Benson Henderson (11-1) scored a guillotine choke submission to unify the title with a victory over Jamie Varner (16-3). Henderson, coming off an electrifying victory over Donald Cerrone to earn the interim belt, adapted his style to caution and patience, refusing to be overly aggressive against Varner. His game plan paid off as he surprised Varner with a guillotine choke that quickly ended the fight in the third round.
Varner, returning to action after multiple injuries kept him on the shelf for 11 months looked rusty and slow throughout the fight. Henderson was able to easily dodge his boxing blows and lulled Varner to sleep and pulled him in to his clutches. The loss sends Varner back down the contender list to work his way back up.
Here is the play-by-play breakdown of the fight:
Round 1
Henderson Unifies WEC Lightweight Belt
The fighters feel each other out, with Henderson showing tentativeness. Varner goes for the takedown and gets it. Henderson goes for a knee bar, but gives up on it as Varner lands blows to body. Varner gains a front headlock and then tries for guillotine choke in standing position along cage wall. Varner lands a knee to the head, bringing Henderson to his knees. Varner continues to land knee blows. Referee stands the fighters up. Henderson lands a kick to body. Varner walks back to a neutral corner and Henderson bull rushes. The fighters scramble and both gain body locks along the cage wall. Henderson lands an overhand right and the bell sounds.
Solid and definitive round for Varner.
Round 2
Varner opens the round with a wild flying knee that misses and Henderson counters with his own knee to the body. Varner lands a leg kick which drops Henderson, but Henderson pops up quickly. Varner lunges and eats a combination. Henderson lands a left kick to the body. Henderson lands again with a kick to the body and Varner misses with a roundhouse kick to head. Another kick landed by Henderson. Varner catches a Henderson kick attempt to head and throws him to canvas. Henderson pops back up. Varner charges and lands a combination of body shots. Fighters clinch. Varner lands hammerfists to Henderson’s face as Henderson works of the cage wall. Henderson work of cage as bell sounds.
Close round that could go either way. Give it to Varner as Henderson still is tentative in the cage
Round 3
Varner charges Henderson and gains clinch along cage wall. Clinch is broken. Leg kick landed by Henderson. Varner lands kick to head, and follow that up with another which Henderson blocks. Varner goes for a body tackle and Henderson lands a knee as he comes in. Varner’s head drops and Henderson jumps on the opening, cinching a guillotine and crawling up Varner’s body to lock his legs. Varner quickly taps out to end the fight.
Result
Henderson by guillotine choke submission at 2:41
With the victory, a rematch of Henderson vs Cerrone should be soon in the making. Most cageside observers gave Cerrone the nod in a very close fight, but the final judges gave Henderson the fight which setup the unification bout with Varner.
With the first fight a finalist for Fight of the Year in 2009, a re-match will be even more exciting with so much more on the line.
Urijah Faber (23-3) returned to the cage in the co-featured match at WEC 46 and scored a thrilling submission victory in the closing seconds of the third round over Raphael Assuncao (14-2). Faber, sidelined for seven month after suffering a broken hand in his championship bout loss to former WEC champion Mike Brown. Fighting in front of his hometown fans in Sacramento, Faber put on an exciting display of technique in a defintive victory.
Faber Victorious In Return
Here is the play-by-play call of the bout:
Round 1
Faber scores first with a leg kick. Assuncao misses with a superman punch and grabs a clinch to back Faber into the cage wall. Assuncao has double underhooks, but Faber is able to work his way out of the clinch. Faber runs forward and misses with an overhand right. Assuncao grabs another clinch and pushes Faber into the wall again. Assuncao lands a few blows to the head and lets Faber off the cage wall. Faber comes forward and lands an overhand right and backs Assuncao into the cage wall. Back to the center, Faber lands a left uppercut. Faber lunges forward and loses his balance. Faber lunges forward again, Assuncao catches double underhooks again and pushes Faber into the cage wall. Faber breaks the clinch and the fighters exchange wildly. Faber lands a left uppercut on the chin. Faber goes for a flying knee, but Assuncao defends and counters with strikes.
Close round that goes to Assuncao. Faber was the aggressor, but his sloppiness cost him round.
Round 2
The fighters circle each other, with Faber scoring a takedown. Assuncao catches an arm bar during the takedown attempt, but Faber breaks the submission attempt. Assuncao has guard, but Faber is actively striking. Faber cinches a guillotine choke, but Assuncao counters submission attempt by rolling out. Fighters back to their feet. Assuncao lunges forward with lower leg kick and is caught flush by an overhand right. Assuncao is floored, Faber pounces, but Assuncao catches another arm bar. Faber break the submission and Assuncao take guard. Assuncao scores nice elbows from the bottom as Faber is conservative on top. Assuncao attempts a ogoplata, but Faber strikes Assuncao in face hard to break lock. Faber grabs sidelock along cage wall, but Assuncao breaks free as bell sounds
Clear round for Faber. Great strikes and clean scoring along with some great defense.
Round 3
Faber starts the round with a powerful single leg takedown. Assuncao scrambles and is back on his feet. Assuncao goes for a single leg, but Faber hits a whizzer to defend. Faber goes for kick to head and Assuncao sweeps his leg. Faber pops back up quickly and lands an overhand right that floors Assuncao. Faber pounces, but Assuncao claims guard. Faber is unable to break guard, but Assuncao moves for an escape with time dwindling. Faber grabs his back, gets his hooks in and cinches the rear naked choke. Assuncao fights it off for a short period but has to tapout.
