WEC: Aldo vs. Faber PPV
Arco Arena
Sacramento, California
April 24, 2010
Tonight is the "biggest fight in Featherweight history" between current champion Jose Aldo and former champion Urijah Faber. Also on the card is a Lightweight title re-match between current champion Ben Henderson and top contender Donald Cerrone. The UFC has taken over the WEC duties as Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan are the announcers for this show. Bruce Buffer is also doing the ring announcing tonight. Rogan describes Faber/Aldo as the MMA version of Sugar Ray Leonard versus Roberto Duran.
Bantamweight Fight- Antonio Banuelos (18-5) vs. Scott Jorgensen (9-3)
This is a re-match from WEC 41 in June of 2009 in what I thought was a Fight of the Year contender. Banuelos won the fight by split decision. I had Jorgensen taking the fight 29-28 on my score card. Banuelos trains with Chuck Liddell and John Hackleman. Jorgensen has a 3" reach advantage.
R1- Pretty even fight early with Jorgensen taking the center of the octagon but Banuelos doing a decent job counter punching. Banuelos landed a left hook and Jorgensen went down. Banuelos jumped on top but Jorgensen was able to pull him into his guard and avoid the finish. Jorgensen went for an arm bar and then kicked him way back to his feet. Banuelos takes the first round with the knock down 10-9.
R2- Jorgensen lands some strikes in the first minute to open this round. Jorgensen is finding a home for his jab. Jorgensen has busted open Banuelos nose and Rogan says it might be broken. Jorgensen is really picking apart Banuelos in this round. Jorgensen landed a right hand that floored Banuelos with one minute left in the round. Jorgensen easily took this round and evens the fight up at 19-19 going into the final stanza.
"Banuelos is bleeding like a stuck pig"- Joe Rogan
R3- Jorgensen opened up the round with a good combination and once again opened up the nose of Banuelos. Jorgensen hit a right hand about half way through the round and Banuelos hit the deck. Jorgensen followed in and Banuelos tried to cover up. Jorgensen took his back and tried for a Rear Naked Choke but Banuelos spun out of it. Jorgensen remaining on the back of Banuelos and continues to land strikes from the back and then clamped on another Rear Naked Choke but couldn't lock it in. Good fight. Jorgensen will get his revenge as he takes this 29-28 (same score I had the last fight scored). This puts Jorgensen at the top of the WEC featherweight contenders right behind Joseph Benavidez.
"Joe Silva's got blood on his notebook"- Joe Rogan
Judges score cards: 29-28 on all three score cards.
Winner: Scott Jorgensen by Decision (Unanimous)
Lightweight Fight- Anthony Njokuani (13-2) vs. Shane Roller (7-2)
Roller is a former D1 wrestler. Njokuani is on a 3-fight win streak and is coming off of a quick victory over Chris Horodecki at WEC 45. Roller fought at WEC 44 and defeated Danny Castillo via Rear Naked Choke in the third round. Both fighters have losses on their record to current Lightweight kingpin Ben Henderson. Njokuani has a 3.5" reach advantage.
R1- Roller immediately went for a take down and after about thirty seconds was able to get Anthony down but Anthony popped right back up. Roller got him down again at the one minute mark of the round. Roller briefly mounted but was pushed off and then Roller took Anthony's back and looked for a Rear Naked. Roller finally was able to clamp in the Rear Naked after working for it for a while and finished the fight. Not a highlight reel win but a very effective one as Roller really executed his game plan to perfection and beat a very dangerous opponent.
Winner: Shane Roller by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) R1 3:07
Jake Shields is ringside and Dana White is right next to him with a huge smile on his face. Wow. What a sight.
The Joe Rogan/Kimbo Slice interview from the Spike TV prelim show is shown again.
Featherweight Fight- Mike Brown (23-5) vs. Manvel Gamburyan (12-5)
Mike Brown is the former Featherweight champion who holds two victories over Urijah Faber. Brown lost to Aldo at WEC 44 and then jumped right back into the cage at WEC 46 to defeat Anthony Morrison. Gamburyan also fought at WEC 44 winning a unanimous decision over Leonard Garcia (Brown also fought Garcia recently finishing him in less than 2 minutes). Gamburyan is 2-0 in WEC since dropping down in weight. This is a top contender fight. Brown has a 3" reach advantage.
R1- Brown came in about half way through the round and got caught by Manny. Manny then jumped on top with a bunch of hammer fists and the ref quickly stepped in. Very impressive finish by Manny. He hit him with a right hand and Brown just fell to the mat as his leg buckled. Good stoppage. Looks like Manny is next in line for Jose Aldo...errr the winner of Aldo and Urijah Faber.
Winner: Manvel Gamburyan by TKO (Strikes) 2:22
Bantamweight Fight- Brad Pickett vs. Demetrious Johnson
This is from the pre-show.
