Faber-Mizugaki Official for WEC 52
Mike Whitman Nov 10, 2010
After four years of standing tall for the little guys, Urijah Faber
(Pictured, file photo) is only a day away from making his last
appearance in the WEC.
Faber took one step closer to his bantamweight debut on Wednesday, as he tipped the scales at 136 pounds at the WEC 52 weigh-in. His opponent, heavy-handed Takeya Mizugaki, also made weight (136).
The longstanding face of the promotion, Faber made his debut for
the organization back at WEC 19,
winning the featherweight title by stopping Cole
Escovedo in 2006. The Team Alpha Male founder went on to defend
the title a record five times against the likes of Jeff Curran,
Jens
Pulver and current WEC bantamweight king Dominick
Cruz.
Faber attempted his sixth title defense against Mike Thomas Brown at WEC 36 in 2008 and was defeated by first round TKO. The former champ bounced back with a second win over Jens Pulver at WEC 38 to earn another crack at Brown, but the outcome of their WEC 41 contest also favored the hard punching wrestler from Maine. Faber would take one more swing at regaining the featherweight strap, as he took on new champion Jose Aldo at WEC 48. It was not to be, however, as Aldo dominated from start to finish, earning a unanimous decision. The loss prompted Faber’s current move to 135 pounds.
Mizugaki is most famous for his unanimous decision loss to former divisional kingpin Miguel Torres in his promotional debut at WEC 40. The Japanese striker traded with Torres for all five rounds, giving the champion all he could handle. Since the Torres loss, the Cage Force veteran has gone 2-1 in the WEC, notching wins over former title challenger Jeff Curran and Rani Yahya at WEC 42 and WEC 48, respectively. Splitting those victories is a loss to current number one contender Scott Jorgensen at WEC 45 in December of last year.
In the evening’s co-main event, Chad Mendes (145.5) will take on Javier Vazquez (146) in an important featherweight contest. The slot was originally intended for a Josh Grispi-Erik Koch matchup, but Grispi was pulled from the event to face Jose Aldo at UFC 125. Instead Koch (146) will slide down a spot on the card and take on Brazilian Francisco Rivera (146). Two potentially electrifying bantamweight scraps round out the card, as Joseph Benavidez (136) takes on Wagnney Fabiano (136) and Damacio Page (136) squares off against Demetrious Johnson (135).
WEC 52 Weigh-In Results:
Urijah Faber (136) vs. Takeya Mizugaki (136)
Chad Mendes (145.5) vs. Javier Vazquez (146)
Erik Koch (146) vs. Francisco Rivera (146)
Joseph Benavidez (136) vs. Wagnney Fabiano (136)
Damacio Page (136) vs. Demetrious Johnson (135)
Raphael Assuncao (146) vs. L.C. Davis (146)
Anthony Njokuani (156) vs. Edward Faaloloto (154)
Zachary Micklewright (*156) vs. Dustin Poirier (155)
Clint Godfrey (136) vs. Michael McDonald (135)
Cub Swanson (145) vs. Mackens Semerzier (145)
Yves Jabouin (145) vs. Brandon Visher (145)
* Micklewright successfully made weight on his second attempt.
Faber took one step closer to his bantamweight debut on Wednesday, as he tipped the scales at 136 pounds at the WEC 52 weigh-in. His opponent, heavy-handed Takeya Mizugaki, also made weight (136).
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Faber attempted his sixth title defense against Mike Thomas Brown at WEC 36 in 2008 and was defeated by first round TKO. The former champ bounced back with a second win over Jens Pulver at WEC 38 to earn another crack at Brown, but the outcome of their WEC 41 contest also favored the hard punching wrestler from Maine. Faber would take one more swing at regaining the featherweight strap, as he took on new champion Jose Aldo at WEC 48. It was not to be, however, as Aldo dominated from start to finish, earning a unanimous decision. The loss prompted Faber’s current move to 135 pounds.
Mizugaki is most famous for his unanimous decision loss to former divisional kingpin Miguel Torres in his promotional debut at WEC 40. The Japanese striker traded with Torres for all five rounds, giving the champion all he could handle. Since the Torres loss, the Cage Force veteran has gone 2-1 in the WEC, notching wins over former title challenger Jeff Curran and Rani Yahya at WEC 42 and WEC 48, respectively. Splitting those victories is a loss to current number one contender Scott Jorgensen at WEC 45 in December of last year.
In the evening’s co-main event, Chad Mendes (145.5) will take on Javier Vazquez (146) in an important featherweight contest. The slot was originally intended for a Josh Grispi-Erik Koch matchup, but Grispi was pulled from the event to face Jose Aldo at UFC 125. Instead Koch (146) will slide down a spot on the card and take on Brazilian Francisco Rivera (146). Two potentially electrifying bantamweight scraps round out the card, as Joseph Benavidez (136) takes on Wagnney Fabiano (136) and Damacio Page (136) squares off against Demetrious Johnson (135).
WEC 52 Weigh-In Results:
Urijah Faber (136) vs. Takeya Mizugaki (136)
Chad Mendes (145.5) vs. Javier Vazquez (146)
Erik Koch (146) vs. Francisco Rivera (146)
Joseph Benavidez (136) vs. Wagnney Fabiano (136)
Damacio Page (136) vs. Demetrious Johnson (135)
Raphael Assuncao (146) vs. L.C. Davis (146)
Anthony Njokuani (156) vs. Edward Faaloloto (154)
Zachary Micklewright (*156) vs. Dustin Poirier (155)
Clint Godfrey (136) vs. Michael McDonald (135)
Cub Swanson (145) vs. Mackens Semerzier (145)
Yves Jabouin (145) vs. Brandon Visher (145)
* Micklewright successfully made weight on his second attempt.
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