Who will be the face of MMA in New Hampshire?

With mixed martial arts gaining popularity here, the Granite State needs a face in the sport so it can gain some national recognition.

Maine has Mike Brown and Massachusetts has Kenny Florian, both established fighters who have made it to the big time in either the UFC or WEC.

Now New Hampshire needs an identity, and right now it's hard to tell who that will be. If I had to pick a fighter who is at the top of his game right now and seems to be the emerging "best of the best" in the state, that would be Tom Moreau.

The Derry native is coming off the biggest win of his career, a second-round TKO of Dennis Olson, and has now won five of his last six fights since losing to Dan Keefe, another local rising star, in 2008 for a 7-2 record.

Unlike other fighters, Moreau is staying busy and will be back in the cage Oct. 22 at Combat Zone 35 against Derrick Kennington (6-2) of South Carolina.

Another fighter who was on a hot streak until recently was Matt Smith, who lost to Pedro Gonzalez at GFL 9 on Sept. 17. Before that, Smith, one of the best high school wrestlers in New England history, had won seven in a row and he could be a fighter to watch out for at 7-2.

Speaking of Olson, he looked to be the next big thing for a while. He won eight of nine fights between 2008-2010, but has now lost three in a row and has a record of 11-6.

Woody Weatherby is in the same category as Olson. His stock was on the rise too after he started 6-1 and almost made it into the house for The Ultimate Fighter season 11, but has now lost three of his last five fights and has a record of 8-4.

Two fighters with great potential who have been out of action for a while are Keefe, who is 7-1 according to his website, and Nate LaMotte, who is 11-5. Keefe hasn't fought since March 26 and LaMotte has been out of the cage since March 27.

Both have had fights scratched since then. LaMotte was supposed to fight at Bellator XVII in Boston last spring, but got hurt just days before the match and had to scratch. He was also supposed to fight at King of the Cage at Foxwoods in September, but his opponent was a scratch. He has won three of his last four matches.

Keefe was supposed to fight at God of Martial Arts in Worcester on May 21, but his fight was scratched.