R1- Pickett hit a good left hand early. Pickett got a take down with three minutes left in the round. Johnson got back to his feet but immediately got taken back down. Johnson came at Pickett with a flying knee but instead ate a slam. Pickett trapped him in a crucifix but lost the position. Johnson hit a flurry at the end of the round but overall the round went to Pickett. Pickett seems a lot stronger than Johnson.
R2- Pickett is doing a good job timing Johnson's kicks and is doing a good job grabbing his leg whenever he throws a kick. Pickett got a take down with three minutes left in the round. Pickett picked up Johnson and slammed him hard with fifteen seconds left in the round. Pickett 20-18.
"I think Johnson might be the fastest fighter I've ever commentated"- Joe Rogan
R3- Johnson got a take down right off the bat. Pickett got back to his feet but Johnson landed several knees. Pickett got a take down with four minutes left in the round. Johnson got a take down half way through the round. Johnson got another take down but Pickett flipped him over. This round is all about the take downs. This was a really close round and Pickett might have stolen it from the judges due to controlling for the last minute or two. I've got Johnson taking the round but Pickett winning the fight 29-28.
Judges score cards: 30-27, 30-27, 29-28 in favor of Pickett
Winner: Brad Pickett by Decision (Unanimous)
Lightweight Title Fight- Ben Henderson (c) (11-1) vs. Donald Cerrone (11-2)
Ben Henderson is coming off of a third round Guillotine Choke victory over former champion Jamie Varner in January. Cerrone is coming off of a Rear Naked Choke submission victory over Ed Ratcliff in December. These two fighters fought for the interim Lightweight Title in October and all three judges scored the fight 48-47 in favor of Ben Henderson. I had the fight even at 38-38 going into the final round and I gave the final round to Cerrone and thought he won the fight 48-47. It was a really close fight. Cerrone has a 3" height and 3" reach advantage.
R1- Cerrone stuffed an early take down but Henderson took him to the cage and delivered some good knees and then completed the take down two minutes into the round. Henderson landed some Ground and Pound and then switched positions and shockingly pulled guard and tapped out Donald Cerrone with a guillotine choke. Ben SMOOTH Henderson with a fantastic fight. Cerrone has a huge bump on his right temple from a knee that Henderson landed. Very impressive performance by Henderson. He really served notice to the MMA world with this victory.
Winner: Ben Henderson by Submission (Guillotine Choke) R1 1:57
Featherweight Fight- Brandon Visher (13-0) vs. Tyler Toner (10-1)
This pre-show fight is brought to you by Ben SMOOTH Henderson and his early finish of Cowboy Cerrone. I've only seen Visher fight once, at WEC 45, where he KO'd Courtney Buck at the end of the first round. Tyler Toner I've also only seen once and it was on a Strikeforce on NBC 30-minute show where he beat Ricky Johnson by TKO in the 2nd round. Visher is undefeated.
R1- Toner landed a good combination that included a big left hand half way through the round that floored Visher. Toner landed some elbows to the side of the face and the ref stopped the fight. Not a great stoppage as Visher was still in the fight but on the other hand Toner was doing a lot of damage to Visher.
Winner: Tyler Toner by TKO (Ref Stoppage) R1 2:36
The Chad Mendes/Anthony Morrison fight from the Spike TV pre-show is re-shown.
Featherweight Title Fight- Jose Aldo (c) (16-1) vs. Urijah Faber (23-3)
Aldo's last fight was in November when he defeated Mike Brown in the second round by TKO. Aldo has not lost in 5 years and his last six fights have been finished by KO/TKO. Faber's last fight was a Rear Naked Choke victory over Raphael Assuncao. Urijah comes out to a big reaction from his hometown crowd. It was almost difficult to hear Bruce Buffer over the fans applause for Faber during the introductions. This is going to be a tough fight for Faber and I just don't see him winning this fight.
"I think this is the biggest ovation I've ever seen"- Joe Rogan
R1- Aldo threw a leg kick that tripped up Faber at the one and a half minute mark of the round. Aldo landed a good body punch. Not a ton of action as Faber is bouncing around and trying to close on Aldo but not having much luck. Faber jumped in twice and landed a couple of combinations. Faber went to the well one too many times and Aldo met him with a knee that briefly floored Faber as it caught him off-balance. Aldo landed a couple of kicks to close the round. Aldo 10-9 but fairly close as both guys are feeling each other out and Aldo really just letting the fight come to him.
R2- Aldo is landing some good leg kicks. Faber noticeably limps after an Aldo leg kick late in the round. Not a lot of action in this round but Aldo has hurt Faber's leg and put him at a disadvantage going into the next round. Aldo 20-18.
