Jon Fitch Retains #2 Welterweight Spot Despite Tough Loss at UFC 87;

Josh Barnett Overtakes Randy Couture for #2 Heavyweight Contender

http://GoWamma.com/Rankings.asp

Orlando, Fla.—John Fitch retained his #2 position in the WAMMA Welterweight division despite a tough loss to #1 WAMMA Welterweight and UFC® Welterweight Champ Georges St. Pierre at UFC 87 earlier this month. And heavyweight contender Josh Barnett has overtaken Randy Couture for the #2 WAMMA Heavyweight ranking as he prepares to take on WAMMA #5 Andrei Arlovski at Affliction: Day of Reckoning in October. This according to the latest WAMMA Rankings – released Friday – in the top six weight classes (http://GoWamma.com/Rankings.asp).

“John Fitch showed tremendous heart and determination in a very tough fight against GSP,” said WAMMA COO Mike Lynch. “Despite the loss, it’s still clear to our ranking committee that he’s the second best Welterweight in the world. Josh Barnett, on the other hand, has had an impressive streak of good fights, with three decisive victories in just the last six months. I think that had a big impact in his overtaking Randy Couture.”

The WAMMA Ranking Committee is comprised of over twenty of the most knowledgeable and respected names in the MMA media community. Chaired by veteran sportswriter Sam Caplan, the publisher of FiveOuncesOfPain.com and a contributing writer for CBSSports.com, the committee releases rankings on the 15th of every month.

Heavyweight

WAMMA Undisputed Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko remains the cream of the heavyweight crop. The WAMMA #1 contender for his title is interim UFC® Heavyweight Champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. Following Nogueira is Josh Barnett, who has overtaken Randy Couture for the WAMMA #2 ranking. Couture comes in #3. Andrei Arlovski follows at #4. He’s slated to take on WAMMA #2 Josh Barnett at Affliction: Day of Reckoning on October 11, 2008 at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas. Rounding out the top five is Tim Sylvia.

Light Heavyweight

The Light Heavyweight division is static at the top. The WAMMA #1 Light Heavyweight remains UFC® Light Heavyweight Champ Forrest Griffin, followed at #2 by Quinton Jackson and #3 Chuck Liddell. Lyoto Machida comes in as WAMMA’s #4 ranked Light Heavyweight, followed by Wanderlei Silva at #5.

Middleweight

Longtime UFC® Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva remains the #1 WAMMA ranked Middleweight in the world. WEC™ Middleweight Champion Paulo Filho comes in #2, followed by Rich Franklin at #3. Rounding out the top five are Dan Henderson at #4 and Robbie Lawler at #5.

Welterweight

Georges St. Pierre retained his UFC® Welterweight title and the WAMMA Welterweight #1 ranking with a decisive victory over WAMMA #2 Jon Fitch at UFC 87. Fitch kept his #2 WAMMA ranking despite the loss, with first ever Elite XC® Welterweight Champion Jake Shields coming in at #3. Thiago Alves and Josh Koscheck round out the top five, respectively.

Lightweight

UFC® Lightweight Champ B.J. Penn stayed at #1 in the WAMMA Lightweight Rankings. Following is World Victory Road fighter Takanori Gomi at #2. Shinya Aoki comes in at #3, followed by Sean Sherk at #4 and Gesias Calvancante at #5.

Featherweight

WEC™ Featherweight Champion Urijah Faber retained his #1 WAMMA Featherweight spot this month. Norifumi Yamamoto stayed at #2, with Masakazu Imanari coming in at #3. Rounding out the top five were Akitoshi Tamura at #4 and Mike Thomas Brown at #5.

WAMMA is a multifaceted fighter and fan forward organization dedicated to leading the sport of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) to unprecedented levels of integrity, legitimacy and prosperity. With the help of forward-looking MMA promotions, WAMMA has created an environment where fighters from all organizations have the opportunity to openly compete to be the one true, undisputed champion in their respective weight classes based on WAMMA’s objective MMA Rankings. WAMMA’s newly created Fighter Advisory Board, co-chaired by MMA legend Randy “The Natural” Couture and world renowned trainer and five-time UFC champion Pat Miletich, will offer a unique resource for fighters.