WEC 47 “Bowles vs. Cruz” Preview & Event Coverage

By Justin Bolduc

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This weekend the WEC travels to the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio for an exciting card from top to bottom.  In the main event WEC bantamweight champion Brian Bowles makes his first title defense against Dominick Cruz.  Former WEC bantamweight champion Miguel Torres also appears on the card against top-ten ranked Joseph Benavidez. 

Former UFC lightweight champion Jens Pulver is slated to meet Javier Vazquez while IFL stand-out Bart Palaszewski faces Karen Darabedyan and L.C. Davis battles Deividas Taurosevicius to round out the main card.  PunchDrunkGamer sponsored fighter George Roop will face Leonard Garcia in featherweight action. 

WEC 47 coincides with the annual Arnold Sports Festival, much like UFC 68, UFC 82, and UFC 96.  WEC 47 will also be the WEC's first trip to Ohio and will air live on Versus.  In other news The Ultimate Fighter 1 finalist Stephan Bonnar will fill in commentary for Frank Mir.

Brian Bowles (8-0) vs. Dominick Crus (14-1)

WEC Bantamweight Championship

Brian Bowles has quickly risen in the bantamweight rankings with stoppages in all eight of his wins, including five in the WEC.  He began his professional mixed martial arts career in 2006 and has twice won Submission of the Night honors in the WEC, as well as Knockout of the Night. 

Bowles began his career with three wins in smaller shows earning two first round submissions and a first round TKO.  He then made his WEC debut against Charlie Valencia in 2007 and finished his opponent with a second round rear naked choke.  His next bout was his first taste of a top ten fighter in Marcos Galvao, who Bowles knocked out in the second round. 

Bowles then picked up first and third round guillotine choke submissions over Damacio Page and Will Ribeiro respectively to earn a shot at former WEC champion Miguel Torres.  Originally slated to challenge for the title at WEC 40, Bowles suffered a back injury which forced him off the card.  Bowles eventually met Torres at WEC 42 and knocked the former champion out inside the first round. 

Intangibles:

WEC Record:  5-0 (3 Sub, 2 TKO)

Strengths:  Heavy hands, well rounded, good chin

Weaknesses:  Relatively inexperienced

Key Wins:  Miguel Torres, Marcos Galvao, Damacio Page, Will Ribeiro, Charlie Valencia

Notable Losses:  None

Dominick Cruz has mostly flown under the radar despite being one of the top bantamweight fighters in the WEC.  He began his professional mixed martial arts career in 2005 and did not find himself in the WEC until 2007.  Formerly fighting as a featherweight, Cruz lost his WEC debut against former WEC featherweight champion Urijah Faber by first round submission.  He has since won his last four bouts to earn number one contender status. 

Following the loss to Faber, Cruz won decisions against Charlie Valencia in his bantamweight debut.  After a unanimous decision against Ian McCall and a technical decision against Ivan Lopez, Cruz was matched up against previously undefeated Joseph Benavidez.  As the underdog Cruz surprised the world by handing Benavidez his first career loss in a unanimous decision. 

In fourteen career victories Cruz has won by submission once and TKO five times.  He is undefeated in four appearances as a bantamweight. 

Intangibles:

WEC Record:  4-1

Strengths:  Good conditioning, well rounded, solid boxer

Weaknesses:  Most susceptible to submissions

Key Wins:  Joseph Benavidez, Charlie Valencia, Ivan Lopez, Ian McCall

Notable Loss:  Urijah Faber

Miguel Torres (37-2) vs. Joseph Benavidez (11-1)

Non-Title Bantamweight Bout

Miguel Torres has exploded into the mainstream as a fan favorite, as well as one of the talked about pound-for-pound fighters in the world.  Possessing a dangerous stand-up game, incredible stamina, and a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Torres was on a seventeen-fight win streak before being dethroned by Brian Bowles in August. 

In his WEC debut Torres defeated Jeff Bedard with a first round triangle choke.  He then challenged Chase Beebe for the WEC bantamweight title and finished the champion with a first round guillotine choke.  Torres then changed gears and won by TKO against Yoshiro Maeda due to a doctor stoppage between rounds three and four in one of 2008's most exciting fights.  Torres picked up another TKO in his next bout when he knocked out Manny Tapia mid-way through round two.  Torres was then scheduled to defend his title against Bowles, but due to an injury fought highly-regarded Takeya Mizugaki in a five round decision.  The win over Mizugaki marked Torres third consecutive title defense. 

Torres' first career loss came against Ryan Ackerman in 2004 by decision.  Torres ultimately avenged the loss in 2005 with a first round armbar.  Most recently he lost his WEC bantamweight title to Bowles in the first round by knockout.  In thirty-seven victories Torres has won twenty-two times by submission and nine times by TKO.  Along with the aforementioned run in the WEC, Torres also holds career wins over Joe Pearson, Richard Nancoo, and Jim Bruketta. 

