Fight Matrix

TUF Season 9 Finale: How they stack up

Posted on June 19, 2009 by Jason

Lightweight
[#5] Diego Sanchez vs. [#15] Clay Guida

Welterweight
[#201] DaMarques Johnson vs. [#425] James Wilks

Lightweight
[#131] Ross Pearson vs. [#139] Andre Winner

Welterweight
[#29] Chris Lytle vs. [#65] Kevin Burns

Lightweight
[#29] Joe Stevenson vs. [#30] Nate Diaz

Lightweight
[#35] Gleison Tibau vs. [#97] Melvin Guillard

Welterweight
[#20] Brad Blackburn vs. [#73] Edgar Garcia

Light Heavyweight
[#34 HW] Mike Ciesnolevicz vs. [#81] Tomasz Drwal

Welterweight
[#300 LHW] Frank Lester vs. [#600] Nicholas Osipczak

Lightweight
[#63 WW] Jason Dent vs. [#425] Cameron Dollar

Ranking Notes: Dark green font represents an approximate ranking. An asterisk represents a fighter who is ranked, but too low for an approximation. These two scenarios will clear up slightly as we move forward. “NR” means the fighter is not ranked, due to inactivity, or due to a rating that is at or below the default starter rating.

A preliminary ranking of TUF Season 10

Posted on June 18, 2009 by Jason

Season 9’s ranking was pretty successful, and an interesting experiment.. at least for myself.

Here is how the Season 10 candidates stack up in terms of FightMatrix rating points.

Leader of the Pack

1. Roy Nelson (#31 HW)

The Next Best Thing

2. Darrill Schoonover (#57 HW)

Solid Underdog Picks

3. Abe Wagner (#84 HW)

4. Jim York (#92 HW)

The B-Squad

5. Justin Wren (#114 HW)

6. Kimbo Slice (#118 HW)

7. Tom Blackledge (#160 LHW)

Longshots

8. Mike Wessel (#143 HW)

9. Zak Jensen (#145 HW)

10. Scott Junk (#157 HW)

11. Brendan Schaub (#172 HW)

The Filler

12. Wes Sims (~#300 HW)

13. Marcus Jones (~#310 HW)

14. Jon Madsen (~#500 HW)

Unranked

UR. Wes Shivers

UR. Matt Mitrione

Featured Upcoming Bouts (Outside of UFC)

Friday, October 16th 2026: Professional Fighters League PFL Chicago 2: Carmouche vs. Bishop 2

[#6 W125] Liz Carmouche

[#14 W125] Jena Bishop

Last Fight Date: 6/27/2026 [PFL]
Last Opponent: [#15 W125] Viviane Araujo
Last 5: L W W W W

Last Fight Date: 6/27/2026 [PFL]
Last Opponent: [#37 W125] Ariane Lipski da Silva
Last 5: W W L W W

Thursday, December 31st 2026: Rizin FF New Years Eve Event

[#5 FW] Rajabali Shaidullaev

[#16 FW] Kyoma Akimoto

Last Fight Date: 9/10/2026 [Rizin Fighting Federation]
Last Opponent: [#7 FW] A.J. McKee
Last 5: W W W W W

Last Fight Date: 8/11/2026 [Rizin Fighting Federation]
Last Opponent: [#25 FW] Kleber Koike Erbst
Last 5: W W W W W

Saturday, November 14th 2026: Professional Fighters League PFL Returns to Dubai: Nemkov vs. Bilostenniy

[#6 HW] Vadim Nemkov

[#16 HW] Sergey Bilostenniy

Last Fight Date: 12/13/2025 [PFL]
Last Opponent: [#20 HW] Renan Ferreira
Last 5: W W W W W

Last Fight Date: 5/02/2026 [PFL]
Last Opponent: [#20 HW] Renan Ferreira
Last 5: W W L W W

Featured Fighters

[#5 FW]	Rajabali Shaidullaev	[#49 LW]	Mikuru Asakura
[#1 FW]	Alexander Volkanovski	[#1 WW]	Islam Makhachev
[#29 FW]	Ren Hiramoto	[#96 FW]	Tommy McMillen
[#7 FW]	A.J. McKee	[#4 FW]	Movsar Evloev
[#33 LW]	Akbar Abdullaev	[#2 LW]	Ilia Topuria

TUF Season 9 – Episode 12 Results

Posted on June 18, 2009 by Jason

Welterweight

8. James Wilks beat 9B. Frank Lester

Higher seed is now 20-7 (74%). 1 fight was contested between two unranked fighters.

MMA Rankings Updated: 6/16/09

Posted on June 16, 2009 by Jason

Notable Info

Added a few new shows to the database.
Past change regarding barnstorming “rookie” fighters got reverted somehow. Re-inserted this.
Minor adjustment regarding past opposition strength and knockout losses to much higher-rated fighters.

UFC 99 Review

Posted on June 15, 2009 by Oleg

UFC 99 was broadcast live from Cologne, Germany – marking the organization’s first foray into continental Europe. UFC was not exactly welcomed with open arms, as the local legislators attempted to block the event, citing the brutality of the sport. In the end their efforts were futile, and the event went on (as usual, there were several late substitutions due to injuries). As it has been the case with most of UFC’s overseas cards, there were no title bouts in this event. Instead, the headlining bout was a ‘super fight’ between Rich Franklin and Wanderlei Silva at a catch weight of 195 lbs. The fight card also featured a bout between top heavyweight contenders in Cheik Kongo and Cain Velasquez, as well as the UFC return on Caol Uno and Mirko ‘Cro Cop’ Filipovic.

