Lightweight crystal ball: The 2012 rankings

It's the deepest class in the world, so much so that the top of the 155-pound division could be turned on its ear by this time next year. UFC champion Frank Edgar escaped with his title after fighting to a draw against Gray Maynard at UFC 125. Edgar's a great fighter, but people doubt him because of his size and lack of finishing prowess. With challengers coming at him from all directions, will Edgar still be the No. 1 lightweight in the world in Apr. of 2012?

Maynard, Anthony Pettis, Gilbert Melendez and Jim Miller are probably all two wins away from being the undisputed top dog in the division.  With a hot 2011, Sean Sherk, Shinya Aoki, Melvin Guillard, Clay Guida, George Sotiropoulos and Evan Dunham could all force their way into the picture as well. Additional wild cards include Ben Henderson and Eddie Alvarez, if he can escape Bellator. Now that's depth.

Melendez certainly did his part last weekend against Tatsuya Kawajiri. He wasn't going to let judges screw up his first fight in front of Zuffa management. The Strikeforce lightweight champ made sure of that by unleashing a fury of elbows, knees and punches at Kawajiri.

Melendez is knocking at the UFC door for a fight against Edgar, Pettis, Maynard and the rest of the elite crew in the bigger fight promotion.

Melendez says his camp might be the best in the world. Looking at his competition with the "Skrap Pack," it's hard to disagree.

"It's discouraging in camp training with Nick [Diaz], Jake [Shields] and Nate [Diaz]," Melendez told HDNet's Inside MMA. "You question yourself, 'am I ready for this fight?' You know, you have these bad days. I'm getting smashed by these guys sometimes. And then you doubt yourself. And then you walk in there and you dominate, and then you realize that's how great your team is. We're evolving and we always constantly raise the bar against each other."

Yahoo!'s lead MMA writer Kevin Iole joined us to debate the future odds on an Edgar-Melendez fight and how he'd matchup against some of the other elite lightweights.

Here's my top 10 in Apr. of 2012:

1. Gilbert Melendez

2. Frank Edgar

3. Eddie Alvarez

4. Jim Miller

5. Anthony Pettis

6. Melvin Guillard

7. Gray Maynard

8. George Sotiropoulos

9. Ben Henderson

10. Evan Dunham

What's yours?

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Diaz defends belt with TKO of Daley at Strikeforce

Winning his 10th bout in a row, Nick Diaz defended his Strikeforce welterweight championship belt, winning a first-round TKO over Paul Daley in an action-packed bout in the main event in San Diego on Saturday.

After initial taunting from Diaz, Daley took the bait. He dropped Diaz with a series of strikes, then followed up with a kick to the body. Diaz survived and stood up, then came back and had Daley pinned against the cage. Diaz threw punch after punch, hurting Daley along the way. Daley tried for a takedown, which wasn't a bright move since Diaz is a jiu-jitsu whiz.

They returned to their feet, and neither fighter stopped throwing strikes for much of the first round. Daley dropped Diaz with a left hook and then jumped into Diaz's guard. Diaz kicked Daley off, and then was stood back up by referee John McCarthy. Diaz finally took over, using strikes to the body and head to knock Daley to the ground, then finished up with ground strikes. McCarthy jumped in and stopped the fight at 4:57, giving Diaz the win.

After the win, Diaz was noncommittal about who he would like to fight next.

"I don't know. We've got to see what's up," Diaz said.

Diaz didn't ask for the unification bout like his teammate Gilbert Melendez did. Diaz's teammate Jake Shields is fighting Georges St. Pierre for the UFC welterweight belt at the end of April. Though Diaz has said that he wants GSP, if Shields were to win, Diaz would be put in the awkward position of having to fight a teammate.

Daley is already in an awkward position, as he was released from his UFC contract for throwing a punch in his bout with Josh Koscheck. Now, with the UFC and Strikeforce having the same ownership, Daley's future is less sure. A win over Diaz could have strengthened it, but now he drops to 27-10-2.

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Melendez defends belt, makes case to be No. 1 lightweight

Gilbert Melendez held onto his Strikeforce lightweight championship belt with a dominating performance at Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley. Melendez quickly TKOed Kawajiri in San Diego on Saturday.

Melendez started aggressively in the first round, dropping Kawajiri with a right hook and then following up with a bevy of strikes. He took Kawajiri's back, and continued to land strikes even as Kawajiri struggled to his feet. When they returned to stand-up, Kawajiri, a noted wrestler, shot in for a takedown but Melendez sprawled, threw an upper cut and then followed up with strikes and elbows to finish the fight at 3:14 in the first round.

After he ran through Kawajiri, Melendez wanted to make it clear that he believes he's the best lightweight in the world, not UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar.

"I think it's time to unify some titles. I'm the No. 1 lightweight in the world. Let's get it done," Melendez said.

Melendez hadn't been in the cage for a year; his last win was over another Japanese fighter, Shinya Aoki. Melendez's record is now 19-2. Kawajiri, who faced numerous training difficulties because of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, was making his American debut. He fell to 27-7-2.

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