R3- Aldo continues the onslaught on Faber's legs early in this round. Aldo hit a good body kick. Aldo threw a kick and Faber tripped him up but Aldo quickly got to his feet. Aldo hit a good high kick and then started opening up on Faber with strikes and then backed off after Faber covered up and came out swinging. Aldo hit a good body punch at the end of the round and then chopped Faber down with a leg kick but didn't have enough time to go for the finish. As the round ended Faber had trouble getting to his feet and you could see one of his corner men pick him up to carry him back to the corner as the camera cut away. Faber is showing a lot of heart but Aldo is just picking him apart. Aldo 30-27.
R4- Aldo just continues to pepper Faber's legs and Faber goes down and almost invites Aldo to the ground so he doesn't have to take any more leg kicks. Aldo gets full mount and then takes Faber's back. Faber was able to spin out of the position and get back to his feet with three minutes left in the round. Aldo landed another leg kick and Faber went down and Aldo landed a couple of strikes before Faber clinched onto him on the ground. Aldo passed guard into a mounted crucifix position and landed some good punches and elbows to the face. Aldo just continually landing elbows to Faber's face. That's a 10-8 round for Aldo and I've got him up 40-35. Faber showing a ton of heart but Aldo is just on another level than Faber.
"If you look at Urijah's left knee it is unnaturally swollen"- Joe Rogan
R5- Aldo not even looking to strike in the first minute and a half of the final round as Urijah is the aggressor. Urijah went for a take down but was stuffed. Aldo landed a good body shot with about a minute left in the fight. Really tough round to score as neither guy really did anything but the score for this round is a moot point as Aldo dominated Faber tonight and wins this one in a runaway. Very impressive performance from Aldo. The only possible weakness is that he didn't do much in the 5th round so was he tired or just cautious due to him having a huge lead and his opponent being broken down from the leg kicks.
Judges score cards: 49-45, 49-45, 50-45 in favor of Aldo.
Winner: Jose Aldo by Decision (Unanimous)
The Leonard Garcia/Chan Sung Jung fight from the SpikeTV pre-show is shown next due to time left on the PPV.
Showing posts with label Shane Roller. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Shane Roller. Show all posts
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Sunday, November 22, 2009
WEC 44 "Brown vs. Aldo" Re-Cap
WEC 44 “Brown vs. Aldo”
The Pearl
Las Vegas, Nevada
November 19, 2009
Todd Harris and Frank Mir are the announcers for the show. Joe Martinez is the ring announcer. The Featherweight Championship is on the line as Mike Thomas Brown will face explosive challenger Jose Aldo. Former WEC Lightweight Champion Rob McCullough will face Karen Darabedyan. In a fight of former UFC fighters Leonard Garcia will face Manvel Gamburyan in a Featherweight Fight.
Lightweight Fight- Will Kerr (8-1) vs. Kamal Shalorus (4-0-1)
This is the WEC debut for both fighters.
R1- Kamal hit a big punch that floored Kerr early. Kamal lands some good strikes and Kerr falls to his knees and the ref stops the fight. Good showing by Kamal as he looked good in the striking face of MMA but didn’t really look like he was tested tonight.
Winner: Kamal Shalorus by TKO (Strikes) R1 1:26
Lightweight Fight- Shane Roller (6-2) vs. Danny Castillo (8-1)
Roller lost back in April to current Lightweight Interim Champ Ben Henderson.
R1- Castillo got the first take down about half way through the round but he couldn’t hold Roller down. Castillo got another take down but Roller reversed it and nearly got a guillotine. Castillo got another take down with a minute and a half left in the round. Castillo 10-9.
R2- Castillo landed some good shots against the cage and then got a take down. Roller landed a couple knees and then got a take down. Roller grabbed a guillotine. Castillo gave up his back and Roller landed some good shots to the side of the head and ear. One round a piece after two rounds.
R3- Roller shot in but Castillo sprawled and got top position. Roller got a take down with two minutes left in the round. Roller locks in a choke and Castillo taps out. Pretty even back and forth fight, nice job by Roller in finishing the fight.
Winner: Shane Roller by Submission (Guillotine Choke) R3 3:32
Donald Cerrone will fight Ed Ratcliffe on December 19th and they are interviewed ringside.
Tito Ortiz, Ben Henderson, and Urijah Faber are all ringside for the show.
Lightweight Fight- Rob McCullough (17-5) vs. Karen Darabedyan (8-1)
Karen is Judo and Taekwondo Black Belt who is on a 5 fight win streak. Karen is making his WEC debut.
R1- They are picking their spots early but are exchanging. McCullough looks a little tight and Karen more relaxed. Karen hit a good combo. McCullough landed a good body kick but Karen came back with a good punch that opened up a cut on McCullough. Karen landed some good shots at the end of the round and looks really good so far. Karen 10-9.
