(Gesias "JZ" Cavalcante trains like a beast for his fight against Josh Thomson at "Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Noons II" this Saturday. Props: GenghisConFilms)

Some selected highlights from our friends around the MMA blogosphere. E-mail feedback@cagepotato.com for details on how your site can join the MMA Link Club…

– Stefan Struve vs. Sean McCorkle Planned for UFC 124 in Montreal (MMA Fighting)

– Ed Soares’ Dream for Jose Aldo? Super-Fight Against Frankie Edgar (Versus MMA Beat)

– Gina Carano Lands Her Next Major Movie Role, and More Juicy Rumors (MiddleEasy)

– Is Bad Sportsmanship Just Part of the MMA Fight Game? (Five Ounces of Pain)

– Gerald Harris and Phil Davis Get Main Card Slots at UFC 123, Karo Parisyan and Tyson Griffin Stuck in the Prelims (Heavy.com/MMA)

– Nevada State Athletic Commission Makes Half-Baked Changes To Drug Testing Policy (Watch Kalib Run)

– 5 Fights You Shouldn’t Miss This October (LowKick)

– Is Frankie Edgar the #2 P4P Fighter in the World? Dana White Thinks So… (MMA Convert)

– Crazy Slugfest from K-1 MAX Grand Prix (MMA Scraps)

– Jake Shields: The Specialist [VIDEO] (FightMagazine)

(On the bright side, that pig was offered an immediate rematch in Arizona. Photo courtesy of CombatLifestyle.com)

Between Jose Aldo’s latest title defense/demolition, the off-the-chain Cerrone vs. Varner rematch, George Roop’s KO of the Year candidate, and the other violent stoppages from Torres and Zhang, last night’s WEC event delivered the goods. (LOL @ any poor bastard who decided to watch Bellator instead!) Here’s some things you might want to know with Aldo vs. Gamburyan in the books…

— $10,000 bonuses were handed out to the following fighters: George Roop (Knockout of the Night) for being the first guy to finish the Korean Zombie, which he did with a perfectly placed LHK; Miguel Torres (Submission of the Night) for beating Charlie Valencia to the mat and finishing him with a RNC; and Donald Cerrone/Jamie Varner for their three-round co-headlining battle that was totally OMFG.

(Look, not everybody can pull off the "casual cool" look as well as Dana White. You can’t just put Reed Harris in a Nuggets jersey and expect him to not look like the world’s most uncomfortable pedophile. No offense. / Photo courtesy of the WEC 51: Weigh In Pics gallery on CombatLifestyle.com)

Zuffa may have robbed you of $45 last weekend, but they’re making it up to us with a stacked-to-death WEC card on free TV, on a damn weeknight. Gotta love it. Will Jose Aldo continue his Sherman’s March through the featherweight division, or will Manny Gamburyan let everyone know who he is, bro? Will Jamie Varner and Donald Cerrone settle their feud once and for all? Will Miguel Torres and Mike Brown return to old form? Can the Korean Zombie possibly top his last performance against Leonard Garcia? All these questions will be answered after the jump starting at 9 p.m., as we present our liveblog of WEC 51: Aldo vs. Gamburyan. If you love organized violence, give us a "hell yeah" in the comments section…

Just a reminder that we will be streaming the Q&A session featuring former WEC featherweight champion Urijah Faber at 6:00 pm ET tonight, followed by the WEC: Aldo vs. Gamburyan weigh-ins at 7:00 pm ET.

What prophetic words will Urijah polarize the crowd with?

Is his move to bantamweight a permanent one?

What size chin strap does he wear on his wrestling helmet?

Did his crazy street fight in Bali really happen or did he recycle a scene from Fist of Fury and insert himself in the place of Bruce Lee?

(Video courtesy YouTube/vonguinness)

These questions and more will be answered after the jump.

