Press Release
With two world title fights headlining World Extreme Cagefighting’s grand finale in Glendale, Ariz. on Dec. 16, the card was already shaping up to be the perfect way to end 2010. Now, with the recent announcement that the Ultimate Fighting Championship® will feature the bantamweight and featherweight divisions, as well as a loaded lightweight division including WEC’s best 155-pound fighters in 2011, the Dec. 16 event at Jobing.com Arena has become one of the most significant cards in recent memory.
In the main event, champion Ben Henderson will meet Anthony Pettis in a highly-anticipated title bout. The winner will move on to face the victor of the Jan. 1 UFC lightweight title bout between champion Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard. What’s more, the winner of the Dominick Cruz-Scott Jorgensen fight on Dec. 16 will be crowned the first ever UFC bantamweight champion.
“This event will go down as one of the most important in the history of the lighter weight classes,” WEC General Manager Reed Harris said. “The winner of Henderson and Pettis will fight for the UFC lightweight title next year, while the winner of Cruz-Jorgensen will immediately become the UFC bantamweight champion. The stakes have never been higher.”
As the anticipation builds for the Dec. 16 event, WEC confirmed today the remaining bouts for this historic card in Arizona.
The fights are: Chris Horodecki vs. Donald Cerrone, Kamal Shalorus vs. Bart Palaszewski, Danny Downes vs. Tiequan Zhang, Shane Roller vs. Jamie Varner, Ivan Menjivar vs. Brad Pickett, Ken Stone vs. Eddie Wineland, Will Kerr vs. Danny Castillo, Yuri Alcantara vs. Ricardo Lamas and Chris Cariaso vs. Renan Barao.
“Each of these fights has added importance,” Harris said. “All of these competitors want to prove that they are the best in the world and each wants to head to UFC in 2011 riding momentum. We expect some explosive fights at Jobing.com Arena on Dec. 16.”
Tickets for WEC: Henderson vs. Pettis are on sale now and priced at $165, $115, $65 and $35. Tickets can be purchased at the Jobing.com Arena Box Office, all Ticketmaster locations, by calling 800.745.3000 or online at www.Ticketmaster.com and www.JobingArena.com. Tickets are subject to applicable service charges.
Henderson vs. Pettis will be televised nationally live on VERSUS beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT. All of the network’s live WEC events are presented in HD and Spanish language SAP where available. For more information and how to find VERSUS in your local viewing area, visit http://www.versus.com/findversus.
Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone (fighting out of Albuquerque, N.M.) demonstrated his most complete game to date in September when he thoroughly dominated archrival Jamie Varner en route to a unanimous decision victory. Using a devastating array of wrestling and Muay Thai striking, the 27-year-old picked apart the former champion and immediately reinserted himself into title contention. The ex-bull rider Cerrone (12-3, 1 NC) looks to continue the momentum when he takes on Canadian striker Chris Horodecki (fighting out of London, Ontario, Canada). Nicknamed “The Polish Hammer”, the 23-year-old is riding back-to-back wins over Danny Downes and Ed Ratcliff. With a victory over Cerrone next month, Horodecki (15-2) hopes to propel himself into the lightweight elite.
A volatile lightweight bout pits the heavy-handed Kamal Shalorus (fighting out of Austin, Texas) against tested veteran Bart Palaszewski (fighting out of Wonder Lake, Ill.). A former national wrestling champion in his native Iran, Shalorus has posted two wins in three WEC appearances. In his last fight in June, Shalorus (6-0-2) traded leather with former champion Jamie Varner in a bout that ended in a controversial draw. He’ll look to continue his unbeaten streak in Glendale when he meets Palaszewski. Born in Poland and now living in the Midwest, the 27-year-old “Bartimus” has amassed nearly 50 fights in his career. Owning wins over Anthony Pettis, Karen Darabedyan and Zack Micklewright in his last three bouts, Palaszewski (34-13) plans on using his power and slick grappling to guide him past Shalorus on Dec. 16.
The first fighter from Mainland China to ever compete in WEC returns next month to take on one of the lightweight division’s rising prospects. Tiequan “The Mongolian Wolf” Zhang (fighting out of Beijing, China) burst onto the U.S. scene in September with a first-round submission victory over Pablo Garza. The unbeaten Zhang seeks his 18th straight victory when he battles Danny Downes (fighting out of Milwaukee, Wisc.) in Ariz. Training under the tutelage of Duke Roufus, “Danny Boy” works on a daily basis with WEC stars Anthony Pettis and Erik Koch. Seeking to put the first blemish on Zhang’s record, Downes (6-1) expects his polished striking and strong takedown defense to pay dividends when he enters the cage at Jobing.com Arena.
Two of the 155-pound division’s best wrestlers lock horns on Dec. 16 when hometown fighter Jamie Varner (fighting out of Phoenix, Ariz.) battles Shane Roller (fighting out of Dallas, Texas). A standout wrestler and boxer from Lock Haven University, the 26-year-old Varner (16-4-1, 2 NC) is a former WEC lightweight champion on a mission to reclaim his status as the best 155-pounder in the world. Standing in his way is Roller (8-3), a three-time Division I All-American wrestler from Oklahoma State University who owns wins over the likes of Marcus Hicks, Danny Castillo and Anthony Njokuani. Expecting to spoil Varner’s return to his hometown, Roller plans to power past his opponent and capture his fourth win in five fights.
