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.

Anderson Silva maintained his top spot in my top 10 middleweight rankings with his win on Saturday and it seems he has only one man that can truly pose a threat to his championship.

Here is a look at the top 10 in the 185-pound division in my eyes.

1. Anderson Silva (31-4) – Silva made Yushin Okami look like an amateur last Saturday and he has cemented himself as the best middleweight in UFC history. Next up for Silva will likely be a rematch of some kind, with either Chael Sonnen or Dan Henderson.

2. Chael Sonnen (25-11-1) – Sonnen hasn’t competed since pushing Silva to the limit last fall, but he is scheduled to face Brian Stann at UFC 136 in early October. Sonnen appears to be the lone hope to dethrone Silva someday, but the champion still managed to submit Sonnen despite an injured rib and 20 minutes of pummeling.

3. Vitor Belfort (20-9) – Belfort showed his explosive ability in his quick knockout of Yoshihiro Akiyama at UFC 133. He still may have the fastest hands in the division, but he missed his opportunity when he faced Silva back in February. A few more wins for Belfort may get him another crack at the title.

4. Yushin Okami (26-6) – Okami also had his chance, but couldn’t find a way to make his fight with Silva a grappling one. He seemed to passive and allowed Silva to get comfortable on his feet, and that is always a losing combination. Okami has to go back to the drawing board, and will likely need a long winning streak to get another title fight.

5. Michael Bisping (21-3) – Bisping is going to face off with Mayhem Miller later this year for a chance to propel himself into title contention. Bisping is still looking for a marquee win in his career and he hasn’t been terribly impressive since his TKO win over Denis Kang back at UFC 105 in 2009. Bisping needs an emphatic victory over Miller to really be considered a title contender.

6. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza (14-2) – The Strikeforce Middleweight Champion is set to return to action next week against Luke Rockhold, who is good competition in the Strikeforce organization, but not a great opponent on the world stage. Someday, with Strikeforce slowly merging into the UFC, I would expect Souza to compete in the elite organization someday.

7. Brian Stann (11-3) – Stann faces his toughest test to date when he squares off with Chael Sonnen at UFC 136. Stann has established himself as a feared striker in the division with respectable grappling skills. In this fight, he will need to have tremendous takedown defense to keep the relentless Sonnen from getting top position.

8. Mark Munoz (11-2) – Munoz will take on Chris Leben at UFC 138 in the highest-profile fight of his career. Munoz is a grinder that has some big punching power without the technique. His strength is his wrestling, but he will mix it up with anyone. He should probably stick to the wrestling in his bout with Leben.

9. Chris Leben (22-7) – Leben breaks into my top 10 list after his impressive KO of Wanderlei Silva at UFC 132. Leben clearly has the striking power to beat anyone on this list, but lacks the grappling skills and pure boxing technique to really become a top 5 contender. His bout with Munoz will test how far his grappling has come and show if he is ready to make a serious run at the title.

10. Alan Belcher (16-6) – Alan Belcher will make his return to action in a couple weeks after an eye injury sidelined him for more than a year. Belcher was on his way to becoming a title contender before getting hurt. When he returns on Sept. 17, he will face off with Jason MacDonald, another UFC veteran. The long layoff will be something Belcher has to overcome, but a win over the submission specialist will be a nice start for his return.

The first thought is, Wow! This guy is amazing.

But, then, you chew on the fight for a little while and you are left with this thought: What was Yushin Okami doing?

Coming into this fight I said all that stood in Okami’s way of winning this UFC Middlweight Championship fight was his aggression.

Sure enough, Okami played right into Silva’s hands. He didn’t pressure. He didn’t attempt a takedown. He didn’t get into a “fight” as Chael Sonnen would call it.

What part of standing around and letting Silva pick you apart did Okami think was going to help him win?

Even he had to know when Silva stood right in front of him with his hands down that he was screwed.

Sure enough, just moments later, Silva landed a big right counter that sent Okami down and then he finished him with ease from there.

If I am Okami, I am asking myself if I really did my best. I am wondering if that was the most I made of my title opportunity?

Why haven’t people realized that you can’t let Silva get comfortable? Sonnen gave everyone the blue print, but neither Vitor Belfort or Yushin Okami seemed to want any part of it.