R2- Karen got a take down within the first minute of the round but couldn’t get anything before McCullough worked back to his feet. Both guys have small cuts near their eyes. Pretty even round other than the take down that could have been scored either way. Karen is up 20-18 on my score card.
R3- Pretty even and uneventful round to finish the fight. I’ve got Karen taking this fight by virtue of winning the first two rounds on my score card. Could be a split decision.
Judges score cards say: 30-27 Darabedyan, 30-27 McCullough, 29-28 Darabedyan
Wow. No way McCullough won that first round. It’s very rare that you see one judge score a fight 30-27 and another judge score a fight 30-27 in favor of the other fighter. Rounds 2 and 3 were very even.
Winner: Karen Darabedyan by Decision (Split)
Featherweight Fight- Leonard Garcia (17-4) vs. Manvel Gamburyan (11-5)
Garcia has a 5” height and 2” reach advantage. This is the Co-Main Event.
R1- Long feeling out process. Manvel came in for a take down and Garcia fed him a good right hand. Garcia is landing some strikes but nothing too bad. Manvel went for a take down but Garcia sprawled and then Manvel hit Garcia with two low blows. Manvel goes for a take down and Garcia did a good job of keeping the fight on the feet. Garcia hit a good kick but Manvel took it. Manvel shot again but Garcia landed a kick. Garcia 10-9.
R2- Garcia hit a couple strikes and then Manvel shot in for a take down but Garcia did a nice job of sprawling. Manvel missed an over hand right and slipped but because of it he was able to get a slam/take down on Garcia with a minute and a half left in the round. Manvel got in some shots on Garcia and stole this round so it’s even 19-19 after two rounds.
R3- Both guys are throwing punches with bad intentions to start the round. Garcia starts talking and wants a slugfest but it ends up with Manvel getting a take down. Manvel is going to take this round because he was in a dominant position for a lot of the round. I’ve got Manvel taking the fight 20-19 in a close fight.
Judges score cards say: 30-27, 29-28, 29-28 in favor of Gamburyan
Winner: Manvel Gamburyan by Decision (Unanimous)
Featherweight Title Fight- Mike Thomas Brown © (22-4) vs. Jose Aldo (15-1)
At WEC 41 Jose Aldo destroyed Cub Swanson in 8 seconds with a flying knee. On that same card Mike Brown successfully defended his championship in a 5 round unanimous decision against former champion Urijah Faber.
R1- The first couple minutes they spend going back and forth with both guys landing some offense but nothing damaging. Aldo hits a good punch/kick/knee combo that hurts Brown but Brown clinched Aldo to give himself time to recover. Brown tried to get the fight to the ground but Aldo did a great job of sprawling. Aldo 10-9.
R2- Aldo hit some good strikes on Brown to open the round and Brown again clinched to stop the barrage. Brown went for a take down but Aldo shoved him down and jumped on top. Aldo hit some strikes and then took Brown’s back and just started leveling him with punches and the ref stopped the fight. New Champion and Jose Aldo is the truth.
Winner and new WEC Featherweight Champion: Jose Aldo by TKO (Strikes) R2 1:20
The Pearl
Las Vegas, Nevada
November 19, 2009
Todd Harris and Frank Mir are the announcers for the show. Joe Martinez is the ring announcer. The Featherweight Championship is on the line as Mike Thomas Brown will face explosive challenger Jose Aldo. Former WEC Lightweight Champion Rob McCullough will face Karen Darabedyan. In a fight of former UFC fighters Leonard Garcia will face Manvel Gamburyan in a Featherweight Fight.
Lightweight Fight- Will Kerr (8-1) vs. Kamal Shalorus (4-0-1)
This is the WEC debut for both fighters.
R1- Kamal hit a big punch that floored Kerr early. Kamal lands some good strikes and Kerr falls to his knees and the ref stops the fight. Good showing by Kamal as he looked good in the striking face of MMA but didn’t really look like he was tested tonight.
Winner: Kamal Shalorus by TKO (Strikes) R1 1:26
Lightweight Fight- Shane Roller (6-2) vs. Danny Castillo (8-1)
Roller lost back in April to current Lightweight Interim Champ Ben Henderson.
R1- Castillo got the first take down about half way through the round but he couldn’t hold Roller down. Castillo got another take down but Roller reversed it and nearly got a guillotine. Castillo got another take down with a minute and a half left in the round. Castillo 10-9.
R2- Castillo landed some good shots against the cage and then got a take down. Roller landed a couple knees and then got a take down. Roller grabbed a guillotine. Castillo gave up his back and Roller landed some good shots to the side of the head and ear. One round a piece after two rounds.
R3- Roller shot in but Castillo sprawled and got top position. Roller got a take down with two minutes left in the round. Roller locks in a choke and Castillo taps out. Pretty even back and forth fight, nice job by Roller in finishing the fight.
