Last night at UFC Fight Night 28, Ronaldo Souza was able to pick up an impressive win over Yushin Okami in the middleweight division. That victory established Souza as a legit contender in the division, as he was able to beat the “gate keeper” of the division in Okami.

The “gate keeper” is a fighter that is good enough to be one of the top fighters in the division, but not good enough to beat the elite few on top. They will likely never be a champion, but they will never be without an important fight or spot within the UFC. Here are who I see as the gate keepers in the UFC.

Flyweight – Ian McCall: McCall is a great flyweight, but already has proven that he can’t compete with the likes of Demetrious Johnson and Joseph Benavidez. He just doesn’t have the skills to break into the top.

Bantamweight – Urijah Faber: Faber is a tremendous talent, but he was clearly outclassed by Renan Barao and lost his last fight with Dominick Cruz. Faber is just a step to slow to earn the title.

Featherweight – Dustin Poirier: “The Diamond” is a great fighter, but he hasn’t been able to get the job done in his toughest fights. He will always be in discussion as a top-5 featherweight, but not able to get any higher.

Lightweight – Jim Miller: Miller has tremendous heart and wrestling ability, but he can’t quite get to the mountain top. If a contender isn’t cut for the elite status, Miller will prove it.

Welterweight – Jake Ellenberger: Ellenberger seemed primed for a title shot with a win over Rory MacDonald, but he failed to take his talents to that next level. He can beat most of the division, but not the very best.

Middleweight – Yushin Okami: As said previously, Okami is a tough guy to get past, but if you can, it puts you in the 185-pound title picture.

Light Heavyweight – Antonio Rogerio Nogueira: Lil Nog is a talented fighter, but doesn’t really show anything to make you feel like he could actually be the 205-pound champion. He has some big wins, but some bad losses. If someone is going to be a champ in this division, they have to get through him.

Heavyweight – Antonio Silva: Silva proved he can’t be the champion of this division, getting hammered by Cain Velasquez on two occasions now. However, he owns wins over guys like Fedor and Alistair Overeem. Silva is no easy victory, but he doesn’t have the total package to be champ.

It has been a while since I have posted on here, but I am back with weekly looks at MMA, mainly the UFC.

So, here is a look at what we learned this week.

– Nate Diaz may be an unsolvable problem for 155 pounders – Nate Diaz looked more than impressive against Jim Miller in the UFC on FOX 3 main event on Saturday. Miller had the kind of style that I expected to give Diaz some trouble, but he ran right through him. Diaz’ long reach has really been a problem for his opponents and he seems to be a vastly improved fighter since moving back from welterweight to lightweight. Miller was one of the top fighters in the division and Diaz made him look like a first timer. Diaz could legitimately become the UFC champion as I don’t know that a Benson Henderson or Frankie Edgar will be able to outwork him or deal with his jabs.

– Where does Josh Koscheck go from here? – Certainly it would be hard to say that Josh Koscheck was dominated by Johny Hendricks and you could maybe make the argument that he beat Hendricks on Saturday. Regardless, Koscheck certainly didn’t dominate Hendricks either. Koscheck seems to have become a fighter that refuses to go back to his roots when needed. He is one of the top wrestlers, and perhaps most explosive wrestler, in the 170 pound division. Koscheck is relying on his big swings and limited striking to try and win fights, even when it is clear he is not winning. Koscheck has only been out-wrestled one time in his career, and that was by Georges St. Pierre. In a fight like Saturday’s, I would have liked to see him take Hendricks down and work his ground striking as opposed to hoping for a knockout punch. Now Koscheck is lost in the welterweight division and not capable, in my mind, to make a run at middleweight. He needs to reinvent himself if he hopes to ever win UFC gold.

– Where would Alan Belcher be if he never got injures? – Belcher had about as good of a performance as Diaz, as he stopped Rousimar Palhares in the first round with some vicious ground and pound. Belcher was on a nice run in the UFC prior to an eye injury that nearly ended his career and sidelined him for over a year. Since his return, Belcher has first round finishes of Jason MacDonald and Palhares and he has won four straight overall. The middleweight division has quickly become very competitive with the addition of Hector Lombard. With Chael Sonnen, Brian Stann, Mark Munoz, and Michael Bisping all in the mix, Belcher should be right there with them.

