1: Junior ‘Cigano’ Dos Santos: The champ is here! Junior Dos Santos meteoric rise is complete; the heavy handed Brazilian went from a shocking upset over Fabricio Werdum to capturing the most coveted title in MMA in the space of just a few short years. After brushing aside former champ Cain Velasquez without a second thought in November, Dos Santos looks untouchable.  Next up Alistair Overeem…

2: Alistair ‘The Reem’ Overeem: While Overeem’s lofty position in the rankings is due in no small part to the recent losses and inactivity of Fedor, Lesnar and Carwin, its clear for all to see that the boy has skills. He proved the doubters wrong with a brutal demolition of Brock Lesnar in December of last year, setting the former K-1, Dream and Strikeforce champion up for a clean sweep as he looks to wrest the UFC belt from Junior Dos Santos this summer.

3: Cain Velasquez: It may have lasted over a year, but in real terms, Cain Velasquez reign over the UFC heavyweight division was a short one. Rendered unconscious by Junior Dos Santos in just 64 seconds, Velasquez now finds himself in the unfamiliar position of going back to the drawing board.

4: Frank Mir: After being unable to claim back to back wins since 2008, Frank Mir has now gone three for three following his gut (or arm) wrenching submission over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira late last year. With the title picture all but sewn up for the first half of 2012, Mir will no doubt face another obstacle before he gets a crack at his third UFC heavyweight title.

5: Fabricio ‘Vai Cavalo’ Werdum: Any momentum that Fabricio Werdum had gained from submitting the legendary Fedor Emelianenko has ebbed away following a year’s worth of inactivity and a largely pathetic performance against Alistair Overeem. ‘Vai Cavalo’ will have the chance to get back on track on Super Bowl weekend against fellow grappler Roy Nelson, as both fight for legitimacy in the UFC heavyweight division.

6: Shane ‘The Engineer’ Carwin: You’ve got to give it to Shane Carwin, he’s got some testicular fortitude. With that said, he’ll need more than guts if he is to recover from a torrid few years worth of high-profile losses and massive injury lay-offs. With the biological clock ticking, 2012 will be a crucial year for Carwin.

7: Josh ‘The Babyfaced Assassin’ Barnett: When we removed Josh Barnett from his number 3 spot in the ranking following his failed drug test back in August 2009, little did we expect that it would be nearly two years before he would make his return. Still, the MMA maverick continues his climb back to the top with a successful run to the finals of the Strikeforce GP.

8: Daniel Cormier: Some might say that’s it’s too early for the decorated, yet relatively inexperienced Daniel Cormier to be making an appearance in the heavyweight rankings, and they might have a point. But respect is certainly due for the man who knocked out the previously number 6 ranked ‘Bigfoot’ Silva in September, the latest in a series of spectacular performances that could see the Strikeforce GP finalist becoming a regular feature in the top ten.

9: Cheick Kongo: Many people are not a fan of the Frenchman’s style, many feel he’d be more popular if he’d stick to his strong stand-up game, but few can deny any heavyweight has his hands full with Cheick Kongo. 2011 saw him battle through injurys and pick up back-to-back wins to push himself into a solid top ten position.

10: Antonio Rodrigo ‘Minotauro’ Nogueira: The Brazilian legend is struggling to keep afloat in the heavyweight division. With surging prospects like Cole Konrad and Travis Brown making waves, as well as perennial top 10’ers ‘Bigfoot’ Silva and Roy Nelson in the mix, it might not be long before ‘Big Nog’ drops out of the ranking for the first time in over a decade.

(Updated February 1^st, 2012)

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