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Posted on October 5, 2009 by jcs
These all-time calculation methods are still in the beta stages, but close to final. There are some important things to mention as there are some major differences between these rankings and the FightMatrix ratings.
- Rankings ARE division specific. Fighters CAN appear in more than one list, but will only be given credit during times in which they produced quality performances in these divisions. Due to this, divisional info is seriously depended upon.
- Years of 1990 and later are considered.
- Monthly ranking snapshots are taken, with some minor modifications that are focused on determining the truly great fighters (harsher penalties for inactivity and for lack of quality performances)
- Fighters are given points based on their standing in the Top 25, with the most points going toward a #1 spot, a little less to #2, right on down the line. Having longevity at the top of the division is key and those who only spend a limited time in a division will suffer. Divisional depth at the time is also given consideration.
| Rank | Fighter | Total Record | All-Time Division Points | |
| 1 |  Wanderlei SilvaLast Fight: 6/13/2009 |
32-10-1 |
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| 2 |  Chuck LiddellLast Fight: 4/18/2009 |
21-7-0 |
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| 3 | Tito Ortiz Last Fight: 5/24/2008 |
16-6-1 |
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| 4 | Quinton Jackson Last Fight: 3/7/2009 |
30-7-0 |
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| 5 | Mauricio Rua Last Fight: 4/18/2009 |
18-3-0 |
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| 6 | Dan Henderson Last Fight: 7/11/2009 |
25-7-0 |
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| 7 | Ricardo Arona Last Fight: 9/12/2009 |
14-5-0 |
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| 8 | Lyoto Machida Last Fight: 5/23/2009 |
15-0-0 |
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| 9 | Randy Couture Last Fight: 8/29/2009 |
16-10-0 |
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| 10 | Antonio Rogerio Nogueira Last Fight: 6/6/2009 |
17-3-0 |
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1. Wanderlei Silva (1,026 All-Time Light Heavyweight Points)
The “Axe Murderer” just eeks out the #1 position on the Light Heavyweight list. His accomplishments are many: IVC Light Heavyweight Champion, First PRIDE Middleweight (205lb) Champion, Winner of the PRIDE 2003 Middleweight GP, PRIDE 2005 Middleweight GP Semi-Finalist, and a plethora of quality wins in the division.
2. Chuck Liddell (985)
By far, the greatest UFC Light Heavyweight in history. The knockout artist holds wins over Tito Ortiz (2x), Randy Couture, Jeremy Horn, Alistair Overeem, Renato Sobral, Wanderlei Silva, and Kevin Randleman. He also defended the UFC championship multiple times. Although it looks like his best days are long gone, a late career surge coupled with Silva’s move to Middleweight leaves the door open for Chuck to challenge for the #1 position.
3. Tito Ortiz (780)
Before Chuck reigned over the UFC Light Heavyweights, Tito Ortiz was the king of the hill. Even after he lost his strap, Ortiz claimed quality victories over Vitor Belfort and Forrest Griffin, as well as a controversial draw when he was shorted out of a win against Rashad Evans.
4. Quinton Jackson (686)
Currently, in what appears to be his fighting prime, and with the #3 position staring him in the face, Rampage appears to have lost the will to carry on in MMA. While Wanderlei and Chuck ruled over the landscape, Rampage was usually hanging tough somewhere between #3 and #10 in the division. Upon coming to the UFC, he took his game to another level and became one of the elites.
5. Mauricio Rua (494)
Some would argue that no Light Heavyweight was more dominant than Rua in and around 2005. He had a superb run of four fights where he took dominant wins over Rampage Jackson, Rogerio Nogueira, Alistair Overeem, and Ricardo Arona. Three of whom are currently on this list. After losing to Mark Coleman at Heavyweight, he has gone 5-1 in the division still racking up quality wins.
6. Dan Henderson (464)
Henderson is one of only two fighters to make the top ten on more than one all-time division ranking list. Although he’s spent some time at Middleweight, Henderson has gone 12-4 at Light Heavyweight, and very rarely did he fight someone outside of the top ten.
7. Ricardo Arona (358)
An elite fighter in the division throughout almost all of his career, Arona has had some issues with inactivity. Nevertheless, he holds divisional wins over Dan Henderson, Wanderlei Silva, Guy Mezger, and Alistair Overeem.
8. Lyoto Machida (341)
With a win over Shogun, Machida will have the UFC Light Heavyweight division on lockdown for the first time since Liddell’s reign. Undefeated for his entire career, Machida hasn’t lost a round since coming to the UFC.
9. Randy Couture (254)
With his name value being what it is, it stands to reason that he should be ranked a spot or two higher on this list. However, Randy’s stretch at Light Heavyweight only yielded him a subpar record of 4-3. With his imminent return to the division, a second spree of quality efforts would definitely assist in some of the metrics used to compile the rankings.
10. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (251)
He wasn’t often found in the top five of the division, but Rogerio has been a top 15 (or so) stalwart for about the last six years. His career has had quite a few quality performances, but nothing truly outstanding. If he continues to lack in that department, he is likely to drop out of the list within months.
Posted in MMA Ranks | Comments (17)
alright jcs i got to ask you a few things. number one how can you leave out kazushi sakuraba? he may have changed weights a few times but with his opponents alone he should make it at light heavyweight or definitely middleweight (i mean lawler, almeida, bustamante, misaki are ahead of him honestly?).
also above you say dan henderson is one of only two fighters ranked twice in all time rankings but in none of the previous lists is that the case. does this hint towards randy couture being ranked twice?
i don’t know jcs i like your system i check up on it every update but this is a little shaky to me
Perhaps eventually. We are having trouble with the Heavyweight list due to open-weight fights which filled the landscape in the 90s
Any chance that we’ll get to see an all-around ranking (one list that includes all weight classes)? That would be very interesting.
A good list. Close between Chuck and Wand, but I do think strength of comp in Pride and the utter dominance Wand had in his prime pips Chuck overall. But regardless they are #1 and #2 on a coin toss.
i wonder if fedor makes it to 2000.
But everyone expected the lightheavyweight to have the points split up with the two superpower organizations but it’s the most stacked out of the previous weights meaning lightheavyweight is the toughest weight of all time.
It’s not necessarily dominance.. more of a prestige.
Can’t belive gomi, liddell,wanderlei,gsp and hughes have been more dominant than anderson.
Pretty good list. Tough call between Silva and Liddell. Pride helped to pad Silva’s record a bit, which might have been the difference. Also, Tito avoided Chuck for quite a while so that may have helped Tito and hurt Chuck overall.
Arona and Henderson seem a bit high compared to Randy. I’m guessing that Randy’s TKO loss to Belfort hurt his standings a lot. Had he won that, he would have beaten Chuck, Tito and Vitor all within a year.
I would have expected Liddell to barely edge out Silva. Surprising to see Arona so high.