UFC on Versus 5 took place Sunday night and the fights were as exciting as advertised.

The big winners on the night were Chris Lytle and Ben Henderson.

Lytle defeated Dan Hardy in the main event with a guillotine choke late in round 3. Lytle announced on Saturday night that he would be retiring win or lose after the contest and he shared a nice moment with his kids after the victory.

The fight was a slugfest as we expected, with Lytle doing a good job of working the body and Hardy landing some nice crosses. Surprisingly, neither man crashed to the ground and lasted nearly the whole fight before a big uppercut to the ribs forced Hardy to shoot on Lytle. Not having much wrestling experience, Hardy left his neck open for Lylte, who secured a very tight choke and got Hardy to tap with just 44 seconds left in the contest.

Lytle finished at 31-18-5 in his career and won five of his last six. He also secured Fight of the Night and Submission of the Night honors, a cool $130,000 in bonuses.

Hardy has now lost his last four in the UFC, but Dana White announced that Hardy will not be cut. Still, the colorful fighter seemed crushed by yet another loss.

In the co-main event, Jim Miller was unseated as the No. 1 contender in the lightweight division by Ben Henderson. Henderson put on the best performance of his career in dominating Miller for 15 minutes to earn a decision victory.

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UFC on Versus 5 takes place this Sunday night and the main card has five very interesting bouts. Here are my picks for the contest.

UFC Welterweight Bout – Dan Hardy (23-9) vs. Chris Lytle (40-18-4) – Hardy and Lytle should put on quite a show. Both men like to slug it out and give something exciting for the fans. However, once this fight gets heated, I expect some grappling to take place. Lytle has a clear edge in that category, which is why I like him to win by decision. Lytle can take a punch, while Hardy can’t stop a takedown.

UFC Lightweight Bout – Jim Miller (20-2) vs. Ben Henderson (13-2) – This should be a great fight. Miller is on the verge of earning a lightweight title shot while Henderson is a former WEC champ. This should be primarily a grappling exhibition, and I think Miller is just a little bit better than Henderson in that department. I could see Henderson sneaking in a choke, but ultimately, my pick goes with Miller by decision in a great contest.

UFC Lightweight Bout – Charles Oliveira (14-1) vs. Donald Cerrone (15-3) – This should be another great fight. Both men are tremendous grapplers. The key in this contest will be striking. Oliveira thinks he has some good striking, which is never a good thing for a grappler. If he attempts to exchange with Cerrone, “The Cowboy” will pick him apart. Cerrone may not have knockout power, but he will be able to control the fight. I see Cerrone winning this fight by decision thanks to his boxing and ability to stay out of submissions.

UFC Welterweight Bout – Amir Sadollah (6-2) vs. Duane Ludwig (28-11) – Sadollah is a great grappler and has good muay thai striking, but Ludwig has one-punch power. I think Sadollah will ultimately win by submission, but he has to avoid that early surge from Ludwig. After the early surge, Sadollah should be able to push a pace that Ludwig can’t keep up with. I see Sadollah winning by choke in the third round.

Like a typical UFC on Versus card, the weigh-in results didn’t exactly go on as planned.

But, this time around, it wasn’t a catastrophic mess like the Nate Marquardt situation.

Main event contender Dan Hardy failed to make weight the first time for his bout with Chris Lytle for Sunday’s card. Hardy originally weighed in at 171.5 pounds, but was able to weigh in at 170 pounds with a little extra time, making his contest with Lytle official and the main event of UFC on Versus 5.

In the co-main event, lightweight contenders Jim Miller and Ben Henderson both came in on weight. Henderson weighed 156 pounds while Miller was at 155.5. Henderson had to strip down to his birthday suit to hit his mark. Miller is looking to secure a lightweight title shot with a win.

In another intriguing lightweight contest, Donald Cerrone (156) and Charles Oliveira (155) both came in on weight. The two had an intense stare down while UFC broadcaster, Joe Rogan, proclaimed the fight to be one of the best in the century.

For complete UFC on Versus 5 weigh-in results, check out the jump.

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