1: Jon ‘Bones’ Jones: 2011 was nothing if not the start of the ‘Bones Era’. 12 months ago Jones was a great prospect…now, he’s a legend in the making. Ryan Bader, ‘Shogun’ Rua, ‘Rampage’ Jackson and Lyoto Machida all fell victim to MMA’s newest golden boy. Only Rashad Evans and Dan Henderson stand between Jones and the complete obliteration of the 205ln division.

2: ‘Suga’ Rashad Evans: The de-facto number one contender since May 2010, Rashad Evans finally finds himself with an actual date with destiny. After a confident 5-round routing of Phil Davis last month, ‘Suga’ has booked a slot opposite Jon Jones in April. Evans will be avoiding mirrors, ladders and gypsy curses as he attempts to dodge the bad luck that has kept him out of the title picture for so long.

3: Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson: Few were backing ‘Rampage’ against MMA wunderkind Jon Jones in September, but even the biggest ‘Bones’ supporters must have been amazed at the ease with which their man took apart one of the most experienced and hardest hitting fighters in the sport. With age and Hollywood ambitions weighing heavily on the former champion, a chance to recapture old glory in his favoured stomping grounds of Japan this month could be a last hurrah.

4: Dan ‘Hendo’ Henderson: Dan Henderson has not only stepped out of the shadow of former Team Quest partner Randy Couture, he may be on the way to surpassing the legend of ‘The Natural’. While Couture lasted into his 40’s by fighting smart, Hendo is still ploughing through top opposition with reckless abandon. Can anything stop the ‘H-Bomb’?

5: Lyoto ‘The Dragon’ Machida: The post-Machida has not been kind to its namesake. ‘The Dragon’ managed only one defence of his 205lb title, and has gone an abysmal 1-3 since. A rumoured bout with Dan Henderson could make or break the Karate stylist’s tenure as a top-ranked light heavyweight.

6: Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua: As good as he undoubtedly is, ‘Shogun’ Rua has blown hot and cold since his UFC debut. Still, the Brazilian dynamo has only lost to the cream of the crop, and has been involved in some of the sport’s most epic battles along the way. His loss in one of MMA’s all time great bouts against Dan Henderson will have done little to harm his reputation, but Shogun will need to win big next time out of he is to make another run at the UFC gold.

7: Antonio Rogerio ‘Minotouro’ Nogueira: You win some, you lose some. Nogueira has certainly not had it easy, coming off the back of two very close and contentious decision losses to a pair of ‘super prospects’ in Ryan Bader and Phil Davis, before steamrolling Tito Ortiz late last year. Still, injuries and age are catching up with ‘Little Nog’; does he have enough left in the tank to handle a young, hungry Alexander Gustafsson? Only time will tell.

8: Phil ‘Mr Wonderful’ Davis: Phil Davis is the latest ‘super prospect’ to roll off the conveyor belt and into the UFC. He’s barely reached double-figures in terms of fight experience, but he’s a world class athlete with top shelf wrestling and a suffocating ground game; the blueprint upon which many MMA greats have been built. Unfortunately, the step up in competition he faced with Rashad Evans proved to be too much, too soon.

9: Alexander Gustafsson: Following a tough loss to Phil Davis, Alexander Gustafsson has been on a tear through the middle tier of UFC light heavyweights. Four wins, four stoppages, each more brutal than the last, have seen the young Swede rocket into the top ten. A victory over ‘Little Nog’ when the Octagon visits his home nation later this year will cement him as one of the world’s top 205’lbers.

10: Rafael ‘Feijao’ Cavalcante: ‘Feijao’ got his 205lb campaign back on track with an explosive knock out of the unheralded Yoel Romero in September. The win, combined with the recent poor form of former ranked UFC light heavyweight Ryan Bader, sees Cavalcante return to the top ten as he looks to erase the memory of his punishing title loss to Dan Henderson.

(Updated February 1^st, 2012)

Why not tell us what you think about this story and get your thoughts featured in this week’s edition of MMABay Radio? Email Mailbag@mmabay.co.uk, start the subject with the word ‘RADIO MAILBAG’ and we’ll talk about our favourites on the next show.