UFC needs an actual ranking system.

[Tokyo's bad boy]

The UFC seems to have a revolving door of fighters and there does not seem to be any coherent way of ranking them. Cards are always packed with new faces, Ex-Tuffers and the like...that's ok because it’s a way to find new talent, but sometimes we never see these guys again. Or you get people like Okami with four wins but still no title shot. People seem to come and go all the time and that does not let fans get connected to them. Matches become less interesting when you have no idea when or if the winner will ever get a title shot. Example- I love watching Karo fight but I have no idea if his wins actually add up to anything. Kos was supposed to get a title shot but now is not. A guy on TUF 5 beat Pulver but Pulver and BJ get to fight for a title shot. Randy comes out of retirement and gets an automatic title shot. I just think a ranking system would help fans get into fights and add some organization to title shots.

[Ramma]

Originally Posted by Tokyo's bad boy

The UFC seems to have a revolving door of fighters and there does not seem to be any coherent way of ranking them. Cards are always packed with new faces, Ex-Tuffers and the like...that's ok because it’s a way to find new talent, but sometimes we never see these guys again. Or you get people like Okami with four wins but still no title shot. People seem to come and go all the time and that does not let fans get connected to them. Matches become less interesting when you have no idea when or if the winner will ever get a title shot. Example- I love watching Karo fight but I have no idea if his wins actually add up to anything. Kos was supposed to get a title shot but now is not. A guy on TUF 5 beat Pulver but Pulver and BJ get to fight for a title shot. Randy comes out of retirement and gets an automatic title shot. I just think a ranking system would help fans get into fights and add some organization to title shots.

While I agree, I think a ranking system is necessary. But the rankings can really get in the way and make excuses for fights to never happen that we want to see.

But if Couture came out of retirement and challenged Sylvia, and he said no, Sylvia would look like he was scared (which, say what you want about Sylvia, he wasn't scared of Couture).

Dana's excuse for not having Liddell and Silva fight was that Silva got KOed by Cro Cop and his ranking went down.. do we give a shit? No.. but it can be used in shitty ways like that.

I think rankings need to be posted and loosely followed, but following them religiously probably isn't good for the fans.

[DonFrye]

They have one, it's called MAXIMIZATION OF INCOME. See, the matchmakers keep an ear to the ground and try to use the UFC and its American audience to build a fighter's reputation. Once that has been realized, they begin putting them in showcase fights leading up to a title fight. They make all the money they can before giving the title fight out. Truly deserving or not.

[Beatts35]

i've said it before to. i agree they need to get a ranking system for fighters. Zuffa and most of the mma world could really learn from Shooto. Shooto has had a great ametuer system to feed fighters into the pro's. They have a real ranking system with points. and if you've ever watched shooto has a very high level of fighters fighting within their juristiction.

this is the difference between a promoter and a sanctioning body. the promoter is into putting on a show and as we've seen sets up matches on whatever logic they decide for that match.

a sanctioning body doesn't always promote a show. they are just the unifying body that will over see the rules and rankings. not to be confused with the state athletic commission's. a sannctioning body would be like the IBF in boxing. really its what MMA is missing in north america. If Zuffa was to join in with elite, hero's, cage rage and strike force. thats what you would have.

[Krazikarl]

Zuffa and most of the mma world could really learn from Shooto. Shooto has had a great ametuer system to feed fighters into the pro's. They have a real ranking system with points. and if you've ever watched shooto has a very high level of fighters fighting within their juristiction.

this is the difference between a promoter and a sanctioning body. the promoter is into putting on a show and as we've seen sets up matches on whatever logic they decide for that match.

a sanctioning body doesn't always promote a show. they are just the unifying body that will over see the rules and rankings. not to be confused with the state athletic commission's. a sannctioning body would be like the IBF in boxing. really its what MMA is missing in north america. If Zuffa was to join in with elite, hero's, cage rage and strike force. thats what you would have.

Why on earth would Zuffa want to learn anything from those organizations? Zuffa completely and totally outcompetes them all, so saying that Zuffa needs to do things like either organization is complete silliness.