Jose Aldo vs. Luis Azevedo Part 1 - Jungle Fight 5 – November 26, 2005

(Video courtesy YouTube/newmexicoone)

Sometimes when you watch dominant fighters like Anderson Silva, Fedor Emelianenko and Georges St-Pierre compete, you forget that they’ve all tasted defeat. Jose Aldo is another MMA wrecking machine who, although maybe isn’t as far along in his career as the former list, falls under the same category.

If you haven’t seen the fight that gave him his lone blemish on his record, check out part one above and part two below. Paralleling Chael Sonnen’s masterful performance against Anderson Silva at UFC 117 (minus the PEDs), Aldo controlled opponent Luis Azevedo for the majority of the Jungle Fight 5 bout, but the Nova Uniao fighter made a rookie mistake on the ground, giving up his back and just like that he was now a loser.

He bounced back from the loss, earned his black belt (although you wouldn’t know it considering he hasn’t won by submission since) and hasn’t lost or looked back at the fight with Azevedo since.

We’ve compiled some of Aldo’s greatest performances for you to watch in anticipation of his fight with Manny "I’m Fedor, bro" Gamburyan tomorrow night at WEC 51.

Check them out after the jump.

(WEC 51 open workout highlights, courtesy of Heavy.com/MMA)

Some selected highlights from our friends around the MMA blogosphere. E-mail feedback@cagepotato.com for details on how your site can join the MMA Link Club…

– Helwani VS Dundas: WEC 51 Edition (Versus MMA Beat)

– Matt Mitrione’s Agent Responds to Being Fired on Live TV at UFC 119 (MMA Fighting)

– Photos: Josh Barnett, Tim Sylvia, Bobby Lashley, Bob Sapp & Mark Coleman Pro Wrestling In Japan (MMA Convert)

– This Jose Aldo Highlight Video Will Get You Hyped Up for WEC 51, Guaranteed (MiddleEasy)

– MMA’s Drug Testing System Is a Complete Farce (Five Ounces of Pain)

– Catching Up: 10 Must-See Fights the New Fan Might Have Missed (LowKick)

– K-1 World GP 2010 Final 16 Video Trailer (MMA Scraps)

– Jamie Varner Feels Left Out (Watch Kalib Run)

- M-1 Global Finishes Selection Tournament With Five Championship Fights (FightMagazine)

(Don’t you know who my cousin is, bro?)

Now, I know fighters sometimes say ludicrous things in the heat of the moment when hyping upcoming fights, like Mir saying he wanted Brock to suffer the first Octagon-related death and Mike Tyson saying he wanted to eat Lennox Lewis’ children, but for some reason none of those remarks seem as asinine to me as something Manny Gamburyan said during an interview with MMAWeekly radio yesterday.

When asked about his upcoming WEC 51 fight Thursday night with featherweight champion Jose Aldo, who has drawn comparisons to Anderson Silva for his dangerous and flashy muay thai skills, Gamburyan had the following to say:

“If they’re comparing him to Anderson Silva, they should compare me with Fedor," Gamburyan said without cracking up. "If he’s Anderson Silva, most definitely, I’m Fedor.”

Sure you’re Fedor, Manny — if Fedor wasn’t as good as he is, if he dropped a decision to Thiago Tavares and if he got KTFO by Rob Emerson.

This Thursday night in Broomfield, Colorado, the WEC will be hosting its most star-studded event since Aldo vs. Faber — with many of the same faces squaring off in the cage. In addition to Jose Aldo‘s featherweight title defense against Manvel the Anvil, WEC 51 boasts the bad blood rematch between Jamie Varner and Donald Cerrone, Miguel Torres trying to snap a two-fight losing streak against Charlie Valencia, Mike Brown bouncing back against Cole Province, and Leonard Garcia and his Fight of the Year partner Chan Sung Jung returning against new opponents. Set your DVRs now (Versus, 9 p.m. ET) so you don’t have to come crying to us later. And if you’re a FightPicker player, please swing by fightpicker.cagepotato.com or apps.facebook.com/fightpicker to battle your fellow ‘pickers for bragging rights. The complete list of this week’s WEC 51 pool questions can be found after the jump…

(You ever get the feeling that Eddie developed his style of jiu-jitsu specifically to put hot chicks in uncomfortable positions?)