Winner: Shane Roller by Submission (Guillotine Choke) R3 3:32
Donald Cerrone will fight Ed Ratcliffe on December 19th and they are interviewed ringside.
Tito Ortiz, Ben Henderson, and Urijah Faber are all ringside for the show.
Lightweight Fight- Rob McCullough (17-5) vs. Karen Darabedyan (8-1)
Karen is Judo and Taekwondo Black Belt who is on a 5 fight win streak. Karen is making his WEC debut.
R1- They are picking their spots early but are exchanging. McCullough looks a little tight and Karen more relaxed. Karen hit a good combo. McCullough landed a good body kick but Karen came back with a good punch that opened up a cut on McCullough. Karen landed some good shots at the end of the round and looks really good so far. Karen 10-9.
R2- Karen got a take down within the first minute of the round but couldn’t get anything before McCullough worked back to his feet. Both guys have small cuts near their eyes. Pretty even round other than the take down that could have been scored either way. Karen is up 20-18 on my score card.
R3- Pretty even and uneventful round to finish the fight. I’ve got Karen taking this fight by virtue of winning the first two rounds on my score card. Could be a split decision.
Judges score cards say: 30-27 Darabedyan, 30-27 McCullough, 29-28 Darabedyan
Wow. No way McCullough won that first round. It’s very rare that you see one judge score a fight 30-27 and another judge score a fight 30-27 in favor of the other fighter. Rounds 2 and 3 were very even.
Winner: Karen Darabedyan by Decision (Split)
Featherweight Fight- Leonard Garcia (17-4) vs. Manvel Gamburyan (11-5)
Garcia has a 5” height and 2” reach advantage. This is the Co-Main Event.
R1- Long feeling out process. Manvel came in for a take down and Garcia fed him a good right hand. Garcia is landing some strikes but nothing too bad. Manvel went for a take down but Garcia sprawled and then Manvel hit Garcia with two low blows. Manvel goes for a take down and Garcia did a good job of keeping the fight on the feet. Garcia hit a good kick but Manvel took it. Manvel shot again but Garcia landed a kick. Garcia 10-9.
R2- Garcia hit a couple strikes and then Manvel shot in for a take down but Garcia did a nice job of sprawling. Manvel missed an over hand right and slipped but because of it he was able to get a slam/take down on Garcia with a minute and a half left in the round. Manvel got in some shots on Garcia and stole this round so it’s even 19-19 after two rounds.
R3- Both guys are throwing punches with bad intentions to start the round. Garcia starts talking and wants a slugfest but it ends up with Manvel getting a take down. Manvel is going to take this round because he was in a dominant position for a lot of the round. I’ve got Manvel taking the fight 20-19 in a close fight.
Judges score cards say: 30-27, 29-28, 29-28 in favor of Gamburyan
Winner: Manvel Gamburyan by Decision (Unanimous)
Featherweight Title Fight- Mike Thomas Brown © (22-4) vs. Jose Aldo (15-1)
At WEC 41 Jose Aldo destroyed Cub Swanson in 8 seconds with a flying knee. On that same card Mike Brown successfully defended his championship in a 5 round unanimous decision against former champion Urijah Faber.
R1- The first couple minutes they spend going back and forth with both guys landing some offense but nothing damaging. Aldo hits a good punch/kick/knee combo that hurts Brown but Brown clinched Aldo to give himself time to recover. Brown tried to get the fight to the ground but Aldo did a great job of sprawling. Aldo 10-9.
R2- Aldo hit some good strikes on Brown to open the round and Brown again clinched to stop the barrage. Brown went for a take down but Aldo shoved him down and jumped on top. Aldo hit some strikes and then took Brown’s back and just started leveling him with punches and the ref stopped the fight. New Champion and Jose Aldo is the truth.
Winner and new WEC Featherweight Champion: Jose Aldo by TKO (Strikes) R2 1:20
Friday, July 17, 2009
WEC 40 4/5/09 Re-Cap
WEC 40: Torres vs. Mizugaki 4/5/09
Chicago, IL
UIC Pavillion
Versus
Over the last year WEC has put out the best MMA product for my money and the great news is that you can watch WEC for free on Versus. Hopefully WEC’s string of solid and exciting shows continues tonight as Pound for Pound Top 10 fighter Miguel Angel Torres will be in action defending his Bantamweight Title. Todd Harris is the lead announcer and his partner is once again Frank Mir (last show Jens Pulver filled in). Torres is defending against Mizugaki. I haven’t seen him fight but Mir puts him over as a Top 5 fighter in his division.
Featherweight Fight- Raphael Assuncao (12-1) vs. Jameel Massouh (21-4)
Assuncao is a Jiu Jitsu Black Belt who also has strong Muay Thai. Massouh is a well rounded fighter who has 10 submissions in his career. Both fighters are making their WEC debut. Massouh has a large 5’ height and 5’ reach advantage.
