MMA Rankings > WEC Featherweight Rankings

WEC Featherweight Division Rankings

Ranking of the WEC's loaded 145-pound featherweight division - August 2009

With the recent successes of WEC fight cards featuring Mike Brown and Urijah Faber, the time is finally coming for the little guys to earn some decent paydays. With Mike Brown cementing his dominance at the top of the 145 pound ladder, a bevy of hungry contenders await in the near future. Here are the top ten featherweights currently employed by Zuffa LLC in the WEC.

> Check out all of the 2009 MMA rankings including our pound for pound rankings online provided by ProFighting-fans.com and browse the great selection of TapouT hats & clothing available!

Top WEC Featherweight Fighter Rankings:

1. Mike Thomas Brown – Brown’s November 2008 knockout of former WEC Featherweight Champion Urijah Faber was validated this year with back-to-back wins over top contender Leonard Garcia and a rematch with Faber in June. The ATT featherweight has not been defeated in nearly four years and is riding a dominant 10 fight-winning streak. He could be in for the toughest fight of his career when he takes on Brazilian Jose Aldo in November at WEC 44, however.

2. Urijah Faber – While he lost both of his title fights against Mike Brown in recent months, Faber still has yet to be defeated at 145lbs by anyone else. A broken hand could keep “The California Kid” out until the end of 2009, but another run at the title is almost a guarantee at this point in time.

3. Wagnney Fabiano – He may not be getting the next shot at the featherweight strap currently sported by Mike Brown, but Fabiano has long been considered one of the best featherweights in the world. The Brazilian will look to run his win streak to nine in a row, keeping his title hopes alive in the process, with a September battle with the unheralded Erik Koch at WEC 43.

4. Jose Aldo – At only 22 years of age, Brazilian striker Jose Aldo has compiled an impressive 15-1 professional record, including a recent 5-0 mark in the WEC. Holding 12 finishes in 15 wins is impressive, but finishing all five of his WEC bouts with (T)KO’s is what got Aldo a shot at 145lb champion Mike Brown in November in the main event of WEC 44.

5. Josh Grispi – Wracking up a 12-1 professional record in only two and a half years of competition has caused quite a bit of hype to built around this 20 year old from Plympton, MA. With three wins over highly respected featherweights Mark Hominick, Micah Miller, and Jens Pulver dotting his undefeated WEC record, look for “The Fluke” to challenge for the belt in the next year.




> Check out all of our MMA rankings including our pound for pound rankings online provided by ProFighting-fans.com and browse the great selection of TapouT hats & clothing available!




6. Leonard Garcia – Not everyone is sold on the idea of Leonard Garcia, a relatively unimpressive UFC lightweight, as a top featherweight in the world following back-to-back knockout victories over Hiroyuki Takaya and Jens Pulver, but nevertheless he remains rooted until someone other than Mike Brown beats him at 145 lbs. An August 9 WEC 42 battle with Jameel Massouh seems tailor-made to get the popular Mexican fighter back in the title picture sooner rather than later.

7. Rafael Assuncao – While he is only 1-0 in the WEC, Brazilian Rafael Assuncao holds a 13-1 professional record, including impressive wins over top lightweight fighters Joe Lauzon and Jorge Masvidal in the last few years. A win over Yves Jabouin next month could should place him a fight or two away from a shot at the title.

8. Cub Swanson – While he has been inconsistent since entering the waters of the WEC’s featherweight division, Swanson has shown world-class skills in one-sided wins over Micah Miller, Donnie Walker, and Hiroyuki Takaya, but the California native will have to do much better against top flight competition if he ever wants a shot at the title.

9. Manny Gamburyan – The well-known cousin of UFC welterweight Karo Parisyan, Manny Gamburyan made a splash in the WEC’s featherweight division following back-to-back losses in the UFC’s lightweight division with a win over John Franchi at WEC 41 in June. If he can maintain his explosive wrestling and offensive output 10lbs lighter, Gamburyan could be a contender in the making.

10. Jens Pulver – The first-ever UFC Lightweight Champion appears to be in the twilight of his career, losing six of his last seven fights and four in a row, but he is still leaps and bounds above the bottom of the heap in the WEC’s featherweight division. A first-round 2007 submission victory over Cub Swanson is the only thing keeping Pulver in the top ten, but he will need to get active soon in order to stay there.

Look to ProFighting-fans.com for more MMA rankings including our WEC Bantamweight rankings & WEC Lightweight rankings!

By Steven T. Kelliher
ProFighting-fans.com Senior Staff Writer

Published August 2009
World Extreme Cagefighting logo used with permission from the WEC

Past WEC Featherweight Division Rankings:

• WEC Featherweight Rankings - June 2009