WEC 40 Fight Card & Results & Review

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The WEC held its 40th event in the history of the organization on Sunday night April 5, 2009. The event was headlined by Bantamweight champion Miguel Torres defending his belt for the fourth time in a hard fought battle against Japanese warrior Takeya Mizugaki. WEC 40 was held for the first time in the Midwestern city of Chicago, Illinois at the UIC Pavilion.

An event that featured many local fighters didn’t disappoint in the excitement category. All main card fights were competitive and action packed. Quickly becoming the home for the best fighters in the lighter weight classes, the WEC showcased some of the best up and coming fighters in the world on Sunday night.

Bart Palaszewski vs. Anthony Njokuani

In a preliminary lightweight bout Anthony Njokuani took out some aggression on local favorite and International Fight League vet Bart Palaszewski. The “Assassin” got back on track after suffering a defeat in his WEC debut against Ben Henderson at WEC 38 in January 2009. The WEC sophomore showed great stand up skills in earning a TKO win over Palaszewski at 0:27 of the 2nd round.

Palaszewski, taking the fight on short notice, never really got on track with his game plan against Njokuani. Njokuani came out flashing his muay Thai skills, delivering knees and kicks from the clinch, and catching Palaszewski often. The “Assassin” also threw some solid leg kicks into the thigh of his opponent. He did drop Palaszewski late in the first round with a straight right hand that hurt his him but couldn’t finish him. Palaszewski recovered and was able to finish the round, although well behind on the scorecards.

The second round began with a quick combination from the Las Vegas, NV trained Njokuani. It was a left kick followed by his right hand that dropped Palaszewski. After hitting the mat, Njokuani jumped on his experienced opponent delivering some unanswered ground and pound forcing referee Scott Fisher to stop the bout.

Njokuani, now at 1-1 with the WEC will likely face another tough lightweight opponent this summer continuing his rise up through the division. His overall record improves to 11-2 with the win over the Polish fighter. Palaszewski drops his overall record to 30-13 and 1-2 in the WEC. This loss makes it two in a row for Palaszewski and possibly on his way out of the organization.

Rapheal Assuncao vs. Jameel Massouh

Rapheal Assuncao and Jameel Massouh squared off in a featherweight bout that didn’t produce the luster that many MMA enthusiasts figured it would. Assuncao, lived up to his reputation as an aggressive muay-thai fighter as well as a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, by overwhelming his younger opponent and earning himself the unanimous decision win 30-27 on all scorecards. It was Jameel Massouh who had trouble getting on track the entire match.

Assuncao obviously held the advantage on the ground coming into the fight with 8 submission wins out of 12 total victories. The Brazilian fighter wasn’t expected to dominate the Milwaukee native in the striking department, however. He wore down Massouh on the feet and knocked him to the canvas several times throughout the fight.

The only offense that Massouh could muster was a heel hook attempt early in the first round that could have given his opponent trouble had he held onto the attempt. Assuncao escaped that attempt and all others that he faced on the night.

Assuncao finished the fight in a decisive manner by delivering combinations and takedowns in the third round. He sealed the “Real Deal” Massouh by connecting with short elbows and punches from the ground and later from the feet in the remaining seconds of the fight.

With a decisive win by Assuncao, he will likely take on one of the many contenders in the WEC featherweight division. His record improves to 13-1 with his WEC debut win. Jameel Massouh, who also came into the fight with a great deal of hype, will probably get another shot at a WEC victory in the coming months. Meanwhile, with this loss he drops his record to 21-5 and stops his 5 fight win streak.

Shane Roller vs. Ben Henderson

Ben Henderson took a hard right hand from his opponent Shane Roller that sent him to the canvas but quickly recovered to deliver his own left hand that earned his second WEC win with a first round TKO win (1:41).

Roller began the lightweight bout with some quick exchanges with his opponent, “Smooth” Henderson. It was less than a minute into the fight that Henderson was knocked to the ground and in Roller’s specialty submission attempt, the guillotine choke. Roller almost made Henderson his third straight opponent to fall by way of guillotine until he somehow escaped and got back to his feet.

Shortly after getting back to his feet, Henderson clinched with Roller. As he was breaking from the clinch, Henderson executed his combination of punches featuring the left hand that sent Roller flying to the deck. The referee Scott Fisher allowed Roller adequate time to protect himself, which he failed to do, in turn causing him to stop the fight in the first round.

The win gives Henderson a perfect 2-0 WEC record and an overall record of 9-1. His 8 fight win streak will surely get him a date with a competitive WEC lightweight fighter in the near future. Roller, who falls to 5-2 overall, is now 2-1 in the WEC and will start over in his attempt to contend for the WEC lightweight belt.

Jeff Curran vs. Joseph Benavidez

In a very exciting co-main event bout, the youngster Joseph Benavidez defeated the experienced 40 plus fight veteran Jeff “Big Frog” Curran. Consistently beating Curran in exchanges and getting the best of the technical striker was the key to earning his unanimous decision victory. His unpredictability and aggressive style proved too much to handle for the “Big Frog”, in what will no doubt be a very important 135 lb. fight.

It took three complete rounds for the 24 year old, Uriah Faber-trained fighter to take the decision win. Curran began the first round as the aggressor and took the center of the cage. Both fighters showed excellent stand up skills, but Benavidez dropped Curran late in the first with a left punch that probably earned him the round.

