If there is one thing that I remember the most from high school in my mischief filled English and writing classes – from a writing standpoint – it was to never write in the first person. Well, that rule is about to be slightly tested… as it just was.
In February 2013, the Ultimate Fighting Championship created and released their official rankings. This coming after a continuous and never-ending debate between fans and pundits alike on if a system should be installed or not.
The inaugural pound for pound list saw the then reigning middleweight king, Anderson Silva, atop the totem pole. At this time, “The Spider” was awaiting his next challenger which would end up being the man to dethrone him in Chris Weidman. Thus snapping his legendary 16-fight UFC winning streak that included 10 title defenses.
With Silva followed directly by Jon Jones and Georges St-Pierre in that order, this would just be the beginning of what would remain to this day a constantly debated topic.
As interesting as the rankings themselves are, the system behind it all and who is determining things may be just as interesting if not more so. Anything in a certain spotlight is bound to attract criticism and this case is no different, with such an important factor to these professional athletes’ careers.
Continued: The Process: UFC rankings and their panelists