There’s no doubt that Silva is the best fighter in the world. But, he has a pretty clear flaw that nobody seems ballsy enough to want to expose.

If the UFC wants an interesting fight, they will put Silva against Sonnen once again. But, Sonnen has to beat a tough opponent in Brian Stann first.

For Okami, he is probably going to be relegated to undercard fights after that showing.

In the co-main event on Saturday, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua knocked out Forrest Griffin in a big win for the former champ.

Antonio Minotauro Nogeuira also earned a big KO win over Brendan Schaub. But, I will get more into those tomorrow.

For now, here are the results for UFC 134.

UFC 134 Results

Saturday, Aug. 27

HSBC Arena – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Anderson Silva def. Yushin Okami via TKO (Strikes) Round 2

Mauricio Rua def. Forrest Griffin via TKO (Strikes) Round 1

Edson Barboza def. Ross Pearson via Split Decision

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira def. Brendan Schaub via TKO (Strikes) Round 1

Stanislav Nedkov def. Luiz Cane via TKO (Strikes) Round 1

Thiago Tavares def. Spencer Fisher via TKO (Strikes) Round 2

Rousimar Palhares def. Dan Miller via Unanimous Decision

Paulo Thiago def. David Mitchell via unanimous decision

Yves Jabouin def. Ian Loveland via split decision

Erick Silva def. Luis Ramos via knockout in round 1

Yuri Alcantara def. Felipe Arantes via unanimous decision

Raphael Assuncao def. Johnny Eduardo via unanimous decision

Here are my picks for tonight’s featured bouts.

UFC Middleweight Championship – Anderson Silva (28-4) vs. Yushin Okami (27-5) – Okami has the right skill set to actually pull off this upset, but he lacks the one thing that he truly needs to win …. aggression. Chael Sonnen had success against Silva by coming out fast and not letting Silva get settled in. If you watch Silva’s fights, he likes to take the first two minutes to dance around and develop a timing for his opponent. Once he has found it, he starts to dance a little and that is when the fight is usually over. Okami can’t let Silva get comfortable, but I fear he will. For that reason, I see Silva scoring a knockout in the second round.

Light Heavyweight Bout – Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (19-5) vs. Forrest Griffin (18-6) – Griffin won the first fight and I think he wins the second. I think this is a bad matchup for Rua because Griffin is a “dog” that will keep coming at him and push a pace that Shogun can’t handle. I see Rua tiring again in the middle of the fight, which will allow Griffin to control the fight on the ground and with his boxing. I pick Griffin by decision in an upset.

Heavyweight Bout – Antonio Minotauro Nogeuira (32-6-10 vs. Brendan Schaub (9-1) – I love the heart that Nogueira has, but I think his chin has taken a beating over the years and eventually Schaub will catch him with a knockout punch. Nogueira has the edge on the ground if the fight goes there, but he lacks the wrestling ability to takedown the likes of Schaub, who is a strong and burly heavyweight. I pick Schaub to win this fight by knockout in the first round.

UFC Lightweight Bout – Ross Pearson (14-4) vs. Edson Barboza (8-0) – Pearson is a tough fighter that likes to scrap, but it would be difficult to prepare for the type of leg kicks he will see against Barboza. After being hit with a few of those, it can completely throw a fighter off his game. For that reason, I see Barboza winning by decision as he will land the most effective strikes and control the pacing and style of the fight.

Light Heavyweight Bout – Luiz Cane (12-3) vs. Stanislav Nedkov (11-0) – Cane has been an all-or-nothing fighter as of late. His last three fights have ended in the first round, two of them saw him getting knocked out. In this fight, he takes on a fighter in Nedkov that can go to the ground and stay standing. If Cane can keep the fight standing, I think he can win, but he doesn’t have great technical skills, and I think that opens the door for Nedkov to get him to the ground and control him. I will take Nedkov to win his debut by decision in this one.

In the main event, UFC Middleweight Champion, Anderson Silva, received a hero’s welcome from the Brazilian fans as he weighed in at 184 pounds while his opponent, Yushin Okami, came in at 183 pounds.

The 183 pounds was somewhat surprising for Okami, who typically fights near 200 pounds come fight night.

