WEC 36 Live Recap - Urijah Faber vs. Mike Brown

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Frank Mir says that Mike Brown is one of the strongest and toughest guys in Faber's division. Todd Harris says that Chael Sonnen v. Paulo Filho is one of the most anticipated rematches in WEC history, over six months in the making. Mir says he's very disgruntled that Filho couldn't make weight and rightfully so. We'll also see Jens Pulver v. Leonard Garcia, which means this is a STACKED WEC card tonight. First up after these commercial messages will be Jake Rosholt v. Nissen Osterneck, so stay tuned!

* Jake Rosholt v. Nissen Osterneck

We're scheduled for three rounds in the middleweight division, with two guys making their WEC debut. Mir says Osterneck has a purple belt in BJJ under Rolson Gracie, but Rosholt trains for jiu-jitsu as well and is a four-time All American. Both men cut promos and say they're very sure of themselves and sure the fight ending quickly. Osterneck's smack is that he'll finish a division one wrestler in the first round, whereas Rosholt thinks he'll get a quick KO or submission. Osterneck has a week's stubble on his face as he heads to the cage. He hails from Maui, Hawaii. He's also described as being well-rounded and having good conditioning on the keys to victory. We'll just have to take their word for it since he's never fought in WEC before tonight. Rosholt hails from Sand Point, Idaho and comes out to some hard rocking music. It's hard to tell over the echo in the venue but I think it's "Indestructible" by Disturbed, the same theme TNA is using for their next PPV. Rosholt looks like Jack Swagger with less swagger. Harris tries to tell us we SEE the graphic showing height, weight and reach but it never pops up on the screen (at least on the HD feed, don't know about SD). Joe Martinez does the introductions for "two undefeated middleweights, somebody's OH must GO." Osterneck is in the blue corner 5-0 and weighed in at 184.5 pounds. He's fighting out of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. In the red corner, at 185.5 pounds, with a 4-0 record and fighting out of Las Vegas is Jake Rosholt. Our referee in charge is Troy Waugh. Here we go!

As the fight gets underway I've noticed that Rosholt has a Superman tattoo on his right arm and a cross on his left. Rosholt comes out looking for kicks but the Big O responds with a flurry of combos. Rosholt changes tactics and picks him up for a big takedown then moves to side control. Waugh warns him to watch striking the back of the head. Rosholt tries to sink in the hooks for a submission and can't get it, and now he has to watch for upkicks from Osterneck. 75 seconds in we go back to the feet and Big O is throwing punches and knees. Rosholt is trying to push him away or take him down to avoid the shots, because he seems to have virtually no defense on his feet. Two minutes in Rosholt gets another takedown and starts throwing punches right down the pipe, forcing O to flip to his back to avoid damage. Waugh seems concerned that Rosholt is going to knee his opponent in the head and stops the fight momentarily but O says it wasn't to the head and he's fine. After the restart Waugh is concerned he's going to kick the groin as O is laying on his back waiting for him to jump in, and Rosholt is content to pummel him while he's there. Finally Rosholt gets the dominant side control again and Mir says he should be working elbows or trying a d'arce choke. 30 seconds to go and O rolls to his back again and has almost no defense. He rolls over again to avoid the fight being stopped and manages to hold Rosholt down for the last 10 but that's about it. Other than those flurries of strikes by O I'd say that Rosholt dominated the round for a 10-9 on any reasonable card. (Obviously if Cecil Peoples is there, nothing will be reasonable.)

We're back for round two! Osterneck throws kicks to start but can't stop Rosholt from charging in, getting the underhooks and going to the ground... but managed to catch him in the process and tie him up in a possible kimura attempt. Fortunately Rosholt had a knee in to block and is able to slip free, leaving O trying to slap him with upkicks. Waugh issues his millionth warning for the fight and warns them about fingers to the eye, THEN another warning for elbows to the back of the head. SHUT UP ALREADY WAUGH. Shit. Every fucking time Rosholt starts to do something Waugh bitches. He seems to have it in for the dude. Somebody explain to me how you win a fight if you can't knee, kick, elbow or punch your opponent when you have him on the ground in a dominant position. The crowd seems to be getting pissed off at this too. Big O gets back to his feet at 2:20 left to go and starts rocking Rosholt! Rosholt avoids a spinning backfist and takes the fight back down. Rosholt has mount and rains down blows. Waugh keeps warning O to improve his position or he'll stop the fight. Rosholt starts swinging blows left and right to the head when he flips to his back and Waugh finally calls it with 1:12 left. ROSHOLT WINS VIA TKO. We'll have the official result shortly.