I want to see the best MMA matches possible. A ranking gets in the way of this. It can take a guy YEARS to work their way up the ladder on one of those because people fight so rarely. If a guy working his way up, like CroCop, loses, then it could be another year before he fights top people, and at his age, it might never happen. Thats not good for the sport and thats not good for the fans.

The most skilled fighters should fight the most skilled fighters. It shouldnt be done via a quasi official ranking. Thats what college football does, and pretty much everybody hates that. Some people who are deserving lose out in this process, but if they keep winning they will get their chance. Okami is getting his now (one more fight and he gets his title shot).

[Harlem]

Originally Posted by Beatts35

i've said it before to. i agree they need to get a ranking system for fighters. Zuffa and most of the mma world could really learn from Shooto. Shooto has had a great ametuer system to feed fighters into the pro's. They have a real ranking system with points. and if you've ever watched shooto has a very high level of fighters fighting within their juristiction.

this is the difference between a promoter and a sanctioning body. the promoter is into putting on a show and as we've seen sets up matches on whatever logic they decide for that match.

a sanctioning body doesn't always promote a show. they are just the unifying body that will over see the rules and rankings. not to be confused with the state athletic commission's. a sannctioning body would be like the IBF in boxing. really its what MMA is missing in north america. If Zuffa was to join in with elite, hero's, cage rage and strike force. thats what you would have.

I agree, and fighters would get paid more.

[Beatts35]

Originally Posted by Krazikarl

Why on earth would Zuffa want to learn anything from those organizations? Zuffa completely and totally outcompetes them all, so saying that Zuffa needs to do things like either organization is complete silliness.

I want to see the best MMA matches possible. A ranking gets in the way of this. It can take a guy YEARS to work their way up the ladder on one of those because people fight so rarely. If a guy working his way up, like CroCop, loses, then it could be another year before he fights top people, and at his age, it might never happen. Thats not good for the sport and thats not good for the fans.

The most skilled fighters should fight the most skilled fighters. It shouldnt be done via a quasi official ranking. Thats what college football does, and pretty much everybody hates that. Some people who are deserving lose out in this process, but if they keep winning they will get their chance. Okami is getting his now (one more fight and he gets his title shot).

the only org i said that zuffa could learn from is shooto. i think everyone in the sport could learn from shooto. then i said that if zuffa would sit down with the other big shows, it could lead to a sanctioning body.


a ranking system does make sense. guys fight a few times a year. the best would still fight the best. and you probably wouldn't fall off as much as you thinka fter a fight or 2. anyway within a ranking system it just means guys of close standings would face off. any top 10 guy could get a shot at the title etc.

[Krazikarl]

a ranking system does make sense. guys fight a few times a year. the best would still fight the best.

Not with with all of these fighters switching organizations. It would be people who have been with the organizaiton for a long time v people who have been with the organizaiton for a long time. People complain enough about new guys fighting complete cans, but that problem would just be mandated now since they would have to work their way up. Personally, I dont want to see more can fights.

Think about what would happen in the UFC. The HW division wouldnt have had its big Couture v Sylvia fight, which would really hurt them since that was a great fight and Couture is great to promoting MMA (which he can do way better as UFC HW champ). CroCop would have still been fighting cans, so he wouldnt have been beaten in a great fight. At LHW you couldnt have had Rampage fighting Chuck since he isnt deserving under a ranking system, so it would have to be something like Jardine v Chuck, which is crap compared to Rampage v Chuck. A. Silva would still be working his way up at MW (no Silva v Franklin yet).

The point is that so many of the big fights in the past say year and a half have come about because the UFC is willing to put top people against top people right away. Thats good for everybody.

[Rockx]

Yeah with a ranking system it becomes too rigid, UFC is a FOR PROFIT business that needs to put on the hot matchups when the come around. A Ranking system would slow that down.

I do think that there should be something to where a 14-0 fighter like Rashad does not fight a UFC nobody like Sean Salmon. But bringing in nobodys has found new talent too, like Sokudjou who was like 2-1 when he fought Lil-Nog.

I don't think the system is broken, so no need for a fix.

[Metalhead]

I've mentioned many times there should be a ranking system. Then I get flamed for it.