Following the weigh in, the two had a mild stare down, but lacked intensity leading up to the fight.

In the co-main event, both Forrest Griffin and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua came in at exactly 205 pounds. The two also had a distant stare down where they didn’t get to close to each other. This fight is a rematch of an upset for Griffin back in 2007. Griffin was booed heavily by the crowd while Rua had the full support of the arena.

For complete weigh-in results from UFC 134, check out the jump.

UFC 134 Weigh-In Results

Saturday, Aug. 27

HSBC Arena, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Anderson Silva (184) vs. Yushin Okami (183)

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (205) vs. Forrest Griffin (205)

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (243) vs. Brendan Schaub (247)

Ross Pearson (155) vs. Edson Barboza (155)

Luiz Cane (204) vs. Stanislav Nedkov (203)

Thiago Tavares (156) vs. Spencer Fisher (156)

Rousimar Palhares (185) vs. Dan Miller (184)

Paulo Thiago (169) vs. David Mitchell (171)

Raphael Assuncao (134) vs. Johnny Eduardo (135)

Erick Silva (169) vs. Luis Ramos (171)

Yuri Alcantara (144) vs. Felipe Arantes (145)

Yves Jabouin (135) vs. Ian Loveland (135)

His numerous jabs, insults, and stereotypical comments about the host country of UFC 134 have apparently done a little more damage than he anticipated.

According to MMAJunkie.com, Sonnen will no longer be attending UFC 134 due to Brazil’s growing hatred for the former No. 1 contender in the UFC middleweight division. He was originally supposed to corner Yushin Okami in his title fight with Anderson Silva.

Sonnen said a major sponsor of Okami’s requested he not attend the pay-per-view event, which takes place Saturday at Rio’s HSBC Arena.

A source with knowledge of the situation told MMAJunkie.com that Praetorian, a Brazil-based MMA brand, threatened to pull the Japanese fighter’s sponsorship if Sonnen attended.

“There’s a line of people that want to kick his ass,” the source said.

And that could be the least of problems for the expert trash-talker. Sonnen said friends in the country forwarded him a local-media report in which a police chief threatened to arrest him on sight if he showed. The official cited a law that makes disparaging the national identity a crime.

“You don’t have freedom of speech in Brazil; put it like that,” Sonnen told MMAjunkie.com after a workout at Team Quest Tualatin.

It probably is for the best. I didn’t see Sonnen leaving Brazil without incident after his rants as of late.

The premiere MMA organization wants to put on the two best fights possible for its premiere on the broadcast network on Nov. 12, but reports from Tatame have the UFC setting up a possible rematch between Anderson Silva and Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion, Dan Henderson.

Problem is, Silva is fighting Yushin Okami this Saturday at UFC 134.

Anderson Silva will put his belt on the line this Saturday, but the organization is already thinking on his next title defense. According to sources close to the situation, the middleweight champion is in talks with the UFC to fight Dan Henderson at UFC’s first show on FOX, scheduled to November 12, in California.

Anderson, who already defeated the former Pride champion in his long UFC career, tapping him in a rear-naked choke at UFC 82, fights the highly underdog Yushin Okami this Saturday, at UFC Rio, while Henderson waits to define his future with the end of his contract with Strikeforce.

Sources also indicated that if Henderson didn’t agree to move down to middleweight months after a heavyweight showdown against Fedor Emelianenko, Chael Sonnen is the option to replace him against Silva.

Sonnen is set to fight Brian Stann at UFC 136, and if Henderson doesn’t take this fight, he’d be taken out to fight Anderson. Stann, on the other hand, would potentially fight Vitor Belfort.

While Silva is the clear favorite to win this Saturday, we have seen in the past that it is never smart to schedule a match before another one is completed.

One of the owners of Zuffa and the UFC, Lorenzo Ferttita, also made these comments on the matter of the first FOX show.

We don’t have a main event set yet, we’ll find out probably after this Saturday, these fights in Rio, then we’ll set a main event. But it’ll be something big. It’ll be a big fight… I would love to do that. Anderson just needs a win.

While Henderson vs. Silva would be a big fight, as Henderson did well in the first round against “The Spider” before getting choked out in the second round, does “Hendo” really deserve an immediate middleweight title shot?

