<b>9. Gilbert Melendez:</b> The Strikeforce lightweight champion should be making his final appearance in the promotion in December with a title defense against Jorge Masvidal. A jump to the UFC is likely with a win over the durable Masvidal.

<b>8. Nick Diaz:</b> The Stockton bad boy gets his title shot in February.

<b>7. Dan Henderson:</b> Henderson may just be surpassing his old friend Randy Couture in terms of late-career glories. His win over Shogun Rua marked his entrance back into the UFC and earned him a title shot against Anderson Silva. If we were betting men, we’d say Henderson chooses to face Jones next, setting up a truly intriguing fight for 2012.

<b>6. Dominick Cruz:</b> Cruz once again has a dance partner, and it’s a familiar one: Urijah Faber earned another title shot by destroying Brian Bowles at UFC 139. The pair are expected to coach the next season of The Ultimate Fighter.

<b>5. Frankie Edgar:</b> Edgar faces off against surging former WEC lightweight champion Ben Henderson in the main event of the UFC’s trip to Japan’s Saitama Super Arena in February. Henderson presents a stiff challenge to any lightweight in the division, and Edgar is no exception, but the champ is banking on his speed and technique to overcome Henderson.

<b>4. Jose Aldo:</b> Aldo defends his featherweight title in his home country when he faces Chad Mendes in Rio de Janeiro in January.

<b>3. Georges St-Pierre:</b> St-Pierre gets Nick Diaz, finally, on Super Bowl weekend in February.

<b>2. Jon Jones:</b> Jones returns to the cage for the fourth time in 2011 in just over two weeks when he faces Lyoto Machida at UFC 140 in Toronto. The bout matches up two of the UFC’s smartest in-cage competitors, a true dream fight for hardcore fans of the sport.

<b>1. Anderson Silva:</b> Silva’s ailments will keep him on the shelf until a June return, when he’s expected to face Chael Sonnen in Sao Paolo, Brazil. The fight will be one of the UFC’s biggest in 2012 and could easily sell out a soccer stadium in Brazil. The only real question? What kind of security will surround Sonnen during fight week in a country he’s constantly bashed for over two years.