The heavyweight division has long been a point of contention for those fans who believe that the UFC does not have the greatest fighters in the world, and in some ways those fans were correct. With Affliction having Fedor Emelianenko, who is the number one heavyweight fighter in the world, and top ten fighters Josh Barnett, Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski it seemed that UFC would certainly be behind the upstart T-Shirt company.

Things, however, have begun to change, with UFC bringing in up and coming fighters like Shane Carwin and Cain Velasquez, maintaining the veteran names like Big Nog and Randy Couture and boasting high rank fighters named Frank Mir and UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar. Add to the mix Cheick Kongo, and you’ve got a fairly explosive division with some serious legit talent. A victory by either Lesnar or Mir would put them in at at least the number three spot for world heavyweight talent, and the other wouldn’t be far behind.

UFC has shown that while they may not have the best heavyweight in the world(though Dana White would disagree with common knowledge) they may have the best plan for the future of the heavyweight division. With several key fights down the road for the UFC heavyweight division, it seems that Affliction may have a tough time competing, as the possibilities after the Fedor vs. Barnett fight seem to be somewhat limited. UFC has several big name match-ups possible, win or lose for Lesnar, and has the prestige to continue to get new talent. No one is disputing that Fedor Emelianenko is rightfully king of the heavyweights, but UFC’s heavyweight roster may end up surpassing the individual efforts of the Russian fighter. Certainly the potential is there.

The MMA News, Opinion.