Some selected highlights from our friends around the MMA blogosphere. E-mail feedback@cagepotato.com for details on how your site can join the MMA Link Club…

– Vadim Finkelstein: Fedor Emelianenko’s agreement with the UFC is still possible (LowKick)

– Falling Action: Winners and Losers in the Aftermath of UFC 116 (MMA Fighting)

– UFC 116: Lesnar vs. Carwin Exclusive Photos (Heavy.com/MMA)

– Maybe the next time you see Ubereem, you should just move out of his way lady [GIF] (MiddleEasy)

– FIGHT! Life: José Aldo – The Beautiful Game [VIDEO] (Fight! Magazine)

– WEC 50 ‘Benavidez vs Cruz’ Trailer (MMA Scraps)

– Your UFC 116 MVP and Maybe MVP of 2010… (Watch Kalib Run)

– Spencer Fisher vs. Kurt Warburton booked for UFC 120 (Five Ounces of Pain)

(Somebody should have warned Jose about those adjustable-rate mortgages. Photo courtesy of CombatLifestyle.)

Zuffa dished out $595,500 in disclosed salaries and bonuses to the fighters at Saturday’s "Aldo vs. Faber" event, with the end-of-night bonus winners coming out way ahead of the pack. Check out the numbers below, and keep in mind that they don’t include additional income from sponsorships or undisclosed "locker room bonuses," or deductions from insurance, licensing fees, or cornrow maintenance.

Jose Aldo: $40,000 (includes $20,000 win bonus)
def. Urijah Faber: $28,000

Ben Henderson: $91,000 (includes $13,000 win bonus, $65,000 Submission of the Night bonus)
def. Donald Cerrone: $14,000

Manny Gamburyan: $101,000 (includes $18,000 win bonus, $65,000 Knockout of the Night bonus)
def. Mike Brown: $21,000

Shane Roller: $28,000 (includes $14,000 win bonus)
def. Anthony Njokuani: $7,000

(Props: WatchKalibRun)

After laying low for most of the month, the completely arbitrary numerical rankings system known as The Potato Index has been jarred from its slumber following this weekend’s absolutely insane "Aldo vs. Faber" event. And now, it’s time for some scores to be handed down with the wrath of a fat goth chick. Let’s hit it…

Jose Aldo +199
Aldo did what most of us expected him to do, which is run through the California Kid like a hot knife through corn-rowed butter. But his unfortunate stalling in the last round — when he could have put Faber out of his misery at any moment, or at least followed his corner’s advice and let Faber up when he went down — suggested that the WEC featherweight champ is cool with just running out the clock sometimes. It’ll be a problem if it becomes a habit. For now, you can’t get too mad at him, especially since Faber absorbed a level of damage that would have stopped almost any other fighter.

Urijah Faber -74
His hometown paper may be calling for his retirement, the freakin’ vultures, but let’s look at the positives: Faber still has one of the most passionate followings in all of MMA. He will not quit, no matter how bad things are going for him. And although his legacy at featherweight may be ending, there’s still a bantamweight division in the WEC that would probably love to have him. Time to set up Faber vs. Torres?

(Chan Sung Jung reacts to his decision loss to Leonard Garcia on Saturday night. We feel your pain, buddy. Photo courtesy of MMAFighting.)

— WEC’s fighters are already seeing some benefits from their promotion’s first foray into pay-per-view. Though performance bonuses have totaled just $10,000 for recent WEC events, Zuffa handed out end-of-night bumps worth $65,000 following WEC 48: Aldo vs. Faber. Picking up the hefty checks were: Leonard Garcia and Chan Sung Jung for their epic Fight of the Night brawl that ended in a controversial decision win for Garcia; Manny Gamburyan for shocking the world with his first-round Knockout of the Night against Mike Brown; and reigning lightweight champ Ben Henderson, for his quick guillotine choke Submission of the Night over Donald Cerrone.

