WEC 50: Benavidez Comes Up Short

WEC Still Pound For Pound Most Exciting Promotion

From Scott Jorgensen and Brad Pickett putting on an absolutely phenomenal performance, to Anthony "Showtime" Pettis pulling out the last minute submission after a beautiful performance against Shane Roller. The little guys in the WEC consistently put on some of the most exciting fights this side of a Jon Jones fight. Aside from Chad "Buzzkill" Mendez, who laid on top of Cub Swanson for three rounds, the fight card kept in the tradition of showcasing exciting lighter weight contests.

Cruz Defends Successfully

Dominick Cruz again outstruck and won the wrestling aspect of the fight just as the first fight went, Cruz grabs the split decision. There is no way it should have been a split decision as Cruz won every round except for maybe one. The partisan crowd and close rounds must have been too much for the judges to handle.

MAIN CARD
Champ Dominick Cruz def. Joseph Benavidez via split decision (47-48, 48-47, 49-46) (retains bantamweight title)
Anthony Pettis def. Shane Roller via submission (triangle choke) - Round 3, 4:51
Chad Mendes def. Cub Swanson via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Scott Jorgensen def. Brad Pickett via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Bart Palaszewski def. Zach Micklewright via TKO (punches) - Round 2, 0:31

PRELIMINARY CARD
Maciej Jewtuszko def. Anthony Njokuani via TKO (punches) - Round 1, 1:35
Javier Vazquez def. Mackens Semerzier via submission (rear-naked choke) - Round 2, 1:35
Ricardo Lamas def. Dave Jansen via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Fredson Paixao def. Bryan Caraway via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Danny Castillo def. Dustin Poirier via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)

WEC 50: Fighters On Weight

Faber and Mizugaki are no longer on the card, as Urijah is out with and injury. 

Fighters competing in tomorrow's WEC 50 card were all on weight tonight. Cruz and Benavidez take main stage in tomorrow's event in a rematch of two of the best 135lb fighters in the world. Benavidez looks to avenge his first and only loss to Cruz, while Cruz is set on keeping the belt with him in Arizona.

The two combatants who won the stare-down contest tonight were Anthony "Showtime" Pettis and Shane Roller. These two are almost guaranteed to put on a good show with their exciting styles and well rounded skill sets. Pettis is the hottest 155lb prospect in the division while Roller has a wrestling pedigree that speaks for itself.

WEC 50 airs live Wednesday night on Versus.

WEC Bantamweight Championship
Dominick Cruz (134) vs. Joseph Benavidez (134)

Anthony Pettis (155) vs. Shane Roller (156)
Chad Mendes (145) vs. Cub Swanson (146)
Scott Jorgensen (135) vs. Brad Pickett (136)
Bart Palaszewski (156) vs. Zachary Micklewright (156)
Anthony Njokuani (154) vs. Maciej Jewtuszko (155)
Javier Vazquez (145) vs. Mackens Semerzier (146)
Dave Jansen (156) vs. Ricardo Lamas (155)
Fredson Paixao (145) vs. Bryan Caraway (145)
Danny Castillo (156) vs. Dustin Poirier (156)