The second round started off by looking more like a kickboxing match, with each fighter throwing sharp kicks. The fight eventually landed on the ground, an area in which Curran figured to hold a distinct advantage. Curran did attempt a couple of submission attempts in the second when on the ground but Benavidez was able to escape each time.

The third round pace was just as quick as the first two rounds with Benavidez the aggressor the majority of the time. He delivered knees, punches and elbows when on the ground and his striking was superior when on the feet. Curran took one last desperate shot at a submission late in the third round with a triangle choke attempt but it was quickly dismissed by Benavidez.

Benavidez was superior in every area of the fight with the exception of the first half of the very first round. He improves his overall record to 10-0 and 2-0 in the WEC. Benavidez is quickly climbing the ladder and will soon be considered in the hunt for a title shot.

Jeff Curran, who never takes an easy fight, has now dropped 3 WEC fights in a row. His veteran record falls to 31-11-1 and 1-3 in the WEC. The former featherweight fighter has dropped his first WEC bantamweight fight to a top contender, forcing him to probably take another 135 lb. fight against one of the division’s best on a future card.

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Miguel Torres vs. Takaya Mizugaki

Miguel Torres had to go through a brick wall by the name Takeya Mizugaki to defend his 135 lb. bantamweight title for the 3 rd time. Originally scheduled to fight contender Brian Bowles, the fight had to be scratched due to an injury. With the injury WEC fans had the opportunity to see one of the world’s best unknown fighters, in Takeya Mizugaki. Mizugaki came to the WEC from Japan promotions Cage Force and Shooto.

Little was known of Mizugaki, other than he was a hard hitting, aggressive striker with dangerous ground and pound. His 11-2-2 record was compiled against little known fighters. Many thought that he would just be another fighter that was thrown to the champ expecting another first round loss. Well, whoever had that thought couldn’t have been more wrong.

Mizugaki came into the fight well prepared and with a specific plan, to keep the fight standing with the Chicago native. Considering Torres has two consecutive TKO victories, that may sound like a bad plan to some, but remembering Torres’ skills on the ground, it was the right decision. Other than maybe one or two slips to the mat, Mizugaki followed that plan perfectly.

The first round started off at a torrid pace with both fighters exchanging punches and combinations. Mizugaki seemed to continue to come right at Torres connecting with some heavy punches. Mizugaki also showed his iron jaw by taking some strong punches from the dangerous Torres.

The second and third rounds continued with the same fast pace and continuous strikes. Mizugaki did most of his damage on body punches and an occasional knee from the clinch. Torres delivered a variety of strikes from everywhere. It was a combination from the Japanese fighter though that had the biggest effect of the middle rounds. Mizugaki caught Torres with a left hook that opened a cut right above the eye of the champ. Referee Marc Wilson called the ringside doctor over to examine the cut late in the third round. The cut was observed and determined that it would not hurt the fighter if he continued with the cut.

The fourth round began and ended with a different feel to it. The fourth round showed Mizugaki slowing down and giving way to the champ in the conditioning department. Although, Mizugaki showed the same ability as far as striking he was being dominated in the clinch against the champ. Torres was beating the Shooto vet with elbows and short punches while in the clinch.

The intensity of the two fighters continued into the fifth and final round. Both fighters slowed but continued to push forward. Mizugaki continued to connect on body shots and combinations. Torres also showed why he is the WEC champ by overwhelming the challenger and delivering heavy punches until the final bell. Torres took the fight with scores of 49-46, 49-46, and 48-47 from the judges.

Mizugaki, even with the loss will likely earn another WEC fight against a top contender. He drops his overall record to 11-3-2 with his WEC debut. His status as one of the top 135 lb. fighters has only improved with his latest fight against Torres. He should have no problem finding another competitive fight in the crowded bantamweight division.

Torres now has shown his dangerous ground game with 22 submission victories, his technical striking (2 of his last 3 wins are TKO), and now his endurance and conditioning. Torres now 36-1 overall and 5-0 in the WEC will almost certainly face number one contender Brian Bowles in another title defense. The two will hopefully fight to determine who the best bantamweight fighter is. Considering his last fight it’s hard to imagine anybody outlasting the champ.

Here are the complete results for WEC 40: Torres vs. Mizugaki:

WEC 40 Main Event:

• Miguel Angel Torres defeats Takeya Mizugaki by Unanimous Decision - Torres retains WEC Bantamweight Championship belt
• Joseph Benavidez defeats Jeff Curran by Unanimous Decision
• Ben Henderson defeats Shane Roller by TKO (Strikes) - 1st Round @ 1:41
• Raphael Assuncao defeats Jameel Massouh by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Other WEC 40 Fights:

• Anthony Njokuani defeats Bart Palaszewski by TKO - 2nd round @ 0:27
• Dominick Cruz defeats Ivan Lopez by Unanimous Decision at 3:24 in the 3rd Round by Foul
• Wagnney Fabiano defeats Fredson Paixao by Unanimous Decision
• Rani Yahya defeats Eddie Wineland by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) - 1st Round @ 1:07
• Akitoshi Tamura defeats Manny Tapia by Unanimous Decision
• Rafael Dias defeats Mike Budnik by Unanimous Decision