Ben Henderson wants more - 1/25/10
By Odeen Domingo, The Arizona Republic
- His face, bashed. His ribs, kicked.
His hunger, unsatisfied.
It's been a little over a week since Glendale mixed martial arts
fighter Ben Henderson won the World Extreme Cagefighting lightweight
championship belt, beating then champ Jamie Varner of Phoenix via a
third-round submission. Henderson spent at least 12 grueling weeks
training for that Jan. 10 fight in Sacramento, which Varner was
winning until Henderson applied a quick, tight guillotine choke
(yes, it's as great as it sounds) that ended the bout.
Josh Grispi achin’ to get back - 1/25/10
By Dan Duggan, Boston Herald - He’s one
of the most promising featherweights in World Extreme Cagefighting,
the sister promotion of the UFC, but for the time being, Josh Grispi
is spending his days working for his father’s roofing company.
Grispi, a 21-year-old phenom who has won his first three WEC
fights, has been out of action since undergoing right ankle surgery
in September.
Lamas’ Next Test: Frenchman Bendy Casimir - 1/25/10
Frank Curreri, WEC - The stunning blow
struck on a Saturday, and Ricardo Lamas hastily scrambled in search
of a flight out of town.
A day later, the 27-year-old Chicagoan boarded a plane bound for
Arizona. When the aircraft landed, he drove to a residence with his
father and brother. The somber trio walked inside and began sifting
through George Lamas’ possessions.
Octagon Girl Brittney Palmer featured on AskMen.com - 1/24/10
WEC Girl Brittney Palmer's lovely face -- as well as other parts
-- graces the pages of AskMen.com as their featured gallery of the
day.
Former champ: 'I was in a bubble' - 1/22/10
By Brett Okamoto, Las Vegas Sun - The
training camp Miguel Torres is using to prepare for a March 6
meeting with Joseph Benavidez in Columbus is much different than the
one he used for his WEC bantamweight title defense against Brian
Bowles in August.
After getting knocked out and losing his title in that fight, Torres
moved his camp from Chicago to Las Vegas earlier this month and
surrounded himself with new partners and coaches.
Rugby player switches sports, finds MMA success - 1/21/10
Prior to landing in WEC, Deividas Taurosevicius' bounced around
many different organizations. The 32-year-old was relatively
successful, but never made a major impact anywhere. However, since
making his WEC debut in October, he's picked up impressive wins over
top contenders Javier Vasquez and Mackens Semerzier, and MMA Junkie
is reporting that next in line for the Lithuanian-born fighter is
L.C. Davis.
Deividas Taurosevicius talks UFC 109 on Fox - 1/21/10
Deividas Taurosevicius joins UFC fighters on the panel of Fox
Fight Game to discuss Randy Couture, Mark Coleman, and the rest of
the UFC 109 card.
Campuzano has plans for Fight of the Night bonus - 1/20/10
By John Morgan, Dallas Morning News -
Fighting in the evening's very first bout at "WEC 46: Varner vs.
Henderson" earlier this month, WEC bantamweight and Mt. Pleasant
native Will Campuzano (7-1 MMA, 1-1 WEC) had to wait several hours
to find out his rousing unanimous-decision win over Coty "Ox"
Wheeler had been named the evening's "Fight of the Night."
But after making just $6,000 for the fight, it was certainly worth
the wait to learn he was being given another $10,000 for the award.
Born to Haitian parents, fighter urges fans to help - 1/19/10
By Brett Okamoto, Las Vegas Sun - When
WEC featherweight Mackens Semerzier made the decision to post a
video on the Internet urging people to donate to Haiti, he said it
wasn't his Haitian heritage that compelled him to do it.
It was his humanity.
"If you've got a heart, you can't watch that stuff without being
concerned," said Semerzier, whose parents emigrated from Haiti to
the U.S. in the late 1970s. "It's hard to watch.
"It bothers me seeing any people like that. It just happened to be
that it's my people right now."
Building the Urijah brand - 1/18/10
FIGHT! Life: Team Alpha Male, with Urijah Faber
- Urijah Faber isn’t just a superstar fighter for World Extreme
Cagefighting. He’s also a successful entrepreneur, a budding
real-estate mogul, and the leader of a dozen or so bad-asses known
as Team Alpha Male. The unofficial king of the Sacramento MMA scene
breaks down his recipe for success. Produced and directed by Matthew
Ross. Shot by Rick Lee and James Martinec. Edited by Ashley Cahill
and Ryan Jackson-Healy.