R1- Assuncao hit a good shot at the one minute mark that knocked Massouh down. Assuncao took his guard but Massouh got a heel hook and Assuncao got out and took Massouh’s guard again. Assuncao got another take down towards the end of the round and then got a guillotine right at the end of the round. Assuncao is up 10-9 after one round.
R2- Pretty close second round until Assuncao grabbed a guillotine at about the two minute mark. Assuncao finished up the round on top of Massouh and took this round 10-9 as well.
R3- Assuncao hit a good combo at the beginning of the round and then controlled on the ground for the first half of the round until Massouh flipped him over. Assuncao quickly got back into the dominant position. Assuncao wins this fight 30-27 on my score card. Overall, it was a decent fight with a good first round.
Judges score cards say: 30-27 on all three cards
Winner: Raphael Assuncao by Decision (Unanimous)
Next up they show a hype video for the re-match between Mike Brown and Urijah Faber on June 7th for the Featherweight Championship. They come back from the hype video and Mike Brown and Urijah Faber are at ringside and Todd Harris interviews them to hype up the fight.
They show a tribute video for Charles “Mask” Lewis.
Brian Bowles, Donald Cerrone and Jens Pulver (w/child) are shown sitting together.
Lightweight Division- Shane Roller (5-1) vs. Ben Henderson (8-1)
Henderson is on a 7 fight win streak with most of his wins coming by submission. Roller comes out to Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger.” Roller is a 3x Division 1 Wrestling All American but has as many knockouts as he does submissions. Roller has a slight 2’ reach advantage.
R1- Roller hit a nice right and then caught Henderson in a guillotine but couldn’t finish him. Henderson got up and got the advantage and hit some good strikes and the ref stepped in and stopped the fight. Great come back by Henderson as he was in a ton of trouble in the opening minute of the fight.
Winner: Ben Henderson by TKO (Strikes) R1 1:41
Lightweight Fight- Bart Palaszweski (30-12) vs. Anthony Njokuani (10-2)
Anthony has a 5.5’ reach advantage and a 3’ height advantage. Bart is the home town guy in this fight as he’s from Chicago.
R1- Bart got a take down about a minute into the fight but couldn’t keep him down. Njokuani stuck Bart with a straight right as he was avoiding a punch and Bart went down. Njokuani landed some brief Ground and Pound but then the ref stood them up. Bart got a take down with about half a minute left in the round. Close round, I’ve got Njokuani 10-9.
R2- Njokuani hits Bart with a great combo at the beginning of the round and just takes him out. Njokuani does a back flip and a break dance spin to celebrate. Right hand, left kick, right hand. Nice flurry by Njokuani.
Winner: Anthony Njokuani by TKO (Strikes) R2 0:27
Bantamweight Fight- Jeff Curran (31-10-1) vs. Joseph Benavidez (9-0)
This is the “Co-Main Event.” Benavidez last fought in WEC in December and had an impressive unanimous decision victory over Danny Martinez. Previous to that he submitted Junya Kudo in the first round of a DREAM fight. Benavidez trains with Urijah Faber and Faber is in his corner for this fight. Jeff Curran is the more experienced fighter and is the home town fighter in this fight. Curran’s last fight was a decision loss to Featherweight kingpin Mike Brown. Curran has a 4’ reach and 2’ height advantage. This is a big step up for Benavidez.
R1- Really good and competitive first round. With a minute and a half left Benavidez catches Curran and knocks him to the mat and jumps on top. Benavidez took round one 10-9.
R2- Both guys are throwing some really quick punches. Curran went for a Superman punch and struck out and Benavidez quickly took Curran’s guard but couldn’t get anything so they stood up at the two minute mark. Curran pulled guard but missed the guillotine, Curran then went for a different sub and then a triangle but could not land any of them and Benavidez took side control. This round could go either way, virtually a toss up. Curran probably gets some points here for trying to finish the fight with a flurry of submissions.
R3- Benavidez got a take down about a minute and a half in by chopping Curran’s leg out from under him with holding onto his other leg. Benavidez stays on top of Curran for the last minute of the fight. Curran went for a triangle but couldn’t get it. Really good fight, the first two rounds were great. I’ve got Benavidez 29-28.
Judges score the fight: 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 in favor of Benavidez
Winner: Joseph Benavidez by Decision (Unanimous)
Bantamweight Title Fight: Miguel Angel Torres © (35-1) vs. Takeya Mizugaki (11-2-2)
Torres looked fantastic in his last defense against Manny Tapia and had a FOTY candidate in his fight before that against Yoshiro Maeda. This will be the first time that I’ve seen Mizugaki fight. Mizugaki is aggressive, likes to stand and has dangerous Ground and Pound. Torres has a large 6.5” reach and a slight 2” height advantage. Torres is the hometown fighter in this fight and gets a heroes welcome to the cage.
