WEC - the move to Pay Per View!

[TheSaviour]

World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion. It is the sister promotion to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), both owned and produced by Zuffa, with a focus on the lighter weight classes (155, 145, 135, & 125 lbs). The WEC uses the same rules as its older and much larger sibling, and holds its matches in a smaller octagonal cage.

The organization was started in 2001 by Scott Adams and Reed Harris. Between 2001 and 2006, most of their events were held in Lemoore, California and aired on HDNet.

In December 2006, Zuffa purchased the WEC. With the purchase, the WEC continues as a separate promotion with its own roster of fighters. Adams has been retained after the purchase as the organization's matchmaker. Harris and Adams were named co-General Managers and are both active in the new WEC.[1]

Zuffa made several changes to the promotion after the purchase. It discontinued its pentagonal cage for a modified version of the UFC's octagonal cage. The championships of fighters who were contracted UFC fighters were vacated. The promotion moved to focus on lighter weight classes, abandoning their heavyweight and super heavyweight divisions and championships, and retaining their bantamweight and featherweight divisions—two divisions not currently present in the UFC.[2] Since the purchase, several of the WEC events have been held in Zuffa's hometown of Las Vegas, Nevada, much like the UFC.

The WEC currently airs their events live on Versus, formerly known as the Outdoor Life Network and on The Sports Network in Canada.[3] WEC's first live event was broadcast on June 3, 2007 on Versus from The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

The WEC announced that it will dissolve their light heavyweight and middleweight divisions after their December 3, 2008 event to further their concentration on lighter classes. Fighters from the light heavyweight and middleweight divisions will start fighting in the UFC after the dissolution of their divisions.[4] Also, on February 3, 2009, the WEC officially announced the creation of a 125 lb. Flyweight Division and the dissolution of its welterweight division (Flyweight is the last division under the "Unified Rules of MMA" remaining, excluding Super Heavyweight, to be activated under ZUFFA). Fighters from the welterweight division will start fighting in the UFC after the dissolution of their division. The only weight class remaining to cross-over between the WEC & the UFC is the 155 lb Lightweight division.[5]

UFC President Dana White recently announced his intentions of bringing the WEC to Pay Per View in 2009.

With a flyweight division soon to debut, a Pay Per View deal struck with Shaw PPV, and even talk of a potential women's division somewhere down the road, WEC's next even, WEC 40 is expected to be announced shortly

I've only recently started watching WEC so can't pretend to know everything about all these fighters and the promotion, so would be great if people can bare with me a bit. Hopefully I'll make it fairly accurate and it'll be a good learning curve for me too. Am doing this with WMMA, with the Modern Warriors 4.0 data. Preview for WEC 40 will be up shortly

[maudlin career]

This is what I like. Someone taking an existing promotion. Not editing the roster. Not adding anything big, and slightly tweaking it just enough to make it realistic and interesting. My friend and I were pondering about the potential WEC to PPV move last night. I will definitely be reading this.

[BHK1978]

I love the WEC (great fighters and you do not have to pay almost $50 a month to see it)! I will be reading this as well!

[ShortShortsarentdead]

Yes A Wec Dynasty!

[Sons of Kohral]

I love the WEC (great fighters and you do not have to pay almost $50 a month to see it)! I will be reading this as well!

2nd.

[TheSaviour]

WEC 40 - Torres Vs Bowles Preview
Show held in Arizona
airing live on Versus & repeated on The Fight Network
Sunday, week 4, April 2009

WEC Bantamweight Title
Miguel Torres (35-1) Vs Brian Bowles (7-0)

Undefeated since 2003, WEC Bantamweight Champion Miguel Torres is considered to be one of the best pound for pound fighters in the world today. Torres has already stacked up a 4 and 0 record in the WEC with wins over Jeff Bedard at WEC 30, Chase Beebe at WEC 32, Yoshiro Maeda at WEC 34, and most recently Manny Tapia at WEC 37. Known for his innovative and devastating striking skils, Torres has been able to demonstrate an even better understanding of the ground game offering slick submissions and great defence once the fight hits the mat. Torres is known for his exciting fighting style and believes that in challenger, Brian Bowles, he has just the opponent to showcase his world class skills. Athens, Georgia native Brian Bowles' rise to the number one contender spot in the Bantamweight division has been nothing if not rapid, boasting an unblemished 7 and 0 record, with four of those victories coming in the WEC. Bowles debuted with a 2nd round submission of Charlie Valencia at WEC 28, and followed it up with wins over Marcos Galvao at WEC 31, Damacio Page at WEC 35 and most recently Will Ribeiro at WEC 37. Bowles, who says he's been working hard to develop strong Muay Thai skills coming into this fight, is prepared for a war with the world's best Bantamweight and will look to utilise his vicious striking and strong takedowns to achieve his dream of becoming the WEC Bantamweight Champion.

