submitted Dan Hardy. It would have also been hard to blame the corners of Jon Fitch and Thiago Alves had they thrown in the towel after the physical abuse each man took at the limbs of St. Pierre.

2. Jake Shields (26-4-1)

Shields receives a lot of criticism based on his approach to competition but his place in the division isn’t based on entertainment value; it’s the result of…well…results. The former Strikeforce champ has racked an impressive number of notches up on his record including wins over Yushin Okami – currently next in line for a middleweight title-shot – and former WEC welterweight champ Carlos Condit on the same night in 2006. Shields also has victories over respected 185-pounders like Dan Henderson, Robbie Lawler, and Jason “Mayhem” Miller. He may not have looked sharp against Martin Kampmann, but he was coming off an extended absence from 170 and still got the win over a “Top 10” adversary. He’s beaten other tough welters and hasn’t lost is nearly six years. Need I say more?

3. Jon Fitch (23-3)

The fan in me wants to rank Fitch at the two-spot but the realist in me doesn’t feel he deserves it. While I’m absolutely an avid supporter of the AKA front-man, he hasn’t shown the ability to finish fighters he should be a definite step above like Mike Pierce, Chris Wilson, or Kuniyoshi Hironaka. He’s a solid #3, but Shields has tapped or TKO’d eight of the last eleven individuals he’s fought and for that fact alone he deserves to come out a nose ahead in the race.

4. Nick Diaz (23-7)

As wonderful as it would be to judge “2010 Diaz” against the essentially 75% of this list competing for the UFC, I can only go by what he’s done outside of the Octagon and as such he definitely deserves to be in the “Top 5”. He’s won eight straight and twelve of his last thirteen while only having been legitimately finished a single time in his thirty-fight career. He’s a threat when standing, or if action hits the canvas, and is more rounded than Fitch or Shields in that regard.

5. Josh Koscheck (15-4)

This is the point the rankings become a little murky for me. Koscheck is only 4-2 in his last six fights and hasn’t beaten a consensus “Top 10” guy since perhaps Diego Sanchez in 2007 (while losing to the other three he faced). Still, he’s an extremely skilled wrestler with good submission skills and the ability to leave an opponent rubber-legged with ever-improving hands.

6. Carlos Condit (26-5)

Condit may deserve to supplant Koscheck in the “Top 5”, as the only blemish on his record since June 2006 is a split-decision loss to the #9 guy on these rankings. However, he hasn’t faced quite as many “Top 10” guys as the polarizing Ultimate Fighter alumnus/coach so it’s difficult to know exactly where he should fall. Still, Condit has won three consecutive fights since the Kampmann loss, including a first-round knockout of the man below him on this list, and had his hands raised in the end leven of the last twelve times he’s entered the ring.

7. Dan Hardy (23-8)

I’m not sure how I can justify Hardy in this spot with back-to-back losses other than to say his relative competition for the designation have also hit hard times over the last 12-18 months and each defeat came to a “Top 10” welterweight. Minus the two losses, and an accidental groin-kick DQ three years ago, the Brit hasn’t lost while racking up eleven victories during the span. He seems to be improving each time out in terms of wrestling and has an underrated ground-game to compliment his speed/striking. As long as he continues to progress, I wouldn’t say he’s too far away from putting it all together and making another legitimate run at the belt.

8. Thiago Alves (17-7)

Also victim of two losses in his previous pair of fights, Alves has beaten a number of highly touted opponents including a trio of competitors on this list. His main fault seems to be an ability to handle high-level wrestling (or the necessary weight-cut to make the 171-pound welterweight limit). If he can figure out a way to slim down without sacrificing his explosiveness, not to mention stuff a hotly-contested takedown, there’s no reason he can’t beat anyone he stands opposite from in the cage.

9.Martin Kampmann (17-4)

Kampmann’s only issue seems to be with taking power-shots to the chin and, frankly, how many fighters can eat leather without crumpling at some point? He took Shields to the limit at UFC 121 and has looked sharp at welterweight since dropping down from a successful stint at 185 pounds. The Dane’s Muay Thai is as crisp as a pretzel and sometimes overshadows his ability to tangle foes up like the baked snack too, as he’s never been tapped in twenty-one fights while having almost an equal number of submissions on his record as he does TKOs.

