WEC 43 Preview and Predictions
WEC events normally serve as nice weekend-ending entertainment, but this weekend, the action takes place on Saturday night instead of Sunday. WEC 43 was originally slated to take place on September 2nd in Youngstown, Ohio. However, an injury to main event participant Ben Henderson forced the move to a different date, which made it necessary to find another venue as well. WEC 43 finally takes place tonight in San Antonio, Texas.
Eddie Wineland vs. Manny Tapia: Wineland was the first ever WEC bantamweight champion, but has spent a lot of time on the local circuit in Northwest Indiana in recent years. After winning the title at WEC 20 in May of 2006, Wineland dropped the belt to Chase Beebe at WEC 26 in March of 2007. Since that loss, Wineland has fought only once more for the WEC, losing to Rani Yahya at WEC 40 in Chicago. His career record is 14-6-1. Tapia is 10-2 in his MMA career, but is coming off of two consecutive losses after beginning his career 10-0. He lost to Miguel Torres in a title shot at WEC 37, then followed that up with a unanimous decision loss to Akitoshi Tamura at WEC 40. He’ll be looking to get back into the win column in this matchup. It should be an entertaining fight, as both fighters prefer to keep the fight standing. However, I think Tapia should have the advantage in the striking department. He has more power than Tapia, and even though Wineland should have a small reach advantage, I think Tapia takes this relatively easily. Tapia via TKO in the 2nd.
Wagnney Fabiano vs. Mackens Semerzier: While his teammate Jose Aldo receives more attention and is receiving the next featherweight title shot at Mike Brown, it may be Fabiano who is the better fighter. Fabiano is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and one of the best in the world on the ground. He brings a 12-1 record into tonight’s fight. He last defeated Fredson Paixao at WEC 40. Semerzier will be making his WEC debut in this fight. He was a late replacement for Eric Koch, who had to pull out of the fight due to an injury. Semerzier is 5-0 in his young MMA career. This should be a gimmie fight for Fabiano. Semerzier is not even close to being ready for prime time, while Fabiano is one of the best in the world in the Featherweight class. Look for this one to end quickly. Fabiano via submission in the 1st.
Raphael Assuncao vs. Yves Jabouin: Assuncao is also one of the top featherweights in the world. He is a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and is 13-1 in his MMA career, with the only loss coming against Jeff Curran in 2006. This will be his second fight in the WEC. In his debut, he beat Jameel Massouh by unanimous decision at WEC 40. Jabouin will be making his WEC debut after fighting in Canada for the majority of his career. He’s 14-4 in his MMA career and is known as a pretty dangerous striker. However, I don’t think he’ll spend much time on his feet in this fight. Assuncao is relentless with his takedowns, and I expect him to execute them early and often in this one. It’ll only be a matter of time until Assuncao submits Jabouin. Assuncao via submission in the 2nd.
Damacio Page vs. Will Campuzano: The Greg Jackson trained Page is one of the more exciting fighters in the WEC. He is 15-4 overall in his MMA career, with 11 wins by TKO or KO. In his last fight, he knocked out highly regarded Marcos Galvo only 18 seconds into the fight. He’s 2-1 in the WEC, with his lone loss coming to current WEC bantamweight champion Brian Bowles at WEC 35. Campuzano was an injury replacement for Akitoshi Tamura. He is 6-0 in his MMA career, and will be making his WEC debut in this fight. Page has fought (and beaten) much better competition than Campuzano has faced at this point in his career. Campuzano is known as a wrestler mainly, but executing that gameplan against Page may be a little tougher than the guys he’s fought so far in his career. Expect Page to make short work of Campuzano in this one. Page via TKO in the 2nd.
Rich Crunkilton vs. Dave Jansen: Crunkilton was a highly thought of prospect in the WEC’s lightweight division, but injuries have sidelined him since his WEC 33 victory over Sergio Gomez 17 months ago. He had a brief UFC career, losing to Hermes Franca by unanimous decision at UFC 42. In his career, he is 16-2, and he’s gone 8-1 in his WEC career. He has a solid Greco-Roman wrestling background, but doesn’t always use it to his full advantage. Jansen is 13-0 in his MMA career, and this will be his WEC debut. He fights with Team Quest in Portland, and has an extensive amateur wrestling background as well. I think the fact that Crunkilton hasn’t fought in 17 months may really hurt him in this one. Jansen will keep a very fast pace, and I’m not sure if a rusty Crunkilton can keep up with it. The wrestling advantage may swing slightly to Crunkilton, but I think Jansen is the better all-around fighter. This fight is likely to go to a decision, and I think Jansen will be fresher in the later rounds. Jansen via unanimous decision.
Donald Cerrone vs. Benson Henderson: This fight is for the interim lightweight championship, and the winner will likely face off against the injured current champion, Jamie Varner. Cerrone trains under Greg Jackson in New Mexico and has a 10-1 career record. The one loss was to Varner in a fight that was stopped early due to an questionably “illegal” knee landed by Cerrone to Varner’s eye. Varner said he couldn’t continue and the fight went to the scorecards where Varner was ahead. There’s plenty of bad blood between Cerrone and Varner, so I’m sure the WEC is banking on a Cerrone win to keep that future matchup alive. Cerrone is very tall for the lightweight division, and he uses his abnormally long reach to his advantage. He is a very good striker, and combines that with a very aggressive ground game that gives opponents fits. Henderson is 9-1 in his MMA career, and is coming off consecutive victories against Anthony Njokuani and Shane Roller. Henderson is a former NAIA wrestling all-American and also is pretty powerful on his feet. He’s also a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. The problem will be navigating around Cerrone’s reach to be able to land shots. Cerrone is also very solid with his takedown defense, something that could really hurt Henderson. If Henderson is unable to land takedowns, it could be a very short night for him. I think Cerrone will eventually be able to stop Henderson with his dynamic striking. Cerrone via TKO in the 3rd.
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