Henderson, Shalorus, and Campuzano Reflect on WEC 46 - 1/16/10
Frank Curreri, WEC - Awesomeness has
defined the past year for Benson Henderson. The affable Arizonan has
engineered the kind of magical run most fighters imagine but never
actualize – going 4-0 against lightweight powerhouses in the WEC,
winning the title, and getting engaged.
WEC Fighter raised in Little Haiti asks for help - 1/15/10
On Sunday night, Mackens Semerzier fought at WEC: Varner
vs. Henderson. On Tuesday, his relatives in Haiti found themselves
fighting for their lives.
SI's Q&A with WEC champ Henderson - 1/14/10
By Bryan Levick, BleacherReport.com -
Newly crowned WEC lightweight champion Ben Henderson is just
starting his MMA career. But he sure doesn't fight like an amateur.
He combines speed, strength and intestinal fortitude with a solid
wrestling background, and continues to hone boxing and jiu-jitsu
skills. Bleacher Report had the chance to speak with the champ on
everything, from his title to his future.
Bleacher Report: How are you feeling now that you have had some
time to let it all soak in?
Aldo, Bowles collect awards from MMA Live - 1/14/10
MMA Live rolls out the red carpet for its year-end awards show.
Two of the winners join the show: the WEC's Jose Aldo, fighter of
the year, and Brian Bowles, upset of the year. Plus Brock Lesnar's
trainer checks in with an update on the UFC heavyweight champion.
Watch Fight
of the Night - Wheeler vs. Campuzano for free - 1/11/10
Coty Wheeler vs. Will Campuzano was the first bout on the
undercard of WEC: Varner vs. Henderson on January 10. This dynamic
three-rounder was chosen as Fight of the Night and is now available
to watch for free exclusively on Versus.com.
Henderson Conquers Varner for Title; Faber Wins in Comeback -
1/11/10
Frank Curreri, WEC - Benson Henderson,
one-time sparring partner of Jamie Varner, is now the undisputed WEC
lightweight champion: Can I get an amen?
Varner had said before the fight that he considered himself in a
league above Henderson, but a flying guillotine choke that caused
him to tap out at 2 minutes 41 seconds of round three suggested
otherwise.
Brown seeks to soothe a lingering pain - 1/10/10
STEVE SOLLOWAY, Portland Press Herald -
The stitches came out within days and the cuts over his eyes healed
in another week or so. That part of Mike Brown's recovery was easy.
Soothing another hurt has been more difficult.
Brown lost his World Extreme Cagefighting featherweight title two
months ago in Las Vegas to Jose Aldo. Younger by more than 10 years
and quicker, Aldo took the fight to the mat in the second round.
Brown couldn't escape and couldn't counter. After Brown took dozens
of punches to the head, the referee stopped it.
Mackens Semerzier credits mother for success - 1/10/10
BY ARMANDO ALVAREZ, Miami Herald -
Mackens Semerzier fights for a living. He walks into an octagon
surrounded by a fence and exchanges punches, kicks, chokes, and
slams with opponents. So far in five fights as a professional MMA
fighter, Semerzier has been more than just good.
The 29-year old is regarded as one of the sport’s rising stars. For
his success, he credits the one person who kept him away from
fighting in the streets and away from trouble: his mother Rose.
No weight worries for WEC 46 - all make goal - 1/10/10
MATT ERICKSON, NWI.com - All fighters
made weight Saturday for Sunday's WEC 46 event in Sacramento, Calif.
The weigh-ins took place at the Sacramento Memorial Auditorium
downtown in the California state capital. Sunday's fight card will
take place at ARCO Arena.
Chesterton-based bantamweight Eddie Wineland tipped the scales at
135.5 pounds. His opponent, the 6-foot-1 George Roop, was also
135.5. (Fighters are allowed to be as much as 1 pound over their
weight limits in non-title fights.)
'California Kid' Faber puts MMA on map - 1/10/10
By Mark Billingsley, The Sacramento Bee
- Even though hometown mixed martial artist Urijah Faber is not
headlining, World Extreme Cagefighting general manager Reed Harris
was unafraid to bring today's 10-bout card to Arco Arena.
Faber will face featherweight Raphael Assuncao before the card's
final bout, when Jamie Varner (16-2-2) defends his lightweight title
against former sparring partner Ben Henderson (10-1).
