Jose Aldo retained his UFC Featherweight title, Rashad Evans and Chael Sonnen earned title shots, Luke Rockhold retained the Strikeforce Middleweight title and more! But who won fighter of the month for January? The 411 staff takes a look!

How It Works
& Each staff member picks five fighters and ranks them. I'll assign a point value to those rankings. Points are determined as:

1st - 5
& 2nd - 4
& 3rd - 3
& 4th - 2
& 5th - 1

The fighter with the most points is our Fighter of the Month and then new points are assigned that will go towards Fighter of the Year. Those points are:

1st - 15
& 2nd - 12
& 3rd - 9
& 4th - 6
& 5th - 3
& 6th – 1

The Voting
Larry Csonka
& 1) Jose Aldo:
& For a long time all I have heard from people was, "I want the old Joe Aldo back I want the guy from the WEC that killed his opponents." But many thought that guy was gone, and as Mendes was impressive going undefeated, people started to pick against Aldo. Well, the real Jose Aldo was back as he took out Mendes, via RD 1 TKO at UFC 142. Who can stop Jose Aldo kids? It sure the hell wasn't Chad Mendes…

2) Rashad Evans: Rashad Evans cruised to a decision victory over the previously undefeated Phil Davis. Evans keeps his status as the top LHW contender, and has again earned a title shot. Hopefully no injuries are involved, because Evans vs. Jones has all the makings of a big money fight.
& 3) Chael Sonnen: Defeated Michael Bisping to earn a rematch against UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva. That's a big money rematch.
& 4) Luke Rockhold: Defeated Keith Jardine via RD 1 TKO to retain the Strikeforce Middleweight Title.
& 5) Jim Miller: Submitted Melvin Guillard with ease in the main event of UFC on FX 1.

Robert Winfree
& 1) Jose Aldo:
& Heading into his title defense for the first time in a long time people were picking against Jose Aldo. For whatever reason there was genuine belief that Chad Mendes could beat the featherweight kingpin with his great wrestling and seemingly endless motor. Jose Aldo put those thoughts to rest with outstanding takedown defense and a huge knee that KO'd the challenger in the final second of the round. He followed that up by sprinting into the crowd and giving us one of the best non-fight moments in UFC history.

2) Rashad Evans: Rashad earned a unanimous, if boring, decision victory over Phil Davis and secured a shot at Jon Jones in Atlanta.
& 3) Luke Rockhold: Successfully defended his middleweight championship against Keith Jardine, stopping the former UFC fighter in the first round.
& 4) Chael Sonnen: Didn't have a great fight against Bisping, but the judges thought he won and so he gets his rematch with Anderson Silva later this year.
& 5) Jim Miller: Reminded us all that he's still one of the best lightweight fighters in the world when he choked out Melvin Guillard on FX.

Wyatt Beougher
& 1) Jose Aldo:
& I was one of those people who picked against Jose Aldo, and man, did he ever prove me wrong. I thought Mendes would have the wrestling chops to grind out a decision on a champion who had only gone to decision since making the transition from WEC to UFC. Instead, Aldo proved that he was every bit as dangerous in the Octagon, stuffing Mendes' takedowns and then timing a knee perfectly when Mendes shot in at the end of the first round. He followed it up with a celebration that make him look like a bona fide star and can only help his stock in the UFC as they continue their international expansion.

2) Luke Rockhold: Sure, a win over Keith Jardine in 2012 isn't as impressive as it once was, but many still considered Rockhold to be a fluke champion, so shocking was his upset of Jacare. Now, with a dominant title defense under his belt, Rockhold has proven that he belongs at the top of Strikeforce's middleweight division.
& 3) Rashad Evans: Evans has proven that any time there's a title shot on the line and he runs his mouth before the fight, he's going to come out and fight the safest, most boring fight possible. That's not going to work against Jon Jones, but it gets him third on my FOTM list.
& 4) Chael Sonnen: Even though I thought Sonnen lost the fight on my initial viewing, after re-watching it, I can see why the judges scored the fight the way they did. And now, the Most Interesting Middlweight in the World will get his rematch with Anderson Silva, which is EASILY the biggest rematch the UFC has in its arsenal.
& 5) Muhammed Lawal Jim Miller: This spot would've gone to King Mo, but his January finished a lot worse than it started, so I'm giving the nod to Miller, who returned to the win column in the UFC and took the first step towards earning either a fight with Frankie Edgar or a rematch with Benson Henderson, this time for the UFC Lightweight title.