R1- Both guys really swinging freely early in this fight. Really strong and even first round that was a virtual toss up. I give it to Mizugaki as he controlled the early part of the round and finished strong. Torres looked to get more comfortable and find his range with kicks more as the round went on.
R2- They mixed it up pretty good for the first minute of the fight with Torres slipping a couple of times but Mizugaki not wanting to follow him to the mat. Torres starts to land some good punches in the middle of this round. Torres looked really good in the second half of this round and wins this round. So I’ve got the fight 19-19 at this point but round one was a virtual toss up.
R3- Mizugaki opened u a small cut on Torres’s forehead and they paused the fight to check the cut. They both really open up after the pause in the fight and then Torres starts to push the pace but Mizugaki answers with a barrage of his own. Good, very close round with neither fighter showing dominance. Torres seemed to land the better shots. I’ve got him up 29-28 in a very close fight so far.
R4- Torres went for a take down but Mizugaki stuffed it and stood back up rather quickly. Torres seems to be grasping control of this fight as he’s stuffing Mizugaki against the cage. Torres misses on a knee bar attempt but when they stand back up he uses his jab effectively. Torres rocked Mizugaki with a right hand and he went back but absorbed the punch nicely. Torres really started to take control of this fight in this round. I’ve got Torres up 39-37 going into the final championship round.
R5- Miguel gets Mizugaki up against the cage and unloads with a good combo but Mizugaki absorbs the punches. Torres hasn’t lost any speed on his jab even in the later stages of this fight. Torres is just too quick and has too much cardio at this point of the fight. Mizugaki is tired but is hanging in there. Both guys slug it out at the end of the fight and this one is going the distance. Really strong fight. I’ve got Torres winning and retaining his title by the score of 49-46.
Judges score cards say: 49-46, 49-46 and 48-47 in favor of Torres.
Winner and still WEC Bantamweight Champion: Miguel Torres by Decision (Unanimous)
Chicago, IL
UIC Pavillion
Versus
Over the last year WEC has put out the best MMA product for my money and the great news is that you can watch WEC for free on Versus. Hopefully WEC’s string of solid and exciting shows continues tonight as Pound for Pound Top 10 fighter Miguel Angel Torres will be in action defending his Bantamweight Title. Todd Harris is the lead announcer and his partner is once again Frank Mir (last show Jens Pulver filled in). Torres is defending against Mizugaki. I haven’t seen him fight but Mir puts him over as a Top 5 fighter in his division.
Featherweight Fight- Raphael Assuncao (12-1) vs. Jameel Massouh (21-4)
Assuncao is a Jiu Jitsu Black Belt who also has strong Muay Thai. Massouh is a well rounded fighter who has 10 submissions in his career. Both fighters are making their WEC debut. Massouh has a large 5’ height and 5’ reach advantage.
R1- Assuncao hit a good shot at the one minute mark that knocked Massouh down. Assuncao took his guard but Massouh got a heel hook and Assuncao got out and took Massouh’s guard again. Assuncao got another take down towards the end of the round and then got a guillotine right at the end of the round. Assuncao is up 10-9 after one round.
R2- Pretty close second round until Assuncao grabbed a guillotine at about the two minute mark. Assuncao finished up the round on top of Massouh and took this round 10-9 as well.
R3- Assuncao hit a good combo at the beginning of the round and then controlled on the ground for the first half of the round until Massouh flipped him over. Assuncao quickly got back into the dominant position. Assuncao wins this fight 30-27 on my score card. Overall, it was a decent fight with a good first round.
Judges score cards say: 30-27 on all three cards
Winner: Raphael Assuncao by Decision (Unanimous)
Next up they show a hype video for the re-match between Mike Brown and Urijah Faber on June 7th for the Featherweight Championship. They come back from the hype video and Mike Brown and Urijah Faber are at ringside and Todd Harris interviews them to hype up the fight.
They show a tribute video for Charles “Mask” Lewis.
Brian Bowles, Donald Cerrone and Jens Pulver (w/child) are shown sitting together.
Lightweight Division- Shane Roller (5-1) vs. Ben Henderson (8-1)
Henderson is on a 7 fight win streak with most of his wins coming by submission. Roller comes out to Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger.” Roller is a 3x Division 1 Wrestling All American but has as many knockouts as he does submissions. Roller has a slight 2’ reach advantage.
R1- Roller hit a nice right and then caught Henderson in a guillotine but couldn’t finish him. Henderson got up and got the advantage and hit some good strikes and the ref stepped in and stopped the fight. Great come back by Henderson as he was in a ton of trouble in the opening minute of the fight.
