Miguel Torres, newcomers reign supreme at WEC 37
In the first mixed martial arts fight in U.S. history to feature two fighters of Mexican heritage headlining a televised event, WEC bantamweight champion Miguel Angel Torres successfully defended his title courtesy of a second round TKO over Manny Tapia. The victory improved Torres’ documented record to 35-1 and his record under the World Extreme Cagefighting banner to 4-0. Torres, an Indiana... [Read More...]
Rob McCullough vs. Marcus Hicks WEC 38 matchup postponed
A widely reported lightweight bout between former WEC lightweight champion “Razor” Rob McCullough and Marcus Hicks that had been scheduled to take place at WEC 38 on Jan. 25 at the San Diego Sports Arena in San Diego, Calif. has been postponed. FiveOuncesOfPain.com confirmed with news early Thursday morning with McCullough’s agent, Ken Pavia of MMA Agents. Pavia indicated that the... [Read More...]
WEC 37: Preview and Predictions
Wednesday’s WEC 37 event featuring Miguel Torres making his second career defense of the WEC bantamweight against Manny Tapia hasn’t garnered much publicity in recent weeks. And that’s a shame, as Torres is one of the top ten best pound-for-pound fighters in the world and those who elect not to watch Wednesday’s telecast (8 p.m. ET on VERSUS) will be missing out. With Urijah... [Read More...]
Reports indicate that Steve Steinbeiss and Nissen Osterneck are UFC bound
Separate published reports indicate that light heavyweight Steve Steinbeiss and middleweight Nissen Osterneck have been transferred from the roster of Zuffa-owned World Extreme Cagefighting to its sister promotion, the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Both additions to the UFC roster come as a mild surprise. Steinbeiss and Osterneck competed at WEC 36 on Nov. 5 and both lost to their respective opponents.... [Read More...]
American Top Team’s Danillo Villefort planning move to WEC’s welterweight division
After a scheduled middleweight fight vs. Jake Rosholt had to be postponed due to injury combined with World Extreme Cagefighting’s announcement that the 185 pound division was going to be disbanded before year’s end, it appeared that the WEC career of American Top Team jiu-jitsu black belt Danillo Villefort might have been over before it started. Villefort was a finalist at the International... [Read More...]
Bart Palaszewski: “I’ve seen Miguel (Torres’) standup and it’s not the hottest”
While the upset loss of Urijah Faber is still fresh in everyone’s minds, World Extreme Cagefighting is set to return next Wednesday (8 p.m. ET on VERSUS) from the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Miguel Torres will headline the show as he defends his WEC bantamweight title vs. number one contender Manny Tapia. With Torres’ notoriety increasing, his placement on the card... [Read More...]
Rivalry between Miguel Torres and Jeff Curran begins to grow
What initially started as an innocent attempt by Jeff Curran to raise the level of excitement even further in the WEC’s bantamweight division has now taken on a life of its own. During a recent C3 Full Contact Fighting event in which Curran was inducted into the promotion’s Hall of Fame, the former featherweight-turned-bantamweight competitor responded to a question about what his goals... [Read More...]
Mike Thomas Brown’s first defense likely to take place vs. Leonard Garcia
With Urijah Faber now slated to fight Jens Pulver at WEC 38 on Jan. 25 in a rematch from the classic June encounter, multiple sources have informed FiveOuncesOfPain.com that current WEC featherweight champion Mike Thomas Brown is now expected to make his first defense against former UFC lightweight Leonard Garcia. Five Ounces of Pain spoke to a third source close to Brown who indicated that while the... [Read More...]
Sources: Major changes made within the WEC’s front office
Multiple sources have revealed to FiveOuncesOfPain.com within the past seven days that Zuffa-owned World Extreme Cagefighting has made two notable changes to its front office. Scott Adams and Reed Harris were the original co-owners of the WEC prior to selling it to Zuffa in 2006 and remained with the promotion in high-level positions following the acquisition. Adams had been serving with the promotion... [Read More...]
Leonard Garcia says he feels like the number one contender in new 5 Oz. interview
Leonard Gracia couldn’t be happier following what could easily be described as the biggest win of his career. The Greg Jackson trained fighter’s first round knockout over former UFC champion Jens Pulver has the MMA world buzzing that there’s a new force to be reckoned with in the featherweight division. After a nine month lay off and recently being cleared of federal charges that... [Read More...]