Canadian bantamweight Ivan Menjivar (fighting out of Montreal, Quebec, Canada) makes his WEC debut on Dec. 16 when he takes on rugged Englishman Brad Pickett (fighting out of Coconut Creek, Fla.). A tremendous competitor who has fought top-notch opponents including Georges St-Pierre, Caol Uno, Joe Lauzon and Urijah Faber, Menjivar (21-7) makes the move to 135-pounds in search of a world title run. He’ll face a stern test in his first bout when he meets Pickett (20-5). Known for his fluid ground game, crisp boxing and sturdy chin, the 32-year-old fighter originally from London, England trains with alongside former featherweight champ Mike Brown at American Top Team. With wins over Kyle Dietz and Demetrious Johnson in his WEC career, Pickett believes his versatility will fuel him past Menjivar next month.
Former WEC bantamweight champion Eddie Wineland (fighting out of Chesterton, Ind.) has strung together three consecutive victories and now appears poised for a shot to reclaim the world title. The 26-year-old firefighter hopes a win over newcomer Ken Stone (fighting out of Coconut Creek, Fla.) is the final piece of the puzzle that leads him back to WEC gold. Out to supplant Wineland as a bantamweight title contender is WEC debutant Stone (9-1), an American Top Team fighter whose victories have all come by way of stoppage. Recognized for his competent striking and efficient ground work, Stone expects to make a big statement when he takes on Wineland (17-6-1) in Glendale.
Lightweight Danny Castillo (fighting out of Sacramento, Calif.) heads to Glendale to battle Will Kerr (fighting out of New London, Conn.) in a pivotal 155-pound contest. After posting a dominant performance in his last fight in Aug. against Dustin Poirier, Castillo (9-3), who trains alongside Urijah Faber, Chad Mendes and Joseph Benavidez in Sacramento, is hungry to finish his next opponent. The 28-year-old Kerr (9-2) is equally motivated to earn his second straight victory after submitting Karen Darabedyan in his last fight in June.
A winner of three straight, Ricardo Lamas (fighting out of Chicago, Ill.) faces the toughest test of his younger career when he meets newcomer Yuri Alcantara (fighting out of Belem, Brazil) on Dec. 16. With solid boxing and excellent wrestling, the 28-year-old Lamas (9-1) has put together consecutive victories over James Krause, Bendy Casimir and Dave Jansen. In order to earn a fourth win in a row, he’ll have to best Alcantara (20-3), a dangerous Brazilian who has finished 19 opponents in 20 victories.
Outstanding bantamweight Renan Barao (fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) seeks his 22nd victory when he steps inside the cage with Chris Cariaso (fighting out of San Francisco, Calif.). After defeating Anthony Leone by submission in his WEC debut in June, Barao (21-1, 1 NC) proved that he has the potential to one day capture the bantamweight title. A training partner of UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo, Barao expects to take another step forward by beating Cariaso. Boasting a record of 9-1, “Kamikaze” Cariaso earned an impressive victory over veteran Rafael Rebello in his debut in June. He looks to end the rise of Barao when the two go to war at Jobing.com Arena.
For more information, visit www.wec.tv. Follow WEC at http://twitter.com/WEConVERSUS.
About World Extreme Cagefighting®
The WEC brand is recognized as one of the premier mixed martial arts organizations in the United States. WEC, founded in 2001, is the sister organization of the Ultimate Fighting Championship® and today features the most prominent light weight fighters in the world. Owned and operated by WEC Holdings LLC., and headquartered in Las Vegas, Nev., the WEC produces live and taped events annually that are distributed through the Versus network.WEC programming is also available on Fox Deportes. In addition to its U.S distribution, WEC programming is shown on The Score network in Canada, Setanta Sports in Australia, Globosat in Brazil, and Cadena Tres in Mexico. For more information and current WEC fight news, visit wec.tv. World Extreme Cagefighting® and WEC® are registered trademarks, trademarks, trade dress or service marks owned exclusively by WEC Holdings, LLC in the United States and other jurisdictions and are licensed to WEC Productions, LLC.
About VERSUS
VERSUS prides itself on super-serving passionate sports fans across all platforms (VERSUS.com, VERSUS on Demand and VERSUS HD). Now in more than 75 million homes, the network is the cable television home of the National Hockey League (NHL), IZOD IndyCar Series, Tour de France, World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) and Professional Bull Riders (PBR). VERSUS also airs NASCAR, NBA, UFC, college football and college basketball programming. The network is home to the best outdoor programming on television and airs original programs not available anywhere else, including The Daily Line and The T.Ocho Show. VERSUS, a wholly owned company of Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ: CMCSA, CMCSK), is distributed via cable systems and satellite operators throughout the United States.
About Jobing.com Arena
Jobing.com Arena, Arizona’s Premiere Sports & Entertainment Facility, is home to the National Hockey League Phoenix Coyotes. The award winning, state-of-the art, multi-purpose facility hosts national and international chart topping recording artists, variety of sporting events and exciting family shows each year. Jobing.com Arena is located at the 101 & Glendale Avenue. For more information, visit www.JobingArena.com or call (623) 772-3200.