WEC Ratings Dip Could Signal Trouble For First PPV

A night filled with action packed fights on the Versus network this past weekend was highlighted by dominant performances by Joseph Benavidez and newly minted Champion Dominick Cruz as well as the emotional retirement announcement from Jens Pulver. Unfortunately for these warriors the ratings for the show dipped to 42% lower than that of the last WEC show on Versus making it the second smallest viewership in the last two years of programming according to MMAjunkie.com. The card was not short on star power as it showcased the return of Miguel Torres and Jens Pulver as well as a title fight in the bantamweight division. That apparently wasn't enough and that does not bode well for the company looking to air it's first ever pay-per-view card in April at WEC 48. Now a significant number of viewers who subscribe to DirectTV still do not have access to the station thanks to a contractual beef between the network and the satellite carrier. That amounts to around 18 million subscribers that could not tune in if they wanted to.
The company's golden boy Urijah Faber is set to headline the pay-per-view broadcast challenging Jose Aldo for the title, so there may be light at the end of the tunnel. However, with the price tag of $44.95 attached to it, lots of fans are opting out of purchasing the fight. This is unfortunate for the fighters who get a cut of the PPV buys and probably look to make a significant amount more money than the Versus aired telecasts. For a card put on by The WEC to carry that high of a price tag right from the start may be too much to ask of fans for a live event that can regularly be seen on cable television. Not to mention the fact that most MMA fans are trying to keep up with the plethora of UFC events that are broadcast nearly every month with that same price tag. In my opinion what needs to happen now is the WEC PPV price needs to be lowered until they can get people used to the idea of paying for the shows as well as having The UFC put on more free shows rather than PPV to let the little guys in the WEC shine.
The WEC is consistently putting on amazing shows packed full of the best talent south of 155lbs and if anyone deserves the extra cheese its them. As of right now the PPV market seems to saturated with MMA programming to sustain another show regularly, but we wont know for sure until the numbers come back from WEC 48.

Miguel Torres: The Trials and Tribulations of a Prize Fighter

(Ouch)

Miguel Torres is having a rough stretch in facing the best 135lb fighters in the world coming off of his second loss in a row. I have nothing against Joseph Benavidez, but I cursed his name repeatedly when he split Miguel open and choked him out. I congratulate Benavidez for shining in his biggest fight aside from newly crowned champion Dominick Cruz. It was however tough to see one of my favorite fighters handily beaten for the second outing in as many fights. 

Can Miguel regain prominence in the class that he was predicted to rule for the foreseeable future? Torres looked tentative and did not attack fearlessly as he did to get him to the top of the bantamweight food chain and it looks as though the loss may have affected him more so than first thought. Miguel was qouted as saying that he was attempting to fight more like Machida and less like Wanderlei. It was uncharacteristic of Torres though to fight that way and it may have cost him the fight. 

A knockout loss can sometimes make a fighter question his chin and render him unable to pull the trigger as he once had. That may not be the case for Torres. Two of the best at 135 in a row is a tall order for a fighter, even one who held mythical status just two fights ago. Torres did everything right leading up to the fight as he changed up his training and worked with different coaches. He got rid of the rif-raf in his camp and got down to business. The only true measure of how Miguel will come back from this is his next fight. For fans of the mulleted one hope remains high that he will again be a top competitor, if not champion, in the bantamweight division. 

If you missed the fight card Saturday the full results are below:

WEC 47 Results

Ricardo Lamas Def. Bendy Casimir KO (Knee)1,3:43
Fredson Paixao Def. Courtney Buck Technical Submission (Rear-Naked Choke)1,2:39
George Roop Def. Leonard Garcia Draw 3,5:00
Anthony Pettis Def. Danny Castillo KO (Head Kick and Punches)1,2:27
Chad Mendes Def. Erik Koch Decision (Unanimous)3,5:00
Scott Jorgensen Def. Chad George Submission (Guillotine Choke)1,0:31
Bart Palaszewski Def. Karen Darabedyan Submission (Armbar)1,4:40
L.C. Davis Def. Deividas Taurosevicius Decision (Majority)3,5:00
Javier Vazquez Def. Jens Pulver Submission (Armbar)1,3:41
Joseph BenavidezDef. Miguel Torres Submission (Guillotine Choke)2,2:57
Dominick Cruz Def. Brian Bowles TKO (Doctor Stoppage)2,5:00

