WEC 53: Ten Things We Learned

Let’s take a look at the thrilling (and historic) final WEC card

I normally would have written my trademark recap segment immediately following Thursday night’s final WEC show, but there was a little something that kicks off this installment that had me unable to do almost anything.

If you don’t know what I mean – or for some unknown reason you didn’t watch the event – expect your MMA fan credentials to be pulled later this week. You missed history. How does that feel?

Best. Move. Ever

You might think I’m exaggerating, whether it’s because as a writer I’m prone to histrionics or because I’ve had a year-long man-crush on Anthony Pettis dating back to our first interview in March.

But everyone I’ve talked to since “it” happened have said the same thing: Best. Move. Ever.

There are two reasons why Pettis’ “Showtime Kick” has become an instant “Where were you when it happened?” event in MMA lore:

1. The dude ran off the cage, propelled himself in the air and kicked the retreating champion in the face.

2. The dude ran off the cage, propelled himself in the air and kicked the retreating champion in the face in the closing moments of a very close championship fight loaded with implications for the future.

This was The Matrix meets MMA and Pettis played Neo flawlessly, following Ben Henderson to the floor after the kick landed, not at all caught up in the moment like the rest of us. To attempt such a move under normal circumstances would be impressive, but to pull it out with 90 seconds left in a championship bout that was all-even on the cards – and nail it – is downright ridiculous.

Fight of the Year

Going into the final fight in WEC history, the front-runners for the year-end award were Anderson Silva’s come-from-behind submission of Chael Sonnen and the brawl between Leonard Garcia and “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung.

Thursday night in Glendale, Pettis and Henderson combined to deliver the most complete bout of the year. It had everything you could ask for in a 25-minute tilt, and the closing moments are going down in history as the best pseudo-finish in the sport to date.

Even without the mind-blowing “Showtime Kick,” this was my Fight of the Year. I’ll take a five round, back-and-forth title fight where each man is put in jeopardy and manages to survive over a sloppy brawl any day. While Silva’s triangle on Sonnen was still pretty smooth, you just had a feeling going into the final round that something was going to happen.

No one saw the “Showtime Kick” coming.

This was an instant classic that was also a truly fitting finale for the WEC. The company that had delivered the most consistently entertaining contest for the last few years went out with more than a bang; they went out with a sonic boom.

Care to Rethink Your Stance on the WEC Lightweights?

Right now, less than 24 hours after watching Pettis and Henderson go hold-for-hold for nearly 25 minutes, I don’t know how you can count either of them out as contenders in the lightweight division.

Pettis has been a no-brainer for me for some time. A well-rounded young fighter with speed, power and panache, he’s only going to keep getting better over the next few years, and when he’s breaking out imaginative and inventive moves without warning, he’s capable of catching anyone.

While there are some things Henderson needs to tighten up, he too has a solid future in the shark tank if he’s able to properly address those areas. You can’t teach heart or flexibility, two things we know Henderson possesses in spades, and his fundamentals are sound. If he can ratchet up the striking and top control portions of his game, Henderson will be a solid addition to the lightweight division who could cause trouble for those who take him too lightly.

Cruz Control

Horrible pun aside, Dominick Cruz made sure that he would go down in the history books as the first UFC bantamweight champion on Thursday night by thoroughly controlling every minute of his encounter with Scott Jorgensen.

While Jorgensen told Heavy.com earlier in the week that he could “out-wrestle Cruz in his sleep,” the former Pac-10 champion had no answers for the San Diego native. He was completely outwrestled.

Cruz was at his frenetic best once again, darting in and out at unpredictable angles, throwing body-head-leg kick combinations that no one else seems to think of, yet alone execute. The bantamweight champion also mixed in perfectly timed takedowns throughout the contest, leaving Jorgensen completely off-balance and unable to muster much of a challenge.

The victory sets the stage for a rematch with Urijah Faber, the only fighter to beat Cruz so far, and it is a bout Cruz himself lobbied for after the bout. Tired of hearing about Faber at every turn, the Alliance MMA product put out the challenge to “The California Kid” following his win.

I would be shocked if the two didn’t meet each other next, but I think it will be a few months down the road.

Cruz vs. Faber on The Ultimate Fighter?

If you’re looking for a way to introduce two of the top transfers from the WEC to a wider audience and put them in a position to successfully headline a future PPV event, look no further than the set of The Ultimate Fighter.

The bantamweight foes are both elite competitors their division, will be prominently featured in the UFC moving forward and could bring solid teams with them to the TUF gym as well. Honestly, think of the hours of unintentional hilarity that Faber’s striking coach Master Thong could produce alone.

More importantly, the show has proven to be a solid marketing tool in recent years, and while the hardcore set who has watched both fighters religiously over the last few years in the WEC don’t need any convincing to watch them throw down again, the UFC acolytes will need some convincing. A season of TUF with them at the forefront of the footage would provide the opportunity to get new fans invested in the bout without having to force-feed them the backstory.