Featherweight
LC Davis (13-1) Vs Wagnney Fabiano (11-1)

Making his WEC debut, Kansas City's LC Davis is looking to avenge the only defeat on an otherwise unblemished record at WEC 40. Davis, who trains with the American Jiu-Jitsu Academy, will be hoping his strong ground game and impressive takedown defence will see a reverse of the 2007 defeat which saw him submitted in under four minutes by his opponent at WEC 40, Wagnney Fabiano. Fabiano, who comes into this fight off the back of a win at WEC 37 against Akitoshi Tamura, has shown himself to be a superb submission specialist with incredible ground control. Fabiano has stated publically that he expects to see a repeat of their 2007 fight and has vowed to submit Davis within the first round. In a stacked division, currently headed by Urijah Faber slayer, Mike Brown, Fabiano will be looking not only to win but to put in the sort of eye catching performance that earns him a title shot somewhere down the line.

Featherweight
Fredson Paixao (8-2) Vs Jens "Little Evil" Pulver (22-10-1)

In a career that has already seen wins over Fabio Mello, Mike French, Masakazu Imanari and Thomas Denny, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt Fredson Paixao has displayed slick submission skills and a phenomenal takedown defence which he beileves will be the key to defeating his opponent at WEC 40, Jens Pulver. Paixao will be making his WEC debut in the 145lb Featherweight division and sees himself as a major threat to WEC's top featherweights, and primarily, WEC Featherweight Champion Mike Brown. Paixao's opponent, former UFC Lightweight Champion Jens Pulver comes into WEC 40 on the back of three straight defeats. Nobody will ever forget the resurgent Pulver that we saw at WEC 34, pushing former WEC Featherweight champion Urijah Faber in a brilliant five round war but more recent battles have seen Pulver look out of sorts, first stopped at 1:12 in the 1st round of his bought with Leonard Garcia at WEC 36 before being submitted by Urijah Faber in their rematch at UFC 38. Pulver is desperate to re-establish himself in the WEC and has been working harder than ever with the Miletich Martial Arts Camp to prepare for what could possibly be his last shot at the big time.

Bantamweight
Mike French (6-9) Vs Takeya Mizugaki (10-2-2)

After suffering back to back losses, to Antonio Banuelos at WEC 25, and Jeff Bedard at WEC 28, Mike French took time out to re-assess his career and will make his return, stronger than ever, at WEC 40. French, classically trained in wrestling, has been working hard on his Muay Thai skills in recent months and believes we'll see an entirely different fighter to the one we saw in 2007. At 5'10, French already provides an entirely different test to most Bantamweight fighters and at 33 sees himself climbing back up the ranks in the 135lb division. 2003 Shooto Rookie of the Year, Takeya Mizugaki, makes his WEC debut on the back of a five fight win streak which saw him beat Masahiro Oishi last time out. Having recently alligned himself with the Mach Dojo, Mizugaki believes something many others don't, that current WEC Bantamweight Champion Miguel Torres, is beatable and plans to start his march to a title shot at WEC 40. Mizugaki has shown fantastic submission skills, both in offence and defence, and has a striking ability that should worry any 135lb'er in the world.

Lightweight
"Cowboy" Donald Cerrone (9-1) Vs Shane Roller (5-1)

Coming into this fight off the back of his first ever defeat, a controversial technical decision loss against WEC Lightweight Champion Jamie Varner at WEC 38, Brownfield Colorado's original Cowboy, Donald Cerrone is desperate to prove he deserves another shot at the gold. Currently training with the Jackson Submission Fighting Camp, Cerrone has shown himself to be much more than just a top level kickboxer, submitting eight of his previous opponents and believes he has all the tools neccessary to be victorious at WEC 40, and move onto a rematch with Jamie Varner. Cerrone's opponent, Shane Roller's young career has already seen him go 2 and 0 in the WEC with wins over Todd Moore at WEC 35, and Mike Budnik at WEC 37. A former NCAA wrestler, currently training with the Team Takedown camp, Roller is set for a big step up in class but believes he can not only throw a spanner into the works for Cerrone, but prove he deserves a shot at the Lighterweight Title down the road.

Bantamweight
Del Hawkins (22-15) Vs Danny Martinez (12-3)

Featherweight
Chris Manuel (6-0-2) Vs Manny Tapia (10-1-1)

Lightweight
Ed "9mm" Ratcliff (6-1) Vs Scott McAfee (6-1)

Featherweight
Manvel "the Anvil" Gamburyan (8-4) Vs Cole Province (5-1)

Lightweight
"Wildfire" Mike Budnik (7-2) Vs Greg McIntyre (5-3)

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In other WEC News a 6 show Pay Per View deal has been struck with Shaw PPV to bring World Extreme Cagefighting to Pay Per View. WEC have announced that WEC 41 - Brown Vs Faber, will be their first Pay Per View offering. WEC have also reached an agreement with the Fight Network to begin broadcasting their events as Zuffa looks to showcase WEC to new markets. The card for WEC 41 - Brown Vs Faber has been announced and is shown in full below.