Marcus Davis vs. Dan Hardy (170 lbs)

Round 1: The fighters circle and exchange leg kicks, then Davis rushes in and clinches Hardy against the fence. Not much action until Davis gets a takedown and quickly mounts Hardy. Davis throws strikes, Hardy regains guard but ends up giving up his back as he tries to get back to the feet. Hardy rocks Davis with an elbow and follows up with knees from clinch; Davis goes for another takedown as the round ends. Round 10-9 Davis

Round 2: The round starts with a heated exchange, seemingly even until Hardy drops Davis with a knee. Hardy jumps into Davis’ guard; Marcus regains his composure and nearly catches an armbar. Hardy throws elbows from the top; Davis defends and the fighters are stood up by the ref. The fighters exchange again, with both men connecting solid strikes. Davis takes down Hardy and finishes the round with strikes from the top. Round 10-9 Hardy

Round 3: The initial exchange ends with Davis landing a punch on an off-balance Hardy and knocking him down, though Hardy does not look hurt. Davis attempts to work from Hardy’s guard then quickly transitions to a leg lock. Hardy spins out and stands up, then gets a takedown of his own and mauls Davis with elbows. Davis is bleeding profusely and the referee stands them up to check the cut. The fight is allowed to continue, and the action slows down until the ref calls for another stand up. Davis’ has blood in his eyes and a huge mouse over the left one. Davis finishes the round aggressive but loses based on damage taken. Round 10-9 Hardy

Dan Hardy wins by split decision.

Fight Grade: 4/5

Aftermath: Hardy solidifies his position as a Top 10 welterweight. Davis remains in a gatekeeper role – surely he will soon find another “grudge” to keep himself relevant in the division. I would like to see Hardy and Davis face the winner and the loser of the Swick-Saunders bout, respectively.

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MMA Rankings Updated: 6/14/09

Posted on June 14, 2009 by Jason

Notable Info

Database updated with recent results.
Bantamweight expanded to Top 100.

Other Comments

“Interesting” results fill the landscape this week. Ray Mercer is treated as a debuting juggernaut and is elevated into the Top 20 with his 10 second win over Tim Sylvia. Cain Velasquez joins him in the bottom quarter of the Top 20.
Two of the three fighters we’ve covered in our “ranked fighters you’ve never heard of” posts faced off last week. Jordan Smith and Richard Hale, two fighters who were within 1/10th of a rating point of one another faced off. The system had them pegged, as the end result was a draw.
Rich Franklin was involved in his second consecutive questionable decision at Light Heavyweight. Say what you will, he’s deserving of the Top 10 position we’ve had him at since his move from Middleweight.
Dan Hardy further cements his case as a top welterweight with his win over Marcus Davis, reclaiming the #10 spot.
Nick Cottone re-enters the top 25 Flyweights. His re-entry means 4 Americans in the Top 25, a good stateside foundation should WEC decide to include this division.

Late Addition: Obviously the Sylvia/Mercer situation is an oddly unique event, so we will be taking a look at how it was handled in terms of numbers.

TUF Season 9 – Episode 11 Results

Posted on June 11, 2009 by Jason

Lightweight

4. Andre Winner beat 12. Cameron Dollar

3. Ross Pearson beat 1. Jason Dent

.
First “upset” in weeks. Higher seed is now 19-7.

UFC 99: How they stack up

Posted on June 10, 2009 by Jason

Light Heavyweight (195lbs)
[#7] Wanderlei Silva vs. [#8] Rich Franklin

Heavyweight
[#10] Cheick Kongo vs. [#33] Cain Velasquez

Welterweight
[#8] Mike Swick vs. [#67] Ben Saunders

Welterweight
[#11] Dan Hardy vs. [#22] Marcus Davis

Lightweight
[#16] Caol Uno vs. [#28] Spencer Fisher

Heavyweight
[#14] Mirko Filipovic vs. [#92] Mostapha Al-Turk

Lightweight
[#34] Terry Etim vs. [#278] Justin Buchholz

Lightweight
[#175] Dennis Siver vs. [#280] Dale Hartt

Welterweight
[#90] Paul Taylor vs. [#500] Peter Sobotta

Lightweight
[#118 WW] Paul Kelly vs. [#233] Rolando Delgado

Heavyweight
[#51] Stefan Struve vs. [#153] Denis Stojnic

Welterweight
[#41] Ricky Story vs. [#129] John Hathaway

Bantamweight is expanding to Top 100

Posted on June 10, 2009 by Jason

Upon the next update, Bantamweight will be expanded to the Top 100.

Strikeforce & WEC 41 Reviews

Posted on June 9, 2009 by Oleg

Over the weekend, MMA fans were treated to a double-header of exciting action, with the Strikeforce ‘Lawler vs. Shields’ broadcast on Showtime on Saturday, followed by WEC 41 shown on VS. channel on Sunday. With one event full of UFC veterans, and the other featuring some of the top featherweights in the world, I had high expectations going into the weekend. Needless to say, I was not disappointed!

Strikeforce ‘Lawler vs. Shields’

While there were no title belts on the line, or any bouts of major significance on this card, it was packed full of very familiar names and most fights had a promise of non-stop action – at least on paper. In the main event and namesake of the card, the welterweight standout Jake Shields took a step up in weight to face Robbie Lawler at a catch weight of 182 lbs. The commentary for this event was provided by a trio of Gus Johnson, Frank Shamrock, and Mauro Ranallo. The televised broadcast began with a former UFC heavyweight champion Kevin Randleman taking on a one-time ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ participant Mike Whitehead.

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