Winner: Ben Henderson by TKO (Strikes) R1 1:41
Lightweight Fight- Bart Palaszweski (30-12) vs. Anthony Njokuani (10-2)
Anthony has a 5.5’ reach advantage and a 3’ height advantage. Bart is the home town guy in this fight as he’s from Chicago.
R1- Bart got a take down about a minute into the fight but couldn’t keep him down. Njokuani stuck Bart with a straight right as he was avoiding a punch and Bart went down. Njokuani landed some brief Ground and Pound but then the ref stood them up. Bart got a take down with about half a minute left in the round. Close round, I’ve got Njokuani 10-9.
R2- Njokuani hits Bart with a great combo at the beginning of the round and just takes him out. Njokuani does a back flip and a break dance spin to celebrate. Right hand, left kick, right hand. Nice flurry by Njokuani.
Winner: Anthony Njokuani by TKO (Strikes) R2 0:27
Bantamweight Fight- Jeff Curran (31-10-1) vs. Joseph Benavidez (9-0)
This is the “Co-Main Event.” Benavidez last fought in WEC in December and had an impressive unanimous decision victory over Danny Martinez. Previous to that he submitted Junya Kudo in the first round of a DREAM fight. Benavidez trains with Urijah Faber and Faber is in his corner for this fight. Jeff Curran is the more experienced fighter and is the home town fighter in this fight. Curran’s last fight was a decision loss to Featherweight kingpin Mike Brown. Curran has a 4’ reach and 2’ height advantage. This is a big step up for Benavidez.
R1- Really good and competitive first round. With a minute and a half left Benavidez catches Curran and knocks him to the mat and jumps on top. Benavidez took round one 10-9.
R2- Both guys are throwing some really quick punches. Curran went for a Superman punch and struck out and Benavidez quickly took Curran’s guard but couldn’t get anything so they stood up at the two minute mark. Curran pulled guard but missed the guillotine, Curran then went for a different sub and then a triangle but could not land any of them and Benavidez took side control. This round could go either way, virtually a toss up. Curran probably gets some points here for trying to finish the fight with a flurry of submissions.
R3- Benavidez got a take down about a minute and a half in by chopping Curran’s leg out from under him with holding onto his other leg. Benavidez stays on top of Curran for the last minute of the fight. Curran went for a triangle but couldn’t get it. Really good fight, the first two rounds were great. I’ve got Benavidez 29-28.
Judges score the fight: 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 in favor of Benavidez
Winner: Joseph Benavidez by Decision (Unanimous)
Bantamweight Title Fight: Miguel Angel Torres © (35-1) vs. Takeya Mizugaki (11-2-2)
Torres looked fantastic in his last defense against Manny Tapia and had a FOTY candidate in his fight before that against Yoshiro Maeda. This will be the first time that I’ve seen Mizugaki fight. Mizugaki is aggressive, likes to stand and has dangerous Ground and Pound. Torres has a large 6.5” reach and a slight 2” height advantage. Torres is the hometown fighter in this fight and gets a heroes welcome to the cage.
R1- Both guys really swinging freely early in this fight. Really strong and even first round that was a virtual toss up. I give it to Mizugaki as he controlled the early part of the round and finished strong. Torres looked to get more comfortable and find his range with kicks more as the round went on.
R2- They mixed it up pretty good for the first minute of the fight with Torres slipping a couple of times but Mizugaki not wanting to follow him to the mat. Torres starts to land some good punches in the middle of this round. Torres looked really good in the second half of this round and wins this round. So I’ve got the fight 19-19 at this point but round one was a virtual toss up.
R3- Mizugaki opened u a small cut on Torres’s forehead and they paused the fight to check the cut. They both really open up after the pause in the fight and then Torres starts to push the pace but Mizugaki answers with a barrage of his own. Good, very close round with neither fighter showing dominance. Torres seemed to land the better shots. I’ve got him up 29-28 in a very close fight so far.
R4- Torres went for a take down but Mizugaki stuffed it and stood back up rather quickly. Torres seems to be grasping control of this fight as he’s stuffing Mizugaki against the cage. Torres misses on a knee bar attempt but when they stand back up he uses his jab effectively. Torres rocked Mizugaki with a right hand and he went back but absorbed the punch nicely. Torres really started to take control of this fight in this round. I’ve got Torres up 39-37 going into the final championship round.
R5- Miguel gets Mizugaki up against the cage and unloads with a good combo but Mizugaki absorbs the punches. Torres hasn’t lost any speed on his jab even in the later stages of this fight. Torres is just too quick and has too much cardio at this point of the fight. Mizugaki is tired but is hanging in there. Both guys slug it out at the end of the fight and this one is going the distance. Really strong fight. I’ve got Torres winning and retaining his title by the score of 49-46.
Judges score cards say: 49-46, 49-46 and 48-47 in favor of Torres.
Winner and still WEC Bantamweight Champion: Miguel Torres by Decision (Unanimous)
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