10. Matt Hughes (45-8)

Like many of you, I found myself starting to believe in Hughes divisional resurgence and was shocked, though satisfied, with the ending to his trilogy with B.J. Penn this past weekend. However, he did beat Ricardo Almeida and Matt Serra prior to the loss, not to mention Chris Lytle before running into GSP and agreeing to fight an overweight Alves on late notice. Hughes has found a lot of success against a number of tough opponents and will remain relevant as long as he fights due to his blend of strength, cardio, and wrestling. The 37-year old may not be able to take a clean strike as well as he might have 5-10 years ago but he will always be a major mountain for any welterweight to climb.

11. Diego Sanchez (22-4)

There’s no question Sanchez is a threat to be reckoned with when he’s focused on the task at hand. He brings great intensity in the cage along with multi-level stand-up and fast, powerful submissions. Still, “Nightmare” hasn’t QUITE been able to get over every highly-ranked hurdle he’s encountered in his career but has wins over some top names like Paulo Thiago, Ken Florian, and the afore-mentioned Diaz. He also took Fitch to a split-decision. I’m willing to write off the Hathaway loss to his return from 155 to 170 but Sanchez was smashed by Penn and still cleanly fell to Fitch, not to mention Koscheck, regardless of how the “L” came about.

12. Tyron Woodley (7-0)

Woodley is the only name you’ll find among the fifteen listed here who has earned his spot based on potential more than who he’s actually beaten. Though none of his seven victories have come against especially notable opponents, “T-Wood” has looked exceptional in every outing. The former Missouri State Champion wrestler has great takedowns, is quick, and can fight from any position. He also reminds me a bit of St. Pierre when the current divisional king first came into the UFC based on pure athleticism.

13. Paul Daley (25-9-2)

Regardless of what you think about Daley’s post-fight sucker-punch of Koscheck, “Semtex” is still a supremely talented striker who has taken out his share of tough fighters. He’s a great addition to Strikeforce and should turn in some classics starting as soon as next week with his upcoming match-up against Scott Smith.

14. Paulo Thiago (13-3)

Similar to a few of the folks who are ranked higher, Thiago is coming off consecutive losses to “Top 10” competition. Dropping decisions to Sanchez, Kampmann, and Fitch a few fights earlier has far less impact than it might if any of the defeats had involved a submission/TKO. It’s also worth considering that Thiago can’t train full time due to his commitments as part of a special Brazilian Police unit.

15. Chris Lytle (30-17-5)

Lytle is still seeking a “career defining” win in the Octagon, which is why he’s this low on the list, but I wouldn’t be surprised to seem him attain at least one of them over the next year or two. The Indiana fireman has won five of his last six fights and is stiff test in any area of the ring. Consider this – Lytle has never been cleanly finished in his 50+ fight career. He’s lost bouts due to cuts and fifteen based on judges’ scorecards but never by a submission or strike-based TKO. It’s a remarkable statistic and one I’d challenge anyone to top.

Honorable Mentions

B.J. Penn (16-7-1): Though Penn’s knockout of Hughes was jaw-droppingly impressive, it was his first win at 170 pounds in six-and-a-half years for Baby Jay. If he can beat Fitch in Februray at UFC 127, which is far from a guarantee in my opinion, he’ll obviously jump up a lot higher in the rankings.
John Hathaway (14-1): The British youngster may have been exposed against Mike Pyle in his first career loss last month, but Hathaway has taken out some tough foes in his short career and appears to have a ton of upside based on the skills he’s exhibited thus far, not to mention his size and age.
Jake Ellenberger (22-5): The 25-year old has won six of his last seven with the lone stumble being a razor-thin decision loss to Condit in which he nearly finished “The Natural Born Killer” on more than one occasion. He’s also beaten the likes of Pyle, John Howard, and Pat Healy, and has upside for days when it comes to how far he could go in MMA if he gets minimally better in all areas.