Who was the 2013 Fighter of the Year? (Poll)

[Cammo101]

Back again for year 4.

[Cammo101]

Previous winners...

2012 - Benson Henderson (3-0: Edgar, Edgar, Diaz)
2011 - Jon Jones (4-0: Machida, Rampage, Shogun, Bader)
2010 - Cain Velasquez

[blkout]

Here's the division rankings (according to Fight Matrix) of the guys at the time they fought.

Chris Weidman:

Anderson Silva - #2
Anderson Silva - Champion

Cain Velasquez:

Junior Dos Santos - #2
Antonio Silva - #4

Vitor Belfort:

Dan Henderson - #8 (LHW)
Luke Rockhold - #4
Michael Bisping - #8

Demetrious Johnson:

Joseph Benavidez - #2
John Moraga - #5
John Dodson - #5

Urijah Hall:

Michael McDonald - #5
Iuri Alcantara - #10
Scott Jorgensen - #27
Ivan Menjivar - #51

[Nemesis21]

DJ

[skflives]

I voted for Demetrious Johnson. I can't vote for Belfort because I don't think he's clean.

[Gregoire]

Jones and Cain

[CPT]

Glad to see DJ getting some love. Voted for him thinking nobody else would, but he's winning.

A lot of this depends on schedule more than anything. If you get to take a fight early in the year, you have a shot at 3 fights (as a champ) or 4 as a contender.

It's hard to give it to a guy who only fought twice, even if he's fighting tougher competition. That's how I see it anyway.

Although if you look back at this year and think about the fighter who defined it, it may well be Chris Weidman.

Was an easier choice in years past.

[NZB2323]

I voted for Weidman.

Anderson Silva was on a 17 fight winning streak, and would have been 20 if he didn't illegally kick Yushin Okami. Some people expected Weidman to win by using his wrestling ala Chael Sonnen, but no one expected him to finish Anderson Silva twice, by out-striking him twice. Both times Weidman used superior striking technique and timing.

I think what he did is more impressive than what Jon Jones did in 2011.

[skflives]

To be honest, I find it hard to judge Weidman. Fair or not in the first Anderson got caught because he wasn't taking the fight seriously. That isn't Weidman's fault and he gets credit for taking advantage of the situation but Silva wasn't dialed in. The first round of the rematch seemed to have gone Weidman's way again but its hard to say definitively that he would have won the fight had it not been for Silva's horrific injury. In his fight with Sonnen we've seen Silva get wrestle forked for the whole fight before pulling off a win at the end. While Weidman has the submission skills to have avoided that outcome someone with Silva's stature deserves the benefit of the doubt until proven otherwise.

[cowboyronnie]

Yeah, DJ's got to be the choice. How strange.

You can't be voting for Weidman, dumdums, he beat one guy. You couldn't even say that he's put his stamp on the division. I mean, Vitrt might well have his way with this CW.

[NZB2323]

Weidman out struck Anderson Silva twice. If someone told you in 2012 that Anderson Silva got out struck by the same guy twice, what would your reaction be? I'm guessing it would be greater than hearing that someone beat Benavidez, Morga, and Dodson.

[Bernman]

I'm not a nutcase who discredits either of Weidman's wins. He proved beyond a reasonable doubt that he's better than Anderson Silva. But it was a 38-year old Anderson Silva. And that's the only guy Weidman proved he was better than this year. Therefore, I'm hard pressed to give him the nod.

But I won't give it to DJ either. To his credit he proved he was better than 3 different opponents, and as champ, however it was of a division that is in its fledgling stages. It's hard to rate those wins, outside Joe B, who was also a contender in a developed bw division. 1 of his defenses came against John Moraga. That reinforces how weak the division was.

I gotta go with TRTor. He beat 3 good, established fighters, and made it look easy.

[cowboyronnie]

Weidman out struck Anderson Silva twice. If someone told you in 2012 that Anderson Silva got out struck by the same guy twice, what would your reaction be? I'm guessing it would be greater than hearing that someone beat Benavidez, Morga, and Dodson.

Silly standard. There are lots of things more immediately affecting than DJ establishing his dominance over three fights, that doesn't make those things credit towards FighterOTY. Weidman beating Silva is a bigger story not a bigger display of dominant fighting.

[blkout]

I gotta go with TRTor. He beat 3 good, established fighters, and made it look easy.

That's where I'm leaning too, and for the same reason. He destroyed three legit guys, only one of them made it out of the first round. I guess you could argue that Hendo's done but no one had ever KO'd him before Vitor.

[Cammo101]

I gotta go with TRTor. He beat 3 good, established fighters, and made it look easy.

That's where I'm leaning too, and for the same reason. He destroyed three legit guys, only one of them made it out of the first round. I guess you could argue that Hendo's done but no one had ever KO'd him before Vitor.

What Bern said is pretty much exactly why I voted Vitor. Had Weidman won clean over Silva the second time, I'd have given him the nod.

DJ is an amazing fighter, but being top 5 at flyweight is not the same as being top 5 at welterweight or middleweight.

[singh_shady]

DJ pretty easily. Then Vitor and I guess Cain. I would put Jon Jones on this list over Weidman or Uriah