Sherdog Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings
Rankings
Jan 14, 2010
Urijah
Faber and Mike Thomas
Brown won their bouts, but that doesn't mean that 2010 hasn't
already had some featherweight shake-up.
After 2009 prominently put the 145-pounders on display, 2010 continued the trend. At WEC 46 in Sacramento, Calif., Faber notched a late submission over a sterling opponent in Raphael Assuncao to earn himself another crack at the WEC featherweight title, now around the waist of Jose Aldo. Elsewhere, Mike Thomas Brown quickly hustled tough Philadelphian Anthony Morrison in under two minutes to get back on the winning track.
However, not all has been status quo in the division. The event also saw the first career loss dealt to 2009 upset darling Mackens Semerzier, who dropped a unanimous verdict to tough Lithuanian Deividas Taurosevicius. Semerzier's loss came less than two weeks after Sengoku champ Masanori Kanehara authored an upset of his own at K-1 Dynamite on New Year's Eve, where he bested Japanese superstar Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto by unanimous decision.
Not all recent headlining performance have been stellar, though. The night after Faber and Brown impressed with their submissions, would-be UFC title challenger Gray Maynard took to the cage for his "Fight Night" headliner against Nate Diaz. Fifteen minutes and a controversial split decision later, Maynard kept his undefeated record intact, but his underwhelming offering effectively handed Frankie Edgar -- whom he defeated in April 2008 -- the next shot against B.J. Penn come April.
After 2009 prominently put the 145-pounders on display, 2010 continued the trend. At WEC 46 in Sacramento, Calif., Faber notched a late submission over a sterling opponent in Raphael Assuncao to earn himself another crack at the WEC featherweight title, now around the waist of Jose Aldo. Elsewhere, Mike Thomas Brown quickly hustled tough Philadelphian Anthony Morrison in under two minutes to get back on the winning track.
However, not all has been status quo in the division. The event also saw the first career loss dealt to 2009 upset darling Mackens Semerzier, who dropped a unanimous verdict to tough Lithuanian Deividas Taurosevicius. Semerzier's loss came less than two weeks after Sengoku champ Masanori Kanehara authored an upset of his own at K-1 Dynamite on New Year's Eve, where he bested Japanese superstar Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto by unanimous decision.
Not all recent headlining performance have been stellar, though. The night after Faber and Brown impressed with their submissions, would-be UFC title challenger Gray Maynard took to the cage for his "Fight Night" headliner against Nate Diaz. Fifteen minutes and a controversial split decision later, Maynard kept his undefeated record intact, but his underwhelming offering effectively handed Frankie Edgar -- whom he defeated in April 2008 -- the next shot against B.J. Penn come April.
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