Result
Faber by rear naked choke submission at 3:49 of the third round.
After the bout, post-fight interviews in the ring shed some light on Faber future dance card, as current WEC featherweight champion Jose Aldo came in for a promo. It appears that Aldo/Faber is likely the next feature title bout for these two fighters.
Given the electricity the fighters display, this could be fight of the year in MMA.
Former Olympic wrestler Kamal Shalorus (6-0-1) won a unanimous decision over Dave Jansen (14-1) in a battle of unbeaten fighters in a WEC 46 undercard matchup. Shalorus, an Iranian born fighter, dominated the bout for most of the fight, displaying a significant power advantage a neutralizing Jansen’s strength in wrestling. The fight was unexpectedly a standup affair despite both fighter’s wrestling background.
Shalorus Wins Battle of Undefeateds
Here is the play-by-play call of the bout:
Round 1
Jansen strikes first with a sharp kick to the body to start the round action. The fighters trade punches withansen getting the best of the exchange. Shalorus catches Jansen with a hard right to the head. Jansen goes for a takedown but Shalorus defends nicely. The fighters exchange blows to the head again, this time Shalorus getting the better of the exchange. Jansen goes for another takedown, Shalorus gets a front headlock and Jansen pulls out to get back to his feet. Jansen come in firing blows and Shalorus takes a body lock to the mat. Jansen scrambles back to his feet. The fighters exchange blows again. Jansen now has a cut above his left eye. Shalorus connects as Jansen comes in face first, buckling Jansen to his knee. Jansen recovers quickly, but Shalorus lands another left to the chin, buckling Jansen to his knee again. Jansen rebounds back to his feet with blood flowing heavier as the round comes to an end.
Round goes to Shalarous given his closing of the round
Round 2
The fighters meet in the middle and circle one another. The fighters exchange again with Shalorus getting the better of the exchange. Jansen plunges in again and takes another shot to the head from Shalorus. Another flurry with Shalorus getting the better of the exchange. Jansen comes forward again and Shalorus grabs a lock for a takedown. Jensen scrambles back to his feet. Jansen lands a knee to the midsection. Jansen lands a hard right that shakes Shalorus, but Shalorus regains his legs and fends of Jansen’s attack. Jensen again catches another shot on the chin from Shalorus as he drives in. Jansen now has a cut on the middle of his forehead. Jansen goes for a takedown as the round comes to an end.
Close round that goes to Jansen.
Round 3
Shalorus comes out firing with a combination to the head of Jansen. Another takedown attempt by Jansen that Shalorus stops with a front headlock. Jansen lands a kick to midsection and eats a right from Shalorus that floors him. Jansen pops back up quickly to his feet as Shalorus lets him back up. Shalorus lands a leg kick that buckles Jansen’s knee. Jansen eats another left as he goes in for another unsuccessful takedown attempt. Shalarus grabs another body lock and takes Jansen down. Shalorus lets Jansen back to his feet. Jansen lands a nice knee to the side of Shalorus’ head. Shalorus grabs a single leg for a takedown. Shalorus has Jensen pinned against the cage wall but is unable to score. Jansen works to a standup, but Shalorus holds on as the bell sounds.
Clear round that goes to a dominating Shalorus.
Result
Shalorus by unanimous decision with scores of 30-27, 30-27, and 29-28.
Kamal Shalorus put on an impressive showing in his second bout with the WEC. He showed impressive strength and conditioning as he pushed forward constantly for 15 minutes. Dave Jansen was an undefeated fighter, provide Shalorus a huge notch on his belt.
Shalorus looks primed a for a solid future in the WEC, although he has some improvements he needs to make in his standup. He consistently telegraphed his strikes throughout the bout with Jansen, lowering his head each time he threw leather. Against the top-tier fighters in WEC lightweight class, that telegraphing will result in a quick knockout for his opponent if he cannot improve his offensive stance.
Former WEC Featherweight Champion Mike Brown (23-5) scored a submission victory over Anthony Morrison (15-8) at 1:54 of the first round on the undercard of WEC 46. The victory by Brown returns him to winning column after a disappointing loss to current WEC featherweight champion Jose Aldo. Brown delivered as less the stellar outing against Aldo, showing a lack of speed and quickness as Aldo dominated the bout before earning a TKO.
Mike Brown Scores KO
Here is the play-by-play call of the bout:
Round 1
The fighters meet in the middle and feel each other out. Morrison connects with a few kicks to the body with follow up combination punches to the head. Brown goes for the takedown, backing Morrison to the cage wall. Brown brings Morrison to the canvas and takes full mount. Brown begins raining down punches, but Morrison defends well. Morrison works back to guard and Brown begins to land blows again, this time to the body. Morrison scrambles to his base and Brown takes his back, cinching in a rear naked choke. The lock is tight and Morrison taps out quickly.
Result
Brown by rear naked choke submission at 1:54 of the first round.
Obviously, Brown’s management team sought out some raw meat to chew on in Morrison. It was important that Brown bounce back strong from a very solid defeat. A smart strategy to get the fight back in a good rhythm.
With the victory, Brown inserts himself back into the featherweight contender conversation with a dominating victory. Brown will probably need two or three more wins before he gets an opportunity for a rematch against Jose Aldo.