— Only one bout from the 11-fight card didn’t get airtime on Saturday night: Former bantamweight title challenger Takeya Mizugaki handed Rani Yahya his second straight loss during the prelims, edging out the Brazilian by unanimous decision (29-28 x 2, 30-27).

— Dana White was so hot on Jose Aldo after Saturday night’s main event that he’s already talking about a three-title reign. "I had heard that he wants to move down a weight class, win that belt and then go to 155 to fight BJ in the UFC," White said during the post-event press conference. "If he can do that, I don’t know if he can cut that weight and make that light a weight division, but he’d be the first guy to win three titles in three different weight divisions." We’re all for ludicrously overblown hype, but can we wait until Aldo makes a couple more title defenses in his own division first?

 
(Urijah Faber’s Jose Aldo-inflicted case of elephantiasis of the leg.)

Remember  after the Machida-Shogun fight when UFC judge Cecil Peoples made the asinine comment that leg kicks don’t win fights?

Despite the fact last night that the fight between Urijah Faber and Jose Aldo went to a decision, it was obvious that "The California Kid" was done midway through the bout due to the damaged he sustained to his legs from the trauma inflicted by the feet and shins of the champion. In the final two frames of the bout, Faber could barely stand on his lead leg and had to be helped back to the stool between rounds.

("Due to my contract with No Fear, I am legally forbidden from pissing my pants right now." / Photo courtesy of the WEC 48: Weigh In Pics gallery on CombatLifestyle.)

Sure, we’re calling it a WEC event, but things will be running a little differently tonight: Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg are handling commentary, Chandella is co-headlining the ring girl pit, and the fighter introductions will be delivered by the sensual vocal stylings of Bruce Buffer. Plus, you’re paying for it, which would be a bummer if the card wasn’t so stacked. In the headlining slots: Jose Aldo makes his first featherweight belt defense against former champ Urijah Faber, and lightweight champ Ben Henderson tries to make it 2-0 against cowboy-hatted nemesis Donald Cerrone. Plus: Mike Brown, Anthony Njokuani, Scott Jorgensen, Leonard Garcia, and a man known as "The Korean Zombie" will all be fighting for your entertainment. Round-by-round "Aldo vs. Faber" results can be found after the jump starting at 9 p.m. ET; refresh the page every few minutes for all the gruesome details.

(Video courtesy Youtube/Zuffa LLC)

Zuffa president Dana White’s latest WEC: Aldo vs. Faber video blog is up, and besides the obligatory Pinkberry stop and hugs and handshakes with fighters, there are actually a few funny moments in this edition.

Here are the video’s Cliffs Notes highlights for anyone too Emo to bother to watch:

It looks like Round 5 is trying to get Dana to okay a prototype of an action figure version of him they did for their line of incredibly bad action figures. I’m not sure if they have the same guy who does caricatures at the mall do the concept drawings for these things or if maybe they commissioned the supposed award-winning sculptor from New Jersey that did chocolate Dana White to do up this non-likeness, but I doubt we’ll be seeing this version of DW immortalized in plastic on store shelves any time soon.

If you fast forward through to the end of the vid, you’ll see that contrary to popular belief about its demographic, the UFC’s reach extends far beyond Affliction-wearing, 20-something douchebags and has jumped the shark to the BDSM community. Seriously, who puts on a get-up like that, looks in the mirror and thinks, “Damn, I look good. I’m gonna go hang out at Pinkberry and see if I can’t meet Dana White.”
 

("I expect biased media coverage in Sacramento. But no Get Fuzzy on the comics page? What the fuck is wrong with this town?" / Photo courtesy of the WEC 48: Out and About in Sac gallery on CombatLifestyle.com)

Just wanted to let y’all know that we’ll be liveblogging WEC: Aldo vs. Faber tomorrow beginning with the Spike TV prelims broadcast at 9 p.m. ET, and continuing to the pay-per-card at 10 p.m. So swing by as the WEC makes history/rapes our wallets, and let us know how you feel.