Torres Won't Get A Warm Up Fight On His Way Back To The Top

WEC Fighter Miguel Torres was on nearly everyone's pound for pound greatest lists before his encounter with Mark Whalburg lookalike Brian Bowles. No one gave much thought to Bowles as someone who could contend, let alone beat the Champion. Torres has stated that he was caught up in his own press clippings and doing so much PR work for the promotion that he was believing that sentiment as well. After the first KO loss of his career at the hands of Bowles, Miguel got rid of the "yes men" in his camp and went to work like he should have done in preparation for Brian Bowles. Can Miguel reclaim his dominance atop the 135lb division after such a devastating loss? Myself and many others believe that he can and will do just that. In his quest back to the top of the heap he doesn't have the luxury of a "Tune up" fight as he draws Urijah Faber Protégé Joseph Benavidez in his first trip back to the cage. Benevidas has only suffered one defeat in his Pro MMA career so far and has never been stopped in 12 professional appearances. Benavidez's only defeat came from a unanimous decision loss to co-headliner and challenger to Bowles for the title, Dominick Cruz. Oddly enough, Cruz's only defeat had come from Urijah Faber in the 145lb class that he dropped weight from. Somehow or another Faber is involved, six degrees of separation? With Faber it may only be four! Benavidas brings an energizer bunny-like pace to the fight which should make for an entertaining night for the fans in attendance and watching at home. Torres has made clear his intentions to get past Benavidas as he has enlisted Robert Drysdale to hone his already pristine jujitsu skill-set and has even gotten some time with former Champion boxer Miguel Cotto for help on throwing hands with more effectiveness. This should be a brawl for the ages and one that will most definitely put the winner up to face the Champion. If Torres comes out victorious he can reemerge as the king of the Bantamweight division and cement his spot among the pound-for-pound greats.

The full WEC 47 fight card is listed below and you can catch it live on Versus March 6th:
MAIN CARD
Champ Brian Bowles vs. Dominick Cruz (for bantamweight title)
Joseph Benavidez vs. Miguel Torres
Jens Pulver vs. Javier Vazquez
L.C. Davis vs. Deividas Taurosevicius
Karen Darabedyan vs. Bart Palaszewski
PRELIMINARY CARD
Chad George vs. Scott Jorgensen
Erik Koch vs. Chad Mendes
Danny Castillo vs. Anthony Pettis
Leonard Garcia vs. George Roop
Bendy Casimir vs. Ricardo Lamas
Courtney Buck vs. Fredson Paixao

Torres Vs. Bowles

Leonard Garcia Vs. Jameel Massouh
Garcia coming off of a humiliating loss to to Mike Brown dropped Massouh with a hard right hand in the first, only to have Massouh recover and gain dominant position on the ground to finish the round off with some good ground and pound. Late into the second Massouh caught Garcia in a Darce choke and was close to finishing Garcia before he gave up his back and scrambled to his feet. The majority of the third stayed on the feet and the judges favor Garcia for the split decision win.

Jeff Curran Vs. Takeya Mizugaki
Curran immediately works for a take down, but Mizugaki's take down defense is outstanding and Curran is unable to get it to the ground. Instead it is Mizugaki who gets the takedown and works some ground and pound. Mizugaki controls the latter two rounds and survives a tight triangle choke to finish out the final round. Mizugaki gets the win via split decision in another very close fight.

Ricardo Lamas Vs. Danny Castillo
These two are great wrestlers and they keep the fight standing for the first round, trading combinations with Lamas using more of a variety of strikes. More of the same in the second round sees Lamas starting to gain a definitive advantage, but Castillo lands a bomb of a right hand that drops Lamas and pounces on him to get the TKO victory.

Joseph Benavidez Vs. Dominick Cruz
Cruz looks much bigger than Benavidez and uses his reach and size advantage to get mount on Benavidez, but Benavidez gives up his back and scrambles to his feet. In the second Cruz stuns Benavidez momentarily with straight punches as he comes in wildly. Cruz gets a takedown on Benavidez to finish the round. In the third Benavidez eats a hellacious leg kick followed by a clean takedown. Cruz gets Benavidez's back and flattens him out to finish out the round and cinch the unanimous decision win handing Benavidez his first professional loss.

Miguel Torres Vs. Brian Bowles
Miguel Torres takes on the undefeated Mini Mark Whalberg Brian Bowles in the five round main event. Torres's mullet looks like it means business as he enters the ring with the patten Torres scowl. Bowles drops Torres for a second with a big punch, and ends up in top position on the ground. Torres lands some good punches but comes in a bit reckless and gets dropped by a counter punch, on the ground Bowles lans hard shots and knocks Miguel out on his back to shock me and The Champ and take the title. Now we have a Bantamweight Champion who looks like a smaller, uglier version of Marky Mark.