Henderson was handled by Jake Shields in his Strikeforce debut and then beat Renato Sobral, Rafael Cavalcante, and Fedor Emelianenko.

The win over Fedor was big for Henderson, but is it big enough to get an immediate match with Silva?

If anything, I would like to see Sonnen-Silva II. Sonnen was the only man to take Silva to the limit in the UFC and was the only guy that truly seemed to have his number.

But, no matter what I would like to see, Yushin Okami can ruin all of these plans on Saturday. Will the UFC actually be rooting against him to win?

Okami is actually the last man to beat Silva, as he won by DQ over “The Spider” back in 2006 as part of Rumble on the Rock. Silva threw an illegal upkick that forced Okami to stop fighting.

Here is a look at both fighters, more than five years since their last meeting.

Anderson Silva (30-4) – Widely considered the best single fighter in the world in any weight class, Silva is the most lethal striker in all of MMA. Both of his hands and feet have one-strike KO power and he also has a jiu-jitsu black belt under the Nogeuira brothers. Silva is on a 14-fight win streak and is coming off an impressive KO of Vitor Belfort at UFC 126. Silva seems unbeatable, but his one weakness appears to be wrestling, where Okami is at his strongest.

Yushin Okami (26-5) – “Thunder” has had a long road to a title fight, as this is his 12^th fight in the octagon. Since a tough decision loss to Chael Sonnen, Okami has won three straight, including decision wins over Nate Marquardt and Mark Munoz. Like Sonnen, Okami is a grinder that fights a very ugly style. He likes to clinch and grapple, using his strength to keep his opponent from going on the attack. If Okami can get the fight to the ground, he can win. If the fight remains on the feet, I don’t see him coming out on the winning end.

Who Will Win – It’s hard to see any scenario where Silva doesn’t win, but Okami does have the style that has given Silva the most problems. Sonnen, Dan Henderson, and Travis Lutter were all able to score takedowns on Silva. Sonnen has some very strong wrestling skills, but he isn’t an aggressive fighter. He must be aggressive early and not allow Silva to find his flow. Eventually, I see Silva getting a KO in the second round against Okami, as Silva is just too fast for Okami to get his hands on.

Despite never having won a championship, he has prominently been in the title picture for nearly four years now.

Marquardt has a great all-around game, but “The Great” has never been able to come through with the big victory to send him over the top.

As he gets set to return to action on Sunday in his 170-pound debut against Rick Story, I thought I would look at the three biggest wins and losses in his lengthy career.

High – KO win over Demian Maia at UFC 102 – In what was billed as a No. 1 contender’s match in the UFC middleweight division, Marquardt and Maia faced off. It didn’t last long though, as Marquardt recorded a one-punch KO of Maia in just 21 seconds. It was the most devastating finish of his career and one that seemed to have him on track for his second title shot.

Low – Decision loss to Chael Sonnen at UFC 109 – Following the win over Maia, Sonnen was then placed in front of Marquardt and the two had a war, but Marquardt wasn’t able to stay off his back, which is normally a strength for him. Sonnen dictated the location and pace of the fight, which set Marquardt back once again.

High – Submission win over Jeremy Horn at UFC 81 – Fresh off a title loss to Anderson Silva, Marquardt needed to get back on track and he did by getting an impressive submission win over submission specialist, Jeremy Horn. Marquardt bullied Horn in the first round and then got a standing guillotine that left Horn with no choice but to tap out. The win showed that Marquardt is a solid all-around fighter.

Low – Split decision loss to Thales Leites at UFC 85 – Leave it to Marquardt to take a big win and follow it up with perhaps the worst loss of his career. After submitting Horn, Marquardt then faced off with Thales Leites, an average fighter at best. Marquardt seemed to be miles ahead of Leites when watching the fight, but suffered two point deductions in the contest, which eventually led him to suffer a split decision loss and helped Leites get on track to a title fight.

High – TKO win over Rousimar Palhares at UFC Fight Night 22 – After the loss to Sonnen, Marquardt came back and easily beat submission specialist, Rousimar Palhares. The fight went to the ground early and Palhares attempted a leg lock that Marquardt quickly slipped out of. While Palhares complained of “greasing,” Marquardt pounced and knocked him out. Marquardt was cleared of any of the greasing claims and seemed to be on track for another winning streak.