Speaking of which, have you made your WEC 48 FightPicker predictions yet? The currency may be fake — but the excitement is as real as it gets.

(Fun fact: Jose Aldo got that scar when he was a baby, after his sisters rolled him onto a barbecue pit. Well, maybe that’s not so much a "fun" fact as a completely horrifying one. Depends on your definition of fun, I guess. / Photo courtesy of Sherdog.)

Now that some of you are sitting on hefty tax returns from defrauding the government while in prison, it’s time to see if we can turn those little nest eggs into big, throbbing piles of money. WEC 48 is this Saturday — only on Pay Per View! — and there are plenty of opportunities to beat the oddsmakers. But before we share our red-hot, sure-thing, can’t-miss tips*, let’s take a look at the betting lines, courtesy of BestFightOdds.com…

MAIN CARD
Jose Aldo (-295) vs. Urijah Faber (+289)
Ben Henderson (even) vs. Donald Cerrone (-110)
Mike Brown (-600) vs. Manny Gamburyan (+500)
Shane Roller (-140) vs. Anthony Njokuani (+115)
Scott Jorgensen (-250) vs. Antonio Banuelos (+230)

PRELIMINARY CARD
Leonard Garcia (-130) vs. Chan Sung Jung (+110)
Anthony Pettis (-550) vs. Alex Karalexis (+505) 
Brad Pickett (-127) vs. Demetrious Johnson (even)
Chad Mendes (-465) vs. Anthony Morrison (+375)
Takeya Mizugaki (-150) vs. Rani Yahya (+130)
Brandon Visher (-300) vs. Tyler Toner (+240)

* We kindly request that you don’t consult previous editions of the Gambling Enabler to verify this claim.

Damn, a lot of surprises here…

(Props: MMA Fighting)

Believe it or not, Jose Aldo was as dominant in the beginning of his career as he’s been during his current reign in the WEC. Before suffering his first (and to date, only) loss to Luciano Azevedo in November 2005, Aldo racked up seven straight victories via brutal stoppage. The video above shows his very first vale tudo appearance against Mario Bigola at Eco Fight 1 in August 2004; Aldo was just 17 years old at the time. As you’ll see, the future featherweight champ needed just 18 seconds to land a fight-ending head-kick on Bigola, who never competed again. As for the chaos that erupts at the end, don’t be alarmed. Throwing chairs and bottles is simply how Brazilians show their appreciation. Seriously, invite one to dinner and see if I’m lying.

Related: Aldo Destroys Barbosa (Jose’s 4th pro fight)

(Props: YouTube.com/UFC)

Just a week after we learned that Stephan Bonnar is permanently replacing Frank Mir as color-commentator for the WEC, it’s been announced that the UFC’s Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg will be handling the talking-head duties for WEC 48. Headlined by the featherweight title fight between Jose Aldo and Urijah Faber, and the lightweight title fight between Ben Henderson and Donald Cerrone, WEC 48 will be the organization’s first attempt at charging a shitload of money for their product. You may have already noticed that the show’s video promos feature Dana White and Joe Rogan — not anybody directly related to the WEC — and for the most part, the UFC will be promoting this card. Sorry, Reed. As soon as it’s time to promote your next not-nearly-as-relevant event, it’s all you again

The presence of Joe and Mike won’t be the only similarity between WEC 48 and a UFC pay-per-view. Apparently, Spike TV will be broadcasting two fights from the preliminary card, directly before the PPV broadcast: Former featherweight title challenger Leonard Garcia will welcome "The Korean Zombie" Chan Sung Jung into the WEC, while UFC vet Alex Karalexis faces off against Anthony Pettis, who scored the Knockout of the Night at WEC 47.

(You know that fight we let you see for free last October? Any interest in paying a lot of money to see it again? Photo courtesy of ESPN.)

After threatening the move for a