Sonnen-Stann winner not guaranteed UFC title shot, Henderson could make bid with win

Sonnen/Stann winner		48%	(15)
Hendo if he wins		19%	(6)
Leben/Munoz winner		0%	(0)
Neither, he should fight GSP		6%	(2)
Neither, he should fight Jon Jones		10%	(3)
Other		16%	(5)

While this weekend's UFC 136 event is headlined by a pair of title fights, the middleweight contest between Chael Sonnen (25-11-1 MMA, 5-4 UFC) and Brian Stann (11-3 MMA, 5-2 UFC) is also rife with championship implications.

However, the winner won't necessarily book a future date with 185-pound kingpin Anderson Silva (31-4 MMA, 14-0 UFC).

Recent Strikeforce import Dan Henderson (28-8 MMA, 5-2 UFC) meets Mauricio "Shogun" Rua (20-5 MMA, 4-3 UFC) in November, and UFC president Dana White said a win could rush him to the front of the line.

"Should Dan win, he's definitely one of the guys that could go take that fight," White said today following a UFC 136 pre-event press conference.

The move would seem a slight departure from White's August claims that the winner of the Sonnen-Stann matchup "should be" in line to meet Silva. But White said that his position hasn't necessarily changed. There are just more options available with Henderson's arrival.

"I'm not even thinking about [Silva's next opponent] yet," White told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). "We'll figure it out after. But I still feel that way."

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I think the winner of Leben/Munoz should fight the loser of Henderson vs Anderson if it happens. How awesome would a slugfest between Henderson and Leben be? Or a fight between Munoz and Hendo would be sweet too they kind of have similar styles I think at least. Then if it's Anderson Leben gets a rematch or Munoz gets a huge name and the former champ to solidify his shot at the title

How does Hendo fit into the equation when he has been fighting at 205 and is fighting Shogun at 205, then gets a shot at 185.

Foolproof logic.


Here's how I see it.

Stann wins he gets the shot.
Sonnen wins, then I don't think he should get the shot after 1 fight.
So then winner of Munoz/Leben gets it(if sonnen beats stann)
Hendo, doesn't fit in as he's been fighting at LHW.

Personally.... (my british opinion)

In order of most deserving

1st Stann Sonnen winner, both provide a solid case for a title shot.
2nd Mark Munoz should he not get past Leben he should be nowhere near a title shot.
3rd Bisping/Mayhem winner
4th Tim Boetsch
5th Fitch/Koscheck/Shields any WW Wrestler who promises to only wrestle Silva should they get a title shot
5th Vitor Belfort/Cung Le
6th Maia/Santiago winner
7th Chris Weidman

I haven't included Henderson on purpose as I don't think he should cut weight for any real reason

i voted hendo bc i want to see him fight anderson at 205

Stann will get the title shot if he wins, but i dont see it happening. Sonnen imo will beat Stann and will fight once more before earning a shot at Silva. the money and interest is there in that rematch. Hendo technically was screwed of his title shot after KOing Bisping. a Hendo vs Silva II fight in Japan isnt that unlikely. Munoz and Leben both need at least 1 more win, as does Vitor and Bisping.

i kinda like this scenario:

Munoz/Leben winner vs Belfort
Sonnen (if he wins) vs Bisping/Mayhem winner
Hendo (if he beats Rua) vs Anderson....but at 205

I just want to see Sonnen fight Silva. That way the Spider can show all the haters that their first fight was a fluke.

After Silva crushes Sonnen inside of one round, we can all stop hearing about how he "almost" beat Anderson.

I think everyone is forgetting the current trend of merging SF. Give him Rockhold to unify the titles and get a fight we haven't seen yet. Stann would be new, but his striking has so many holes that he would be DOA (and if I can see blatant holes in striking, then it's really bad since I don't know dick). Rockhold may even be competitive for a few rounds and he might open up with his weird kicks against Silva, which would prompt a KO counter from Silva, but still interesting.