I am headed to lollapalooza this weekend so I wanted to make sure I previewed this weekend’s big events before I left. I have to say, the prospects of coming back and watching two MMA events in one day (likely back to back) is somewhat exciting. I will start with the lesser known event, but don’t overlook this WEC card as it is one of the best in recent memory. The WEC has hitched its wagon to Faber for a number of reasons, but with Mike Brown reigning over the 145 lbs division and Miguel Torres emerging as a pound for pound contender, the tides have turned. The bantamweight king will meet his most significant challenge while under the WEC banner on August 9th, making this a paramount event for the WEC.
In a night of Bantamweight showdowns, a lightweight bout between Danny Castillo (7-1) and Ricardo Lamas (6–0) will be the battle of the big boys. Both fighters are coming off unanimous decision victories at the same show and will likely be looking to make statements against one another’s gaudy records. I was not fortunate enough to catch their last respective fights but have seen and been generally impressed with Castillo. Since I am not typically in the business of picking a winner, understanding how far a single win can go in this division is enough for me to get excited bout this fight. Joseph Benavidez and Dominick Cruz will be jousting for their own position in the ever-crowded 135 lbs division. I have been relatively impressed with Benavidez, particularly with his win over Curran. He could be the next guy to move his way up the ladder with another win, potentially putting himself in line for a title fight.
Speaking of Jeff Curran, he is going to have his hands full avoiding his 4th loss in a row when he fights Takeya Mizugaki. Mizugaki gave Miguel Torres everything he could handle, demonstrating solid stand up that could give Curran problems. The difference is that Curran is not accepting this fight on short notice and will have at least one WEC fight to study. Each man could be a few wins away from a title shot but Curran might be on his last WEC leg. These are two highly talented fighters and I fully expect them to put on an excited fight.
Finally, Brian Bowles will at last get his shot at Miguel Torres. Torres seems to have reached the pound-for-pound status and that comes with assumed wins. This is one fight that I am really hesitant to assume anything on. If Torres had trouble with Mizugaki’s stand up, Bowles could make things a lot worse for the Bantamweight king. Bowles has very sound stand up and is well rounded to boot. You can never count out Miguel Torres, who is as scrappy as anyone in MMA. He mixes scrap with profound talent and technical prowess that has brought him this far. The WEC wins either way this goes down. Another feud for the title would be great, meaning the world doesn’t end if Bowles wins. However, everyone loves an unstoppable champion and Torres is the closest thing the WEC has.
At the end of the day, the WEC always delivers an entertaining card. You don’t have to know a single fighter on the card to come away from one of these shows smiling. Zuffa’s smaller promotion bats a thousand when it comes to entertainment and this card will be no different.
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