Intangibles:

WEC Record:  5-1 (2 Sub, 3 TKO)

Strengths:  Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, great conditioning, strong Muay Thai

Weaknesses:  His power is criticized

Key Wins:  Takeya Mizugaki, Yoshiro Maeda, Manny Tapia, Joe Pearson, Chase Beebe

Notable Losses:  Brian Bowles, Ryan Ackerman

Joseph Benavidez began competing professionally in mixed martial arts in 2006 with a submission win over Brandon Shelton – one of two losses on Shelton's record.  He picked up a six-fight win streak, finishing each bout, before competing in Japan's Dream.  From there he has joined the WEC ranks. 

Prior to competing in Dream, Benavidez had submitted four opponents and won by TKO on two other occasions.  His Dream debut was against Junya Kudo.  Benavidez finished the bout quickly, locking in a guillotine choke in less than three minutes and handing Kudo the second loss of his career. 

Benavidez then made his WEC debut against Danny Martinez at WEC 37 on December 3, 2008.  Benavidez controlled the bout with aggressive strikes and several push-kicks to earn a unanimous decision.  He then faced highly-regarded Jeff Curran at WEC 40, winning another decision.  Benavidez was handed the first loss of his career by Dominick Cruz in a unanimous decision at WEC 42, but has since rebounded with a first round TKO stoppage over Rani Yahya at WEC 45. 

Intangibles:

WEC Record:  3-1 (1 TKO)

Strengths:  Aggressive, well-rounded, good cardio

Weaknesses:  Struggles when bullied

Key Wins:  Jeff Curran, Rani Yahya, Junya Kuda, Danny Martinez

Notable Loss:  Dominick Cruz

Deividas Taurosevicius (12-3) vs. L.C. Davis (15-2)

Non-Title Featherweight Bout

One of the most underrated fighters in the world has consistently been IFL stand-out Deividas Taurosevicius.  During his time in the now-defunct IFL, Taurosevicius went 3-1 with wins over Bart Palaszewski, Zac George, and Savant Young.  His sole loss in the promotion was against former IFL lightweight champion Ryan Schultz. 

The Lithuanian was set to face Mark Hominick in Affliction's third show, but when the promotion called it quits was picked up by Zuffa, parent-company of the UFC and the WEC.  Hominick was ultimately replaced by Javier Vazquez who lost a split decision against Taurosevicius.  In his most recently performance Taurosevicius defeated Mackens Sermezier by unanimous decision.  Sermezier entered the bout riding an upset submission victory over Wagnney Fabiano a few months prior. 

Taurosevicius began his professional mixed martial arts career in 2002, losing to Mike Acosta, who has not competed since.  He would not compete again until 2005 and has since compiled a 12-3 record with eight submissions to his credit. 

Intangibles:

WEC Record:  2-0

Strengths:  Brazilian jiu-jitsu brown belt, well-rounded, durable

Weaknesses:  Struggles most off his back

Key Wins:  Bart Palaszewski, Dan Lauzon, Mackens Sermezier, Javier Vazquez, Savant Young

Notable Losses:  Frank Edgar, Ryan Schultz, Mike Acosta

Like Taurosevicius, L.C. Davis has fought and won twice in the WEC.  Davis began competing professionally in 2006 and has emerged as one of the world's premiere featherweights.  In fifteen career victories he has finished five opponents by TKO and six by submission. 

Davis, who has also competed in Adrenaline MMA, Affliction, and Sengoku, first began making a name for himself in the IFL where he went 3-1 with wins over Jay Estrada, Conor Heun, and Rafael Dias, and his first career loss against top-ten ranked Wagnney Fabiano.  Prior to joining the WEC he had earned a decision win over Bao Quach in Affliction but lost to Michihiro Omigawa in Sengoku's featherweight tournament. 

In his WEC debut Davis defeated Javier Vazquez by split decision.  Most recently he edged out Diego Nunes by unanimous decision at WEC 44.  Davis trains at American Jiu-Jitsu Academy alongside Rob Kimmons and Bobby Voelker. 

Intangibles:

WEC Record:  2-0

Strengths:  Wrestling background, most wins by submission, great conditioning

Weaknesses:  Struggles off his back

Key Wins:  Bao Quach, Javier Vazquez, Diego Nunes, Jay Estrada, Conor Heun

Notable Losses:  Michihiro Omigawa, Wagnney Fabiano

WEC 47 Fight Card

Main Card:

Brian Bowles vs. Dominick Cruz (WEC Bantamweight Championship)

Miguel Torres vs. Joseph Benavidez

Jens Pulver vs. Javier Vazquez

Deividas Taurosevicius vs. L.C. Davis (PDG's Fight to Watch)

Bart Palaszewski vs. Karen Darabedyan

Preliminary Card:

Scott Jorgensen vs. Chad George

Chad Mendes vs. Erik Koch

Danny Castillo vs. Anthony Pettis

Leonard Garcia vs. George Roop

Fredson Paixao vs. Courtney Buck

Ricardo Lamas vs. Bendy Casimir