Dana White says he’s willing to bring Gina Carano to WEC
The UFC held a press conference earlier today in Toronto to promote the upcoming welterweight title fight between Georges St. Pierre and B.J. Penn. As usual, Dana White was on hand to not only promote the event but to answer questions from the press. When asked about women’s MMA and Gina Carano today, White seems to have lightened up his stance according to a report at 660 News in Calgary. “Gina... [Read More...]
The Future is Bright for WEC’s 145 Pound Division
Mike Brown pulled off what so many didn’t think he could when he dethroned top ranked featherweight and WEC champion Urijah Faber. The stunning first round knockout has the MMA community still recovering from an upset that has left most that have seen or heard about it in a state of shock.Following his huge upset win over Faber, Brown looks nearly unstoppable at 145 pounds. The knockout over... [Read More...]
Wagnney Fabiano’s WEC debut to come against Akitoshi Tamura on Dec. 3
Former IFL featherweight champion Wagnney Fabiano’s debut for World Extreme Cagefighting is now set for WEC 37 on Dec. 3 at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. The news was first reported by MMA Weekly. Both Fabiano and Tamura are ranked as top ten featherweights, according to most pundits. The high-profile matchup has led some to speculate that the clash between the two could... [Read More...]
Johny Hendricks vs. Alex Serdyukov moved to WEC’s Dec. 3 event; Shane Roller vs. Mike Budnik added
The debut WEC debut of former NCAA champion Johny Hendricks has been postponed for the second time, as his planned welterweight bout vs. Russian Alex Serdyukov has been moved from WEC 36 on Nov. 5 in Florida to WEC 37 on Dec. 3 in Las Vegas. FiveOuncesOfPain.com confirmed the news with Hendricks’ manager, Team Takedown’s Ted Ehrhardt, after being alerted to the news by an unnamed source... [Read More...]
Nissen Osterneck tapped as new opponent for Jake Rosholt during Nov. 5 WEC event
A new opponent has been secured to take on former NCAA wrestling champion Jake Rosholt in his WEC debut on Nov. 5 in Hollywood, Fla. at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Rosholt had been slated to face American Top Team jiu-jitsu black belt Danillo Villefort but will instead square off against 5-0 middleweight Nissen Osterneck. FiveOuncesOfPain.com confirmed the news with multiple sources,... [Read More...]
5 Oz. of Pain on CBS Sports: Urijah Faber’s appeal is universal amongst hardcore and casual fans
Prior to the cancellation of this Wednesday’s WEC card, I spent much of my week writing a feature for CBSSports.com on the promotion’s current featherweight champion Urijah Faber. Despite the cancellation, the article is still relevant and worth the read since I decided to focus on the unique appeal Faber has as both a growing star in the mainstream and a favorite amongst hardcore fans... [Read More...]
WEC’s Sept. 10 event postponed until Nov. 5
The prospect of inclement weather in the form of Hurricane Ike has forced World Extreme Cagefighting officials to postpone its next week that had been scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 10 at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla. until Wednesday, Nov. 5 at the same venue. Denny Burkholder of CBSSports.com was the first to break the news, with the WEC sending out an official press release... [Read More...]
WEC moving closer towards elimination of middleweight and light heavyweight divisions
While it has been rumored for some time, Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports has confirmed that Zuffa has formally decided to fold the 185 lbs. and 205 lbs. divisions in its World Extreme Cagefighting brand. Despite the news, there is still no official timetable as to when the WEC will eliminate its middleweight and light heavyweight divisions, as the company is promoting a major middleweight title defense... [Read More...]
WEC’s Brian Bowles says he could be one win away from a shot at Miguel Torres in new 5 Oz. Exclusive Interview
For many years now bantamweight fighters have performed under the shroud of almost total anonymity. Unless you were a hardcore fan who followed smaller Japanese promotions such as DEEP and Shooto, chances are that you didn’t really care about the 135 lbs. division in MMA. But times care changing, thanks in large part to World Extreme Cagefighting, which has helped expose many U.S. fans to the... [Read More...]
Donald Cerrone reveals that a win at WEC 36 over Rob McCullough gets him a lightweight title shot in new 5 Oz. Exclusive Interview
Hundreds of thousands of democrats have migrated West to Denver, Colorado this week for the Democratic National Convention. And relatively close by, 12 fighters from Greg Jackson’s MMA have flocked from Albuquerque, New Mexico to Vail, Colorado, in search of high altitude training to give them an additional edge for upcoming fights. One of those fighters is none other than 8-0 WEC lightweight... [Read More...]
