Best Heavyweights outside the UFC

The UFC has 90% of the best fighters in the world, or at least that is what they want fans to believe. As we have seen with Strikeforce and WEC’s absorption into the UFC, it is obvious that there is significant talent outside of the UFC ranks. They simply need the opportunity to compete inside of the octagon.

Here are the best heavyweight fighters currently competing outside of the UFC.

Minakov is clearly the best fighter outside of the UFC right now. He was the reigning Bellator heavyweight champion before mysteriously taking a hiatus from the promotion that is at 17 months and counting. Bellator has been tight-lipped about what is going on with their current heavyweight champion, but rumors have swirled about Minakov leaving the sport for a political career. Yet, Minakov has been seen training alongside Fedor Emelianenko in the last few weeks and recently stepped back into the cage in Russia fighting under the Fight Nights promotion. Minakov holds wins over Cheick Kongo, Alexander Volkov, and Ryan Martinez. He is a physical specimen that has drawn comparisons to Fedor. Those may be a bit far-fetched, but at 30 years of age and a 15-0 overall record, he certainly has the potential to be a top-tier contender in the UFC.

Fedor is back! And surprise, surprise, but he will not be signing with the UFC. He has signed on to start up Japan’s next futile attempt at recreating PRIDE. Fedor has been pictured training and spending some time in the gym. Fedor left the sport in 2012, having put together a brief winning streak overseas. What is fresher in most fans’ memory is his 1-3 mark in Strikeforce. Many felt as if Fedor’s return was to get his revenge and possibly earn an immediate title shot against Fabricio Werdum. Once again, Fedor’s motives are entirely mysterious to the MMA fan base.

Sergei Kharitonov is one of the few heavyweight contenders from PRIDE that never competed inside the UFC. Kharitonov always preferred his freedom to compete in kickboxing rather than signing an exclusive deal with the UFC. Kharitonov is currently linked up with M-1, and is riding a 5-fight win streak. Sergei is currently tipping the scales above the 265 lbs. limit, but that has not stopped him from continuing to use his powerful hands to finish his last 4 fights via TKO. If he were to sign with the UFC, I could certainly see Sergei being a Top 15 Heavyweight.

Kongo had his run in the UFC and his best days are certainly behind him at 40 years of age. Nonetheless, Kongo is still a physical specimen that continues to be a tough test for most fighters outside of the Top 10. His wins may not be pretty, but one cannot argue with the fact that he’s found a way to beat Matt Mitrione, Shawn Jordan, and Alexander Volkov in recent years. Kongo has put together a 5-2 record and put up a respectable effort against Minakov.

Blagoi Ivanov recently claimed the WSOF heavyweight title by submitting Smealinho Rama. Ivanov has had quite the comeback story, and could finally be entering into his prime after a near-fatal stabbing incident. Ivanov went 6-1 in Bellator, and was stunningly released after losing his only career fight to Alexander Volkov. Ivanov has a good relationship with WSOF executives, and as we have seen with Marlon Moraes and Dave Branch, he will likely receive a favorable push at being a marketable name for them.

Best of the Rest:

Outside of these 3 fighters, I really can’t name a fighter that should merit special attention. Marcin Tybura was on the brink of that, but then he was finishing by Light Heavyweight prospect Stephan Puetz. Puetz does have a ton of potential, but he should stay at 205 for the time being. Tony Johnson and Alexander Volkov have significant questions as to their long-term potential. There are a couple of prospects on the rise in Russia, namely Evgeny Erokhin and Denis Goltsov. Both hold recent wins over former UFC veterans. Brandon Vera is fighting over in One FC, but he’s still only competed once since being released by the UFC. Smealinho Rama is an intriguing prospect, but he has a lot of growing to do in terms of rounding out his overall game. Satoshi Ishii was rumored to have been on his way over to the UFC, but he has continued to collect paychecks in Japan. Back-to-back losses to Mirko Cro Cop did not help his projected top prospect status. Veterans such as Bobby Lashley, Derrick Mehmen, and Lavar Johnson are still clinging to some relevancy.

Photo credit: www.sherdog.com/Dave Mandel