Bantamweight: Renan Barao
I can honestly say that I was one of the biggest doubters of Renan Barao coming into UFC 143 on Saturday. I simply believed that he had too much hype behind him, considering his only notable win was over Brad Pickett.
That said, his dominating performance over Scott Jorgensen proved me wrong. Although not officially announced by the UFC, I believe that Renan Barao has earned himself the title as the "Number One Contender" in the bantamweight division.
Barao has very good striking that compliments a top-notch ground game. His choke holds remind one of an anaconda choking the life out of its prey.
His skills rival any of the top in the division—even those of Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber.
Time will tell if he is in line for the winner of Cruz-Faber.