Here's Joe Martinez with the official decision. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN THIS FIGHT ENDS AT 3:48 OF THE SECOND ROUND FOR THE WINNER VIA TKO: JAKE ROSHOLT. Rosholt says this was a tough fight, nothing like he expected, he got his ass kicked for a while but FORTUNATELY he had the toughness to stay in the fight. "I gotta keep getting better, I got a long ways to go but hey I'll work hard every time to win and trust me I'll get better." This is followed by a Harley Davidson replay of the takedown to mount that forced the stoppage. Leonard Garcia and Jens Pulver are up next after this break!

Miguel Torres v. Manny Tapia is on December 3rd and that should be a great card, a hell of a fight in the bantamweight division. Torres is 33-1 and hasn't lost in YEARS, but Manny Tapia is a fast rising bantamweight who will definitely take him to the limit. We get a preview of the card and another reminder that Pulver v. Garcia is next, apparently after THIS commercial break.

* Leonard Garcia v. Jens Pulver

Hermes Franca is in the crowd watching tonight, as are Miguel Torres and Jamie Varner. Of all the men they show though Carlos Condit is my favorite by far. Time for a featherweight bout scheduled for three rounds! Mir says Garcia trains with Greg Jackson in New Mexico, is well rounded and has great stand-up though. He's facing Jens Pulver though, who has only lost once at this weight in his entire career, that loss coming to Urijah Faber. Even Garcia admits Pulver is a legend in his pre-fight promo. Pulver: "Wednesday nobody knew your name, Thursday nobody knows it at all." Garcia: "We'll go toe to toe and see who comes out on top. I don't care who has the title, Urijah or Mike, I'm coming for it." Pulver: "He has one knockout. If he wants to bank on that, that's fine. I have a lot. Give me that opportunity and I'll break your jaw!" Cthulhu bless Lil' Evil because few men talk smack better than he does.

Garcia comes out first and Mir puts over the fact that GSP is one of the many men he trains with on a regular basis. Garcia has the Mexican flag trunks and looks pumped up and ready. Pulver comes out to Wu-Tang Clan's "Triumph." Nice choice! LET'S TAKE IT BACK TO SEVENTY-NIIIIINE. Pulver looks a little strange with a full head of hair - I'm used to the crazy mohawks 'n shit. Tale of the tape works this time and says that Pulver weighed 144, his opponent 1.5 heavier. Pulver is 33 and Garcia 29. That's about all that's worth reporting from that graphic. Here's Joe Martinez to make the introductions! In the blue corner Garcia is 15-3, stands 5'10", and fights out of Lubbock, Texas. In the red corner is Pulver, 22-9-1, 5'7", fighting out of Bettendorf, Iowa. Aww yeah, it's fightin' time! Our referee in charge is Jorge Alonso. Here we go!

Both men touch gloves and Garcia throws the first kick. Pulver comes forward right away and he's throwing big rights. Garcia tries to dance away and respond with a headkick. Pulver faints a low leg kick of his own and Garcia moves away. Garcia is trying to stick and move and getting one or two shots in. Three or four! Five or six! HOLY SHIT THIS FIGHT HAS BEEN STOPPED!! I can't argue with the stoppage because Pulver was wobbled and only holding himself up by laying on the cage, not defending himself at all. We'll have the official result in moments but WOW, that was definitely not the result I had expected in my head. Leonard Garcia is a BAD BAD DUDE.

Here's Joe Martinez. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN THIS FIGHT ENDS AT 1:12 OF R1 STOPPAGE DUE TO STRIKES FOR YOUR WINNER BY TKO VICTORY FROM LUBBOCK, TEXAS - LEONARD 'BAD BOY' GARCIA! Garcia smiles like a million bucks. "All my training partners say I'm the hardest hitter they've met. My hat goes off to Jens, that's one of my heroes. To my family back at home I love y'all. I knocked out the legend, I want the title shot, whoever's got it after tonight come get some! That fight says it all, I let actions speak louder than words. I say hell yeah!" Harris reminds us that Brown v. Faber and Filho v. Sonnen are coming up but David Avellan and Aaron Simpson is up next!

* David Avellan vs. Aaron Simpson

I don't recognize either of these guys but the man with the beard says it will be a knockout or a rear naked choke. Oh, that's Avellan. They have the faces on the tale of the tape so that's how I know who he is. Martinez says both of these guys are undefeated. Simpson is six foot even, 184.5 and 3-0, fighting out of Phoenix, Arizona. His opponent Avellan in the red corner is 2-0, 5'9", and fights out of Miami. Shit that dude has a LOT of chest hair. If that's any indication he's gonna win. Referee in charge of this bout is again Jorge Alonso. Here we go!

This middleweight bout at the Hard Rock Seminole is over before my recap even begins! Simpson throws a nice left to the body and follows with a hard right hand over the top - so hard that the punch knocks out Avellan out clean and we're done just 18 seconds into the fight. The actual KO was at 14 or 15 and the extra punches were just mustard on the sandwich. Joe Martinez will have the official results momentarily, unless we don't take a commercial break. I wouldn't in a fight that only lasts 18 seconds but you never know with these free shows! Yup, we're going to commercial. Dumb. There's no doubt who won this and no need to wait but hey, whatever.