Jeff Harris
& 1) Jose Aldo:
& Aldo finally got the emphatic knockout win that had been avoiding him in the Octagon at UFC 142. Chad Mendes was perfect in his MMA career going into the fight, but he had absolutely nothing for the reigning UFC featherweight champion. Mendes' apparent best advantage was his wrestling, which even Aldo was able to negate. What was even more awe-inducing was Aldo racing into the crowd and celebrating with his fellow Brazilians who hoisted him up on their shoulders. A surreal and amazing moment we shall remember for years to come in our sport.

2) Jim Miller: Despite coming off a crucial loss to Ben Henderson, Miller got a prime spot in the main event for UFC's first Fight Night card on FX. Miller yet again proved why he is one of the toughest and most formidable forces in the UFC's lightweight division. Melvin Guillard lit up and rocked Miller early. However, Miller running on seemingly nothing but instinct was able to see through Guillard's repeated flying knee strike attack and was able to get the fight to the ground and expose yet again Guillard's most glaring weakness. With a submission victory, Miller puts himself back in the potential title contender mix in the shark infested waters of the 155 lb. weight class.
& 3) Vitor Belfort: Belfort is likely the biggest MMA star in Brazil. So for him to finally return there to fight in the UFC at UFC 142 was an amazing sight to watch with the entire crowd on his side. It was compounded by the controversy surrounding Anthony Johnson who failed to make weight for the fight and effectively became MMA public enemy 1 that night. Belfort got taken down and hit early in the round by Johnson, but the hectic weight cut took it's toll on Johnson and Belfort was smartly able to overcome adversity and pull off the submission win. Belfort sent a message that if you are going to change weight classes, be professional about it.
& 4) Luke Rockhold: While the opponent and match-up wasn't necessarily ideal, Rockhold pulled off a strong knockout victory at January's Strikeforce card. Not only that he did it against an experienced and tough veteran in Keith Jardine who has previously beaten former UFC light heavyweight champions Forrest Griffin and Chuck Liddell in the UFC. Now Rockhold looks to arguably a much tougher match-up in Tim Kennedy which should make for an interesting contest.
& 5) Edson Barboza: Barboza picked up what is likely going to be the Knockout of The Year winner with his amazing spinning wheel kick that reverse-planked Terry Etim at UFC 142. Barboza continues to be a fast-rising prospect and remains undefeated in his MMA career and is currently 4-0 in the UFC.

Jon Butterfield
& 1) Jose Aldo:
& There doesn't seem to be much debate that the most prominent feature of January 2012 was Jose Aldo's coming out party. Putting on his first truly great performance in the UFC, Aldo proved the naysayers (of which I was one) wrong with a definitive first round stoppage of tough, high-pressure wrestler Chad Mendes. Aldo showed that, in spite of looking more and more likely to jump up to 155, the featherweight division will not be ruled by the sport's most dominant style any time soon. Anyone who says otherwise will be risking a repeat of that perfectly-timed knee.

2) Vitor Belfort: Just like with Jose Aldo, many thought the massively-overweight Anthony 'Rumble' Johnson possessed the perfect style to pull off an upset. Fortunately, he didn't, and Vitor sent Johnson packing with a rear naked choke. It may not be the most important win of his career, but Vitor had his own odds to overcome against a man who weighed 205 lbs at an emergency weigh in. I guess you could say, 'Justice was served'.
& 3) Chael Sonnen: Michael Bisping proved once again that he is SO CLOSE to perfecting his anti-wrestling game, something that seems to have been the theme of the month. Sadly for the Brit, however, the judges disagreed, awarding Chael Sonnen one of the most important wins of his career. With it, Sonnen will now face Anderson Silva for the second time, and you can bet that's the biggest bit of match-making that took place last month.
& 4) Rashad Evans: Rashad Evans dispelled the belief that Phil Davis is a prodigious talent of Jon Jones-esque stature, but considering 'Mr Wonderful' really isn't THAT far behind, this was a very solid, very convincing, and at times, very comfortable win. But the bad news for Evans is, that was the easy part. Now he has to face 'Bones' himself…
& 5) Edson Barboza: I wasn't all that sold on Edson Barboza prior to this month, but MY LORD what a KO he served up against poor Terry Etim! A spinning kick of Bruce Lee-type proportions, Barboza's finish was much-needed after two consecutive decision wins, and I've got no doubt it will propel the Muay Thai prodigy into the upper echelons of the 155 lb division. Well played, sir!

Jonathan Solomon
& 1) Jose Aldo:
& No surprise here. Aldo was absolutely dominant in his title defense versus Chad Mendes in Brazil last month. A powerful wrestler, Mendes was unable to take Aldo down. A scramble late in the first round led to Aldo's fight winning knockout. Plus, in the aftermath of victory, Aldo stormed into the crowd to celebrate in one of the greatest scenes in UFC history.

