He absolutely was elite and arguably the number 1 205er on the planet for a while (Chuck was there 2 but UFC was considered number 2 back then, like with Bellator/PFL now).
Beat Hendo
Beat Rampage 2x
He put an end to Sakuraba's tear, even if he was a class heavier it was still crazy when it happened, Saku was a big favorite the first time.
Went to a draw with a new-to--MMA Cro Cop with rules that heavily avantaged the Croatian; still in the minds of most of the fans, Wand would have easily taken the nod had there been a decision... despite also taking a lot of damage to the midsection.
Beat Yoshida in his Gi twice, even though the second was a close decision, pretty much a draw in my mind. Yoshida was super tough and beat some big names, their brawls became legendary.
Late in his career he KO'd good top 15 guys like Cung Le, Keith Jardine, Stann, won decisions over Bisping
Shame about that Bellator stint though
Wand was still absolutely elite and 'til 2005 when it looked like Shogun was going to surpass him, even Chuck fans had Wand at the number 1 spot because of that pesky MMAth with Rampage
but some clapped back with Tito, but "muh green wandy no BJJ yet"