WEC 135 lb. Bout: Urijah Faber vs. Takeya Mizugaki
Odds: (-350 Faber / +250 Mizugaki )
Betting Pick: Urijah Faber
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In the main event of the evening, former 145 pound champion Urijah Faber faces a stiff challenge in tough Japanese brawler Takeya Mizugaki. Faber was once the undisputed king of the 145 pound division, but after a few tough losses he finally dropped to the more natural weight of 135. Now he will look to start a title run in a new division, but first he has to make it past the notoriously tough Mizugaki to get the ball rolling.
Mizugaki, whose .500 record inside the WEC is deceptively poor because of the top-flight competition he has faced, is a very seasoned and experienced veteran with a lot of tools to his credit. A solid wrestler with very good submission defense, a good top game, and quality boxing, Mizugaki is a workhorse more than a dominant fighter, but he is very good at hanging around and is notoriously difficult to finish. If there is one problem with Mizugaki’s style it is that he doesn’t have much in the way of finishing ability. While he is able to control fights and stick around, he rarely finishes his opponents, and against a guy as versatile as Faber that might be a problem.
“The California Kid” Urijah Faber, recently moved down to 135 pounds from 145 where he was once a champion, is one of the most dangerous fighters in the world despite his recent mixed results. A skilled boxer with heavy hands who also has very good wrestling and a dangerous submission game. Since this is his debut at 135 it remains to be seen how the weight cut will affect his performance, but it seems that 135 is a more natural weight for him, and for the first time in a while he will enter the cage at a size advantage.
This is clearly a good matchup for Faber. Mizugaki is a tough enough competitor that Faber won’t walk all over him, and that makes him a good litmus test for how Faber will handle the move to 135, but stylistically this matchup favors “The California Kid” in every regard. Faber has much crisper and more powerful boxing, and is also better on the ground. Mizugaki is notoriously hard to finish, so I expect this one will go the distance, but Faber should control the fight in every range and earn a one-sided unanimous decision.
Prediction: Urijah Faber via unanimous Decision.