Low – Unanimous decision loss to Yushin Okami at UFC 122 – A title fight was again at stake for Marquardt, but another letdown took place. He was controlled by Yushin Okami, who proved to be the stronger fighters in the contest. Marquardt struggled to use his striking and just looked to tentative for the fight. This loss would eventually lead Marquardt to make his next big decision and move to welterweight.

How will this move down go? Will he still have the strength and conditioning he had at 185 pounds, or will he be a step too slow for the 170-pound pool. He already holds a dominant win over the likes of Martin Kampmann, but he will be tested by Rick Story, who likes to bully his opponents. Marquardt could be a real threat to teammate Georges St. Pierre, but he needs the killer instinct to really become “The Great” that his nickname entails.

The 185-pound weight class had some interesting developments over the last few months as Chael Sonnen has had his return to the UFC pushed back and one of the top fighters, Nate Marquardt, is moving down to 170 pounds.

Nonetheless, here is what the top 10 in this weight class looks like.

1. Anderson Silva (28-4) – Silva is not only No. 1 on this list, but also on my pound-for-pound list. I think he has a tough test ahead of him in Yushin Okami at UFC 134, as Silva has shown a weakness against big wrestlers. Still, many of Silva’s opponents show him too much respect, which plays right into his hands.

2. Yushin Okami (26-5) – I am moving Okami up to number two because Sonnen’s future is in question and he seems to be losing steam with each passing day. Okami has beaten many of the best in the UFC, but he now has a chance to face the very best in Silva. Okami is a grinder, and that is what will be the most dangerous opponent for Silva to face.

3. Chael Sonnen (25-11-1) – Sonnen has a good skill set, but his mouth and his poor choices have caused him to have a questionable future. Despite the fact that he pushed Silva to his limit, Sonnen still was unable to come through with a win. Sonnen has a clear weakness against submission specialists, but he has easily handled some of the top fighters in this division.

4. Vitor Belfort (19-9) – Still with some of the very fastest hands in all of MMA, Belfort is dangerous for anyone. He looks to rebound from his KO loss to Silva by taking on Yoshihiro Akiyama at UFC 133. An impressive win over Akiyama could put Belfort on the fast track to another title fight.

5. Wanderlei Silva (33-10-1) – The Axe Murderer ends his long layoff by taking on Chris Leben at UFC 132. Silva is still a fan favorite and a big favorite of UFC President Dana White. His willingness to get into wars in the cage makes him dangerous for any opponent, but it has also led to him having a weak chin over recent fights. He will need a strong chin against Leben in order to win.

6. Michael Bisping (21-3) – Bisping will once again be in the spotlight when he makes his second coaching appearance on The Ultimate Fighter for season 14 opposite Jason Miller. Bisping can move into the top 5 in the division if he is victorious when the two meet in the live season finale.

7. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza (14-2) – The Strikeforce Middleweight Champion is set to return to action in September, but it will be against Luke Rockhold, a relative unknown in the MMA world. Souza looks to have the skills to compete with the best in the world, but hasn’t had to opportunity to show it as of yet. Perhaps he will be next in line to make the jump to the UFC.

8. Brian Stann (11-3) – Brian Stann makes his first appearance on this list thanks to his KO of Jorge Santiago last month. Stann is proving that he can go toe-to-toe with almost anyone in the division and come out on top. It will be interesting to see what is next for Stann, who deserves a chance to get into the top-5 picture of the UFC.

9. Mark Munoz (11-2) – Munoz also makes his first appearance on my rankings list as he is coming off a win over former top-10 middleweight, Demian Maia. While the decision was somewhat disputed, Munoz certainly didn’t disappoint in his effort. He has great heart and a tremendous wrestling base. He struggled at times with his striking against Maia, but he still overcame that to pull out a tough win.

10. Alan Belcher (16-6) – Alan Belcher will make his return to action this fall in the Bayou, which will be a nice shot in the arm for the UFC middleweight division, which is in need of some new contenders. Belcher was climbing his way up the 185-pound ladder before suffering a near career-ending eye injury. Hopefully Belcher get back to where he left off when he takes on Jason MacDonald.