WEC 41 - Brown Vs Faber
Show held in Nevada
Live on Pay Per View!
Sunday, week 3, May 2009

WEC Featherweight Title
Mike Brown (21-4) Vs "The California Kid" Urijah Faber (22-2)

Featherweight
Cub Swanson (13-2) Vs Dominic Cruz (12-1)

Bantamweight
"the Big Frog" Jeff Curran (29-10-1) Vs Scott Jorgenson (6-2)

Lightweight
Bart "Bartimus" Palaszewski (30-11) Vs Paul Reed (9-2)

Flyweight
Daniel Otero (6-1-1) Vs Fumihiro Kitahara (4-0)

Bantamweight
Ian McCall (7-2) Vs Rafael Rebello (5-3)

Bantamweight
Charlie Valencia (10-5) Vs Tyson Nam (4-2)

Lightweight
Alex Karalexis (9-4) Vs Willamy "Chiquerinho" Chiquerim (12-1)

Flyweight
Adam Antolin (3-0) Vs Takuyaki Hirayasu (1-3)

Bantamweight
Dwayne Haney (3-1) Vs Russell Doane (2-1)

[ShortShortsarentdead]

WEC Featherweight Title
Mike Brown (21-4) Vs "The California Kid" Urijah Faber (22-2)

Featherweight
Cub Swanson (13-2) Vs Dominic Cruz (12-1)

Bantamweight
"the Big Frog" Jeff Curran (29-10-1) Vs Scott Jorgenson (6-2)

Lightweight
Bart "Bartimus" Palaszewski (30-11) Vs Paul Reed (9-2)

Flyweight
Daniel Otero (6-1-1) Vs Fumihiro Kitahara (4-0)

Bantamweight
Ian McCall (7-2) Vs Rafael Rebello (5-3)

Bantamweight
Charlie Valencia (10-5) Vs Tyson Nam (4-2)

Lightweight
Alex Karalexis (9-4) Vs Willamy "Chiquerinho" Chiquerim (12-1)

Flyweight
Adam Antolin (3-0) Vs Takuyaki Hirayasu (1-3)

Bantamweight
Dwayne Haney (3-1) Vs Russell Doane (2-1)
__________________________________________________ ___________
WEC Bantamweight Title
Miguel Torres (35-1) Vs Brian Bowles (7-0)

Featherweight
LC Davis (13-1) Vs Wagnney Fabiano (11-1)
Featherweight
Fredson Paixao (8-2) Vs Jens "Little Evil" Pulver (22-10-1)

Bantamweight
Mike French (6-9) Vs Takeya Mizugaki (10-2-2)


Bantamweight
Del Hawkins (22-15) Vs Danny Martinez (12-3)

Featherweight
Chris Manuel (6-0-2) Vs Manny Tapia (10-1-1)

Lightweight
Ed "9mm" Ratcliff (6-1) Vs Scott McAfee (6-1)

Featherweight
Manvel "the Anvil" Gamburyan (8-4)via LnP Vs Cole Province (5-1)

Lightweight
"Wildfire" Mike Budnik (7-2) Vs Greg McIntyre (5-3)

Lightweight
"Cowboy" Donald Cerrone (9-1) Vs Shane Roller (5-1)

[dtrot021]

WEC Featherweight Title
Mike Brown (21-4) Vs "The California Kid" Urijah Faber (22-2)

Featherweight
Cub Swanson (13-2) Vs Dominic Cruz (12-1)

Bantamweight
"the Big Frog" Jeff Curran (29-10-1) Vs Scott Jorgenson (6-2)

Lightweight
Bart "Bartimus" Palaszewski (30-11) Vs Paul Reed (9-2)

Flyweight
Daniel Otero (6-1-1) Vs Fumihiro Kitahara (4-0)

Bantamweight
Ian McCall (7-2) Vs Rafael Rebello (5-3)

Bantamweight
Charlie Valencia (10-5) Vs Tyson Nam (4-2)

Lightweight
Alex Karalexis (9-4) Vs Willamy "Chiquerinho" Chiquerim (12-1)

Flyweight
Adam Antolin (3-0) Vs Takuyaki Hirayasu (1-3)

Bantamweight
Dwayne Haney (3-1) Vs Russell Doane (2-1)
__________________________________________________ ___________
WEC Bantamweight Title
Miguel Torres (35-1) Vs Brian Bowles (7-0)

Featherweight
LC Davis (13-1) Vs Wagnney Fabiano (11-1)

Featherweight
Fredson Paixao (8-2) Vs Jens "Little Evil" Pulver (22-10-1)

Bantamweight
Mike French (6-9) Vs Takeya Mizugaki (10-2-2)


Bantamweight
Del Hawkins (22-15) Vs Danny Martinez (12-3)

Featherweight
Chris Manuel (6-0-2) Vs Manny Tapia (10-1-1)

Lightweight
Ed "9mm" Ratcliff (6-1) Vs Scott McAfee (6-1)

Featherweight
Manvel "the Anvil" Gamburyan (8-4) Vs Cole Province (5-1)

Lightweight
"Wildfire" Mike Budnik (7-2) Vs Greg McIntyre (5-3)

Lightweight
"Cowboy" Donald Cerrone (9-1) Vs Shane Roller (5-1)