Jake Ellenberger hanging with Tito Ortiz at UFC 136 (Getty)

If Jake Ellenberger isn't fighting for some sort of UFC welterweight title by the end of 2012 he can only blame himself.

The 26-year-old has put himself in prime position and can lock up a title fight if he posts something impressive next week against Diego Sanchez at UFC on FUEL in Omaha, NE.

At minus-350, Ellenberger is a huge favorite against the veteran fighter. He thinks he'll win but Ellenberger respects what Sanchez has done.

"I'm going to expect the best Diego Sanchez. He's going to come after me. He's going to move froward like he always does," Ellenberger told "The MMA Insiders" on ESPN1100/98.9 FM. "He trains with a great camp, a great strategist. I'm preparing for the best Diego yet."

Sanchez is back working with Greg Jackson and Jackson's MMA. That's a good thing. But the recent wars and beatings Sanchez (23-4, 12.4 UFC) has put his body through probably isn't.

"He's somewhat predictable. He moves forward. I think I can definitely win the transitions and win in the striking area," said Ellenberger.

Ellenberger's game is perfectly suited to challenge the two UFC welterweight champions. That's ESPN's MMA expert Adam Hill named him the top prospect at 170 pounds (parameters include - Have not held a UFC belt in the weight class; have not previously fought for a title in the weight class).

Carlos Condit and Ellenberger met in Sept. of 2009. The current UFC interim welterweight champ took a narrow split decision from Ellenberger. At the time, some may have thought it was a fluke. Not the case since Ellenberger has reeled off five straight victories including four KO finishes. I'd put Rory MacDonald and Johny Hendricks ahead of Ellenberger on the 170 list, but it's obvious the ranks of challengers for both UFC titles is growing each month.

Adam Hill Top 10 welterweight prospects:

1. Jake Ellenberger
2. Rory MacDonald
3. Johny Hendricks

Diaz looks relaxed before his fight at UFC 143 (Photo by Tracy Lee)

It's not the first time Nick Diaz and a state commission have battled over his marijuana use, but this time it could be a trend setter.

Yahoo! Sports' Kevin Iole broke the story that Diaz tested positive after his fight at UFC 143. If his penalty mirrors the one boxer Matt Vanda got last week from the NSAC, then Diaz will be fined $80,000 and be given a one-year suspension.

Is that fair? Should a violation for a marijuana test be the same as steroids? Iole reacted just minutes after the story broke on Las Vegas' ESPN1100/98.9 FM.

UFC president Dana White released a statement on the Diaz slip:

Thompson throws an early kick at UFC 143 (MMAWeekly)The welterweight division has been a rough place for pure strikers, but Stephen Thompson may have a chance to change that.

With a decorated karate background, "Wonderboy" is looking to alter the way MMA fans, fighters and trainer look at that discipline.

Lyoto Machida is one of the only high level MMA star to still use karate as his main discipline. No one is saying Thompson is near Machida, but he has a little "Dragon" in him.

In a blog with Fightline, Thompson said the karate stance can be a big advantage in a world filled with takedown artists.

"The average MMA guys have a boxer's stance which makes it easier for a wrestler when they try and take you down. I tend to stand sideways and that gives them only one leg to shoot for, it tends to make it more difficult to try and take me down," wrote Thompson.

Thompson, 28, was unbeaten in the karate/kickboxing ranks. He was 37-0 as an amateur and 20-0 as a pro. He got turned onto MMA when Georges St-Pierre's camp asked him to work with the UFC 170-pound champ. GSP returned the favor by working with Thompson on fight night at UFC 143.

Nelson meets Werdum in the middle of the Octagon (Getty)

There's no doubt the most popular man at UFC 143 was Roy Nelson. For that reason, he's going to stick around. After his loss against Fabricio Werdum, he's now 3-3 with the UFC.

When asked about Nelson's future, Dana White isn't ready to give up on "Big Country," he still wonders if the fighter is cheating himself by not being in tip top condition.

"He's tough man, he's so tough. One of the toughest guys I've ever seen ... ever. The guy brings it. He comes to fight," said White.

Nelson shed some of excess weight and fought Werdum at 246 pounds, but it sounds like White would like to see drop even more.

"I've been telling Roy forever, if Roy took himself serious ... the schtick was funny for a while, but going in at 265 with a frame that doesn't carry 265 makes no sense when you're a professional fighter or a professional athlete of any kind," White said. He got his weight down [but] you wonder what he could do if he really, really trained and got into it."

