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Perhaps the only thing that could salvage MMA’s lackluster month of April is an exciting and action packed WEC event. The UFC’s sister promotion will present its most stacked fight card ever and its very first pay-per-view offering this weekend in WEC 48. In a preview to this Saturday’s event, Joe Rogan definitely put it best by describing the excitement provided by the lighter weight classes as a “dirty little secret” among hardcore MMA fans.
The WEC’s staunch record of quality aside, this event might have to be an event of double the quality the promotion is usually known for in order to justify purchasing future WEC pay-per-view offerings in an already crowded combat sports landscape. While this is a fun and exciting step up in exposure for the WEC as a promotion, it comes in the middle of a hectic MMA calendar.
The very end of March brought us UFC 111, mid April brought us UFC 112, Strikeforce just presented fans with a free fight card last weekend; and just after the first week of May, fans will more than likely have to open their wallets yet again for UFC 113 featuring an anticipated rematch between Lyoto Machida and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. Also sprinkled in there somewhere was a rematch between over-seasoned pugilists Bernard Hopkins and Roy Jones Jr.
To say that fight fans have had their weekends filled for the last month and a half would be a massive understatement. However, what is really worth noting is that not one of those offerings, boxing or MMA, free or pay-per-view, was particularly extraordinary. Had MMA fans been receptive to the performances of Georges St. Pierre, Anderson Silva, or had the Strikeforce card been memorable in any truly positive way, the WEC’s first venture onto pay-per-view might have fans more willing to take a chance to see some great fights.
WEC 48 offers up some interesting questions including, but not limited to, how successful the event will be at prying open the wallets of MMA fans once more in a seemingly never ending wave of pay-per-views.
If he defeats Urijah Faber, can Jose Aldo become a draw?
Before Anderson Silva decided to do mid-fight auditions for “Dancing with the Stars,” the biggest knock on him was his drawing power. Despite the disturbing beauty of Silva’s regular devouring of opponents, “The Spider” was widely thought to be a dud as a pay-per-view draw due to his inability (or unwillingness if you choose to believe Chael Sonnen) to speak English. In this one instance perhaps being called a “145 lb. Anderson Silva” does Jose Aldo a disservice.
Should Urijah Faber lose to Jose Aldo, where does he go from there?
In November of 2008 “The California Kid” suffered just his second career defeat at the hands of Mike Thomas Brown. At the time it was acceptable for him to be given a rematch against Brown with just one fight in between because of his lengthy reign as champion.
Unfortunately for Faber he lost the rematch with Brown, but due in large part to two broken hands he suffered in the early rounds. After a quick rinse and repeat of the Faber formula, the WEC’s top draw has again found himself in line for the Featherweight Championship after just one fight.
Again, it is acceptable because of his dominance in his division outside of Mike Brown, but should he lose to Jose Aldo as well, that would make two men who he can’t beat, and would put him in an awkward position in his division. He’d be a bit too small for 155 lb., and he’d never face his friend and teammate Joseph Benavidez at 135 lb., so Faber’s options become very limited, very quickly with a loss against Aldo.
How long will the lightweight experiment continue?
Everyone knows the best grouping of 155 lb. fighters is in the UFC, so why does the WEC even have a division dedicated to that weight class? The biggest problem is that the WEC has such a shallow pool of guys in that division that it wouldn’t be too difficult at all to just move the truly talented four or five top guys in the division to the big show in the UFC.
With just three victories in the WEC and one lone loss to the incumbent champion, Anthony Njokuani, should he be victorious against Shane Roller, has been promised a title shot against the winner of Donald Cerrone and Benson Henderson. Cerrone himself has been in the title picture in the WEC for about a year and a half. That fight aside, there just isn’t very much depth there, and fighters in the WEC are on the verge of running into a series of rematches against one another at that weight.
RELATED STORY: WEC QUOTABLES: Donald Cerrone hopes the third times the charm for WEC Lightweight Title, looks to finish Henderson in rematch: [CLICK TO READ FULL ARTICLE]
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