2) Robbie Lawler: I love storybook endings to a fight like we saw in the Lawler fight with Adlan Amagov in Strikeforce. In the first round, Amagov landed an illegal knee to the head of a grounded Lawler which initially looked like it may end the fight. Robbie Lawler kept at it, recovered and a short time later, rocked Amagov with a LEGAL knee. Lawler won by knockout seconds later to end a two-fight losing streak and that's how you avenge an illegal blow.
& 3) Charles Oliveira: I'd say his featherweight debut went well, wouldn't you? After all, he submitted Eric Wisely with a calf crusher. Whenever a rare submission hold is used in the octagon, you have to stand up and take notice!
& 4) Lavar Johnson: I'm a sucker for Lavar Johnson. He's always fun to watch because he's an aggressive striker. Plus, after his recovery from a senseless gun crime, how could you not respect the guy? In his UFC debut, he became the first man to destroy Joey Beltran so quickly. He hurt him with a body shot seconds into the fight and about four minutes later, finished the job by knockout.
& 5) Jorge Rivera: Knowing his MMA career was coming to an end, Jorge Rivera walked into the octagon and beat Eric Schafer by referee stoppage. Whenever a veteran can retire with a win like this, it's a positive.

Alex Watt
& 1) José Aldo:
& Aldo turned in one of the best performances of his career and produced the dominant UFC performance he desperately needed. In the city in which he grew up, the UFC Featherweight champ silenced his critics with a dominant performance over tough challenger Chad Mendes. Scoring the impressive counter knee knockout at 4.59 of the first round, Aldo solidified his spot atop the 145lbs division and reaffirmed himself as one of the sport's pound for pound best. And his celebration wasn't bad either.

2) Edson Barboza: Barboza scored the best knockout of the month and, likely, the entire year with his incredible spinning wheel kick against Terry Etim. Barboza remains undefeated in his MMA career and inserts himself firmly into the UFC Lightweight title picture.
& 3) Jim Miller: Defeated fellow 155lbs contender Melvin Guillard to put himself back in the talk for a title shot. Weathering some early strikes from the dynamic Guillard, Miller ultimately got the fight to the floor and finished "The Young Assassin" with a rear naked choke. Miller has booked himself a showdown with Nate Diaz at UFC on FOX 3 in what should be a cracker and could well determine the next challenger to the UFC Lightweight title.
& 4) Chael Sonnen: It wasn't pretty and it wasn't impressive but Sonnen got the job done in his fight with Michael Bisping. Earning the judges' decision, Sonnen earned the title showdown that everyone wants to see. Can he repeat his UFC 117 performance (but with a victory this time) when he fights Anderson Silva in Brazil in the summer?
& 5) Rashad Evans: "Suga" fought safe in his fight with Phil Davis at UFC on FOX 2. It was a highly dominant but deeply uninspiring display from the former UFC champ. Nevertheless, the win set up another anticipated title showdown; Evans will finally face Jon Jones at UFC 135 (unless someone gets injured again, that is).

HM – Vitor Belfort & Michael Bisping: "The Phenom" beat an overweight, out of favour Anthony Johnson in the first round with his first submission win since 2001. And he did it in his home town. "The Count" dropped a close decision to Chael Sonnen, in a fight many felt he won. By more than holding his own against the No. 2 middleweight in the world, Bisping has actually seen his stock rise significantly.

THE RESULTS
& Honorable Mention: Vitor Belfort (7 points)

5th Place Jim Miller - (10 points)

4th Place - Luke Rockhold (11 points)

3rd Place - Chael Sonnen (12 points)

Defeated Michael Bisping to earn a title rematch with Anderson Silva.

2nd Place - Rashad Evans (14 points)

Defeated Phil Davis to earn a title shot (again) at Jon Jones (hopefully it happens).

411's Fighter of the Month for January - Jose Aldo (35 points)

Defeated Chad Mendes at UFC 142 in spectacular fashion to retain his title.

2012 Year-End Standings
& January was dominated by UFC events, and the rankings for January reflect that. A NEW RULE FOR 2012 is as follows: if a fighter ranked on the yearend list LOSES a fight or is suspended by an athletic commission, they will lose 5 points. Remember to come back net month for the next edition of 411's Fighter of the Month!

Jose Aldo – 15pts.

Rashad Evans – 12pts.

Chael Sonnen – 9pts.

Luke Rockhold – 6pts.

Jim Miller – 3pts.

Vitor Belfort – 1pt.