Nelson lost a unanimous decision to Werdum, but had his moments early in the fight. When it came time to press on the gas pedal, Nelson didn't have the energy.

Defense is an underrated aspect of mixed martial arts. That's unless you're a judge.

Carlos Condit picked his spots and had Nick Diaz whiffing with his punches for much of the night at UFC 143. His strategy and executed resonated with the judges, who scored it 4-1, 4-1 and 3-2 in favor of the new UFC interim welterweight champ. But Condit's ring generalship didn't go over well with many fans.

Here's sampling of tweets from fights fans who thought Condit simply ran the entire night.

Condit didn't see it that way.

Fitch and Koscheck in Las Vegas in Aug. of 2010 (Getty)Dana White has said it for years, the fight game isn't a place for team camaraderie in the long run, The fight game will eventually will split up even the best of friends.

The heat between former teammates Jon Jones and Rashad Evans has been palpable for over a year and now we could see two guys, who appeared to be even closer, fighting in the future.

Josh Koscheck is done with American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose, Ca. That could mean the roadblocks are gone for a Koscheck match against Jon Fitch.

As teammates they said they'd never fight each other unless it was for a title. That always drove their boss nuts. Now that Koscheck is on his own, would they pass up a chance for a title shot if it meant they had to fight?

Koscheck gave a cryptic answer when conversing with White during the UFC 143 postfight press conference.

LAS VEGAS -- Nick Diaz is brilliant at playing mind games with his opponents, but it didn't work on any level tonight.

Carlos Condit never took the bait before or during the fight, stuck to the gameplan and outsmarted Diaz to get himself a share of the UFC welterweight title.

Condit moved beautifully all night and landed 60-plus kicks. He never stood in front of Diaz for more than a few seconds. It all added up to a unanimous decision victory, 48-47, 49-46 and 49-46, in the main event of UFC 143 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.

It was a difficult fight to score. Judge Cecil Peoples scored it 49-46 (Condit 1, 2, 4, 5), Patricia Morse Jarman had 49-46 (Condit 1, 2, 4, 5) and Junichiro Kamijo 49-46 (Condit 1, 3, 4). Aside the from the fourth round, each round was razor thin.

When the decision was read, Diaz was shocked. His behavior is nearly impossible to predict, but he threw everyone for a loop during his postfight discussion with UFC analyst Joe Rogan. He complained about the decision and then said he's had it with the sport.

"I'm not going to accept the fact that was a loss.That ain't right. I pushed him back all fight. I walked him down. Carlos is a great guy. I'm happy for him and his family, but I think I'm done with this MMA," said Diaz.

Diaz (26-8, 7-5 UFC) appeared to be the aggressor all night, but was it "effective aggression" as the unified rules state in detailing how to score a fight? Condit's constant move stymied Diaz, who was outlanded outlanded 159-117 according to Fight Metric. Compustrike had total strikes 146- 110 in favor of Condit. It also said kicks landed were 104-19 for Condit.

LAS VEGAS -- Roy Nelson is slowly shedding the blubber around his midsection, but he still has a ways to go. Fabricio Werdum showed that tonight.

The Brazilian, fighting for the first time in the UFC since 2008, actually picked apart Nelson on the feet to cruise to a unanimous decision victory, 30-27 on all three cards.

"Roy is very tough and can endure a lot of beating, but I found his weak spots," said Werdum.

With a giant belly and a mullet, Nelson is the everyman, and the crowd at Mandalay Bay roared in approval of the Las Vegas native. He came into the fight at just 246 pounds, his lightest weight in years. But even minus the extra 20 pounds he used to fight with, Nelson was still taking big deep breaths midway through the second round. He was a sitting duck.

Werdum is generally regarded as one of the best Brazilian jiu-jitsu artists in the division, but no one's ever raved about his striking. He beat the heck out of Nelson on the feet. The 6-foot Nelson played perfectly into the 6-5 Werdum's gameplan of working head control to throw knees. Werdum opened a huge gash on Nelson's forehead.

"This fight was important to me. I trained hard every day for this fight. I had a good strategy going into the fight but the main thing for me was to come out with a victory," said Werdum. FightMetric had Werdum outlanding Nelson 91-26.