It would also give Cruz the time he needs to have surgery and properly recover before facing Faber for a second time.

photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa

Donald Cerrone is Putting it Together

It might have taken a little longer than we thought it would, but it looks like “Cowboy” is starting to listen to the teachings of Master Yoda, and the talented lightweight is looking more and more like another “Jackson Jedi” for his efforts.

Cerrone has always displayed a good skill set, as evidenced by his 2009 Fight of the Year with Ben Henderson, but he wasn’t putting the pieces together properly. He was too hungry, too quick, and too cocky for his own good, his rushed attack potentially costing him on a couple different occasions. Lately, however, Cerrone has corralled his collection of skills a little more, taking a more measured approach, and it has paid off.

After thoroughly dominating Jamie Varner in their rematch this past September, Cerrone took advantage of a Chris Horodecki mistake (more on that in a second) to submit the Canadian in the second round of their meeting on Thursday.

While securing the win on the ground was far from a surprise, the poise and patience the 27-year-old lightweight exhibit was impressive, at least to me. He switched from an omoplata to a triangle, and while it wasn’t properly secured at first, Cerrone continued to adjust and work the hold, eventually forcing Horodecki to tap.

He’s going to be a star in the UFC because his swagger is highly marketable and polarizing. Now that he appears to be putting it all together, Cerrone may have increased his chances for crossover success in the process.

A Study in Stalled Development

During the glory days of the IFL (if there was such a thing, at least), Chris Horodecki was one of the biggest stars of the organization and one of the brightest prospects in the sport.

Three years after being upset by Ryan Schultz in the IFL World Grand Prix finals, Horodecki is a 23-year-old in need of a comeback.

While injuries played a part in the London, Ontario native being out of the cage for more than a year between April 2008 and June 2009, Horodecki hasn’t continued his development in the cage the way you would have expected when he first burst onto the scene. There is still time for “The Polish Hammer” to put it all together and start to excel again, but right now it doesn’t seem like that’s going to happen.

For starters, a drop in weight is required. Horodecki simply cannot compete with the elite at 155 and has the look of someone who could make 145 without an issue, and possibly even 135. Even more telling of his stalled development was the decision to bring the fight with Cerrone to the ground, despite being greatly outmatched in the grappling department.

While I appreciate the gunslinger mentality and the “I’ll beat you at your own game” machismo, it only works when you actually beat the other guy at his own game. Getting tapped out by a triangle just shows that you’ve stalled and need a jump-start if you’re going to do anything in the UFC, if you make the trip to begin with.

Kamal Shalorus: The Epitome of Why I Hate Fans Who Boo Grappling

What happens when you take a world-class wrestler, give him heavy hands and put him in front of an audience with little-to-no appreciation of his primary skill?

Answer: you get Kamal Shalorus and his continually frustrating fights.

Instead of using his incredible takedowns and outstanding top control, Shalorus eschewed his bread-and-butter in exchange for exchanging with Bart Palaszewski, and it nearly cost him the bout. After dominating the first round, primarily through his grappling prowess, “The Prince of Persia” spent the next two rounds standing, in part because of the quick cat-calls that came from the Glendale audience. “Bartimus” bounced back to make it a close fight, and almost stole the victory from an exhausted Shalorus in the process.

While I understand the desire to put on a good show for the audience, there should be some reciprocity there too. I wish more fans could show an appreciation and understanding of the ground game, instead of booing the second a fight hits the canvas and wanting every fight to be 15-minutes of technique-free brawling. For those who questioned whether wrestling was taking the martial arts out of mixed martial arts, where is the artistry in winging wild haymakers from the hip until you’re exhausted?

No Merger For Former Champion Varner

Nothing has been officially announced, but you would have to think that a 0-3-1 record in your last four fights isn’t the way to convince the new bosses that you’d be a strong addition to the deepest division in the organization.

Former lightweight champion Jamie Varner was submitted by Shane Roller in the opening round of their undercard contest on Thursday, and the loss will most likely mean that the Arizona Combat Sports product will be plying his trade elsewhere in the New Year. That is a far cry from what would have happened if a merger like this materialized two years go.

At that time, Varner was the WEC lightweight champion and one of the best potential “bad guys” around; a fighter who was disliked by a lot of people for a lot of different reasons who could do well for himself if he followed the Koscheck program.

Instead, the merging of the organizations comes as the former champion is in the midst of a four-fight winless streak. Not a good way to end the year.

Thanks for the Memories

I’m genuinely sad to see the WEC go, despite the fact that the elite of the organization will be making their way to the bigger stage and enjoying everything that goes along with it.

Over the last three years, the WEC has been the home of the best action, best fights, more exciting fighters and everything that I adore about this sport. Not that the UFC or Strikeforce haven’t had their moments, but the blue-canvassed cage routinely delivered compelling action and emerging stars, and they did it all on free television too.

Instead of editorializing the successes and failures of the company or opining about what could have been, I’d just like to say “thanks for the memories” and leave it at that.

Check out our complete coverage guide to WEC 53.