Vitaly Minakov
He may not be the second coming of Fedor Emelianenko, but 29-year-old Russian Vitaly Minakov has proven that is one of the best heavyweights not in the UFC. The Bellator heavyweight champion has an MMA record of 14-0, and has victories over Eddie Sanchez, Fabricio Scherner and Cheikh Kongo.
There have been questions from some sections over the MMA community about how he would fare against top level fighters. However, with former Strikeforce boss Scott Coker at the helm of Bellator operations, those doubters may just see Minakov go toe to toe with top fighters in the near future.