Jim Miller is a dangerous fighter, even when he is hurt

Jim Miller looked every bit like his old self last night (Jan 20, 2012) in Nashville, Tenn., defeating Melvin Guillard in the very first round after surviving an early scare from the "Young Assassin" at UFC on FX 1.

After getting rocked early, Miller was able to compose himself and eventually submit Guillard via rear naked choke, proving once again that he does belong at the top of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight division, despite his previous loss to Ben Henderson.

The question always remains: If a fighter loses a fight after such a long win streak and is one win away from a title shot, such as Miller's case, then comes back in his next bout and dominates a very tough opponent, does he automatically catapult himself back to the top? Or does he still have to start from scratch, dismissing all his previous wins?

At the UFC on FX 1 post-fight press conference, Miller hopes that all his hard earned wins prior to the Henderson loss won't put him to far behind the leader of the pack.

Check it out:

"Melvin is a perennial contender and he can beat any lightweight on any given night. So it's good to have a win over him. I'm proud of myself to get hit and knocked down and still be able to do what I had to do to get the victory in there. Hopefully all those wins I had before this fight don't go away. I train to get better every day and I train to be dangerous. Tonight, that helped me get out on top. I was still dangerous even when I was hurt. In my last fight, I had Ben in serious trouble a half a dozen times and knocked him down. It would have taken a little adjustment for anyone of those situations to end the fight. I know I can put guys in trouble and it's just a matter of doing every little thing right with some of those guys and really securing it and making them tap or get the TKO. "

Indeed, Miller showed that he can take a licking and keep on ticking.

Throughout his UFC career, Miller has proven time after time that his a very well rounded mixed martial artist (MMA) with four submission victories to go along with four decisions and two technical knockout victories.

With four top lightweights, Frankie Edgar, Ben Henderson, Anthony Pettis and Joe Lauzon all set to do battle next month in Japan at UFC 144, the 155-pound division will be a little clearer and Miller may find his next opponent once the dust settles in "The Land of the Rising Sun."

Who will it be? We well just have wait and see.

What do you say Maniacs, is Miller in prime position to jump ahead of other lightweights in the division? Or would you like to see him take on someone like Nate Diaz or Edson Barboza to claim his spot back at the top?

Opinions, please.