Here's Joe Martinez with the official decision. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN 18 SECONDS INTO ROUND ONE FOR THE WINNER VIA KNOCKOUT VICTORY AND STILL UNDEFEATED - AARON SIMPSON! Todd Harris is with the winner. "I've got two dimensions now, that was my second, add that jiu-jitsu that'll be my third. I've heard that guy is loved in Miami though so give it up for David! I think I closed my eyes during that punch." Apparently he trains with CB Dollaway, Jesse Forbes and Jamie Varner among others. "I keep training with my boys hey the sky's the limit. One more fight one more fight one more fight who knows!" Up next will be Chael Sonnen and Paulo Filho, so stay tuned!

Urijah Faber is warming up backstage and Todd Harris says that if you go to the Versus website you could win a chance to spar with the champ. Up next though it's time for the grudge match of all grudge matches! In my mind Sonnen never submitted but we'll see.

* Chael Sonnen v. Paulo Filho

Sonnen: "More than ever I have to find a way to bring him down tonight." Filho: "Never did I disregard making weight for this fight. Unfortunately I wasn't able to." Sonnen: "It's not acceptable to miss weight due to a lack of discipline." Filho: "The way he reacted to me stepping on the scale has given me even more motivation to do what I have to do." Sonnen: "My heart is broken. I promised my father on his deathbed I'd win the world title. Now it's not going to happen." Filho: "I tried, I wasn't able to do it, but I'd feel a lot worse if it was the first time." Sonnen: "He will leave 16-1 tonight and I will beat him." YEAH~! Sonnen is first out to the cage wearing a Premier Fighter "Dirty Boxer" t-shirt. He hails from a suburb of Portland, Oregon. Sonnen is a division one All-American, a great striker and he has ground & pound to boot. That's not just the keys to the fight, that's me AGREEING with those keys. Sonnen is quickly checked over and ready to go. Filho comes out to Operator's "Soulcrusher," which I assume has been censored for prime time, but it's hard to tell. Filho too is ready for the fight in no time flat and gets a big round of boos when he gets in the cage. Filho is 189, Sonnen is 184.5. Filho is 5'8", Sonnen is an inch over 6 feet.

Here's Joe Martinez with the introductions. It's a non-title attraction, three rounds in the middleweight division. The fans boo as soon as the words "non-title" cross Martinez' lips. In the blue corner, with a 22-9-1 record, fighting out of West Linn, Oregon is Chael Sonnen! Huge boos for the red corner when introduced. Filho is 16-0 and fights out of Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. The boos just won't stop, and quite frankly I agree with every one of them. I don't even think he won his LAST fight with Sonnen, and he couldn't even been bothered to make weight for this one. Fuck him. Jorge Ortiz is our ref in charge. Here we go!

Sonnen is dancing around on his feet right from the start. Filho is backing away. Harris reminds us their last fight was a year ago. Filho shoots and Sonnen sprawls effectively and takes his back. Filho keeps crawling forward but Sonnen is almost flat, there's nothing to take. The two stand back up. Filho misses with an overhand right and Sonnen is standing over the top now, trying to run one down the pipe without eating an upkick in the process. He's snapping off leg kicks as Filho lays there. The crowd is getting restless two minutes in. Filho seems content to lay there and Ortiz seems content to let him. Filho tries to take half guard when Sonnen comes in and Sonnen backs out. More boos as we come to two minutes left. Filho fucking sucks. He tries to trap Sonnen in an armbar but Sonnen easily escapes. Filho keeps on laying there. FUCK YOU FILHO DO SOMETHING YOU FAT LAZY BITCH. Filho nearly catches a heel hook just laying around waiting for Sonnen to come in. You know what Sonnen, back away, let him lay there and force the stand up. SHIT, even Todd Harris agrees with me. Mir does too. Ortiz is finally calling for work but with ten second in the round too little too late. 10-8 round for Sonnen since Filho did SHIT.

Round two is underway! Sonnen is again dancing on his feet, manages to connect with at least one jab, and Filho seems to be dropping his hands. I can't imagine WHY you would drop hands with Sonnen but it is what it is. Shit, my Versus feed went out for about 10 seconds there. Fortunately the fight doesn't end. Filho is taken to the ground just over one minute in and Sonnen backs out when Filho closes guard. When he steps away Ortiz forces the stand up and the crowd applauds. Filho tries to shoot and Sonnen rocks him. Filho goes to the ground and Sonnen backs away again to force another stand-up. THE CROWD IS APPLAUDING A STAND-UP. Mir says he should keep doing this all night long and I agree. Sonnen fires off a leg kick, Filho tries to jump on him for a body lock, so Sonnen SLAMS HIM DOWN HARD and then backs away. 2:15 left in R2. Mir says Filho already has a shiner on one eye that may close up. Sonnen is jabbing Filho at will, Filho has nothing to offer. He throws a wild left that misses by a million miles and shoots again, and Sonnen sprawls all the way across his back. Filho rolls to his back and the crowd boos instantly. Ortiz immediately calls for stand-up. Filho keeps swinging wildly and missing and Sonnen keeps jabbing as R2 ends. Two straight 10-9 or 10-8 rounds for Sonnen. Filho is one fat overrated fucking piece of shit for a fighter.

We're back for round three with a replay of Sonnen's slam in R2. Ortiz reminds both fighters this is the last round. The two touches gloves and we're off again! Sonnen is keeping his dukes up and jabbing, Filho is crouching down and backing away. He looks like the Brazilian humpback thanks to that shitty posture. Sonnen is schooling him on the feet. Harris: "It's not exciting, it's not sexy, but it's effective." Mir wants him to be more aggressive and go for blood but he can't blame him either for fighting a smart fight and says he's selfish as a fan to want the KO. Filho goes to his back at 3:40 and the crowd boos. Sonnen punishes his thighs with leg kicks. Mir: "If he jumps into his guard and gets armbarred I'm going to go beat him." I would too. Sonnen backs away and forces another stand-up two minutes in. This may be a wild prediction, maybe not, but I think we're on our way to a three round unanimous decision. Harris: "These fans thought they were going to a cage fight and a boxing match broke out." More boos with three minutes gone. Mir: "Sonnen has an easy win right now." 75 seconds left the boos are getting deafening. LOUD BULL-SHIT CHANT GOING OVER THE AIR RIGHT NOW. Sonnen is striking him in the head virtually at will. Mir: "Who is Filho looking at! I feel like he's talking to Jesus right in the middle of the ring." Sonnen jabs away right to the closing bell and that's the end of the fight to a HUGE chorus of boos. Result forthcoming.

Here's Joe. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN AFTER 3 ROUNDS WE GO TO THE SCORECARDS. ALL THREE JUDGES SCORE THIS 30-27 FOR THE WINNER BY UNANIMOUS DECISION - THE FIGHTING PRIDE OF WEST LINN, ORGEON - CHAEL SONNEN! No post-fight interview as we're already running long thanks to the bonus fight and the long decision fight we just watched. Faber v. Brown is up next!

* Urijah Faber {C} v. Mike Brown

At 8:52 Central it's finally time for the main event! Faber is 29, Brown 33. Faber is a half pound under the featherweight limit, Brown is even. Faber has one inch less reach than Brown's 70. Martinez introduces the main event, scheduled for five rounds, brought to you by Bud Light. The judges are ready, the fighters are ready, and Hollywood, Florida is ready! In the blue corner, with a record of 19-4, fighting out of Coconut Creek, Florida here is Mike 'Stupid Eagle Tattoo On My Chest' Brown! His opponent is the WEC Featherweight Champion in the red corner with a 21-1 record and he fights out of Sacramento which is why he's 'The California Kid' Urijah Faber!!! Our referee in charge is Troy 'Oh God Not Him Again' Waugh. Here we go!

Mike takes the center of the cage as the fight starts. Faber is dancing around him and fires off a head kick 17 seconds in that misses. Faber looks like he wants to load up a big punch and sneaks in a left then follows with a combo. Brown tries to clinch and Faber is calm until they break apart at 50. Faber seems to be taking the center and coming forward now although he backs up and ducks under a Brown punch. Maybe he wants to get Brown to overexert himself early. Faber grabs a clinch and hits a knee, then briefly slips to the mat in an escape. Brown nearly gets a takedown, then knocks him down and rains in punishment. MIKE BROWN TKO'S FABER!! HOLY FUCKING SHIT!! Faber got clothesline with a right hand just as he was trying to throw an elbow to the head. We'll have the official result after this break.

Joe Martinez. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN 2:23 OF R1 FOR STOPPAGE DUE TO STRIKES FOR TKO VICTORY AND NEW WEC FEATHERWEIGHT CHAMPION OF THE WORLD: MIKE BROWN!! Holy shit. Harris says this is a huge upset. Brown: "I train with the best team in the world, American Top Team. If I perform like I do in training I can beat anybody in the world." He says something about the "fucking knockout" and Harris responds it's a good thing we're on cable. Brown professes he's happy to be fighting in front of the fans and nearly starts crying. Faber is interviewed next. "I made one mistake and he capitalized. Congrats to Mike Brown I have no excuses. I'll be back to take that belt, I'll be back." Harris notes there's no way he took Brown lightly. Faber: "I'm highly motivated, this will help, everything helps. Hat's off to Mike Brown. Hope I get a shot again and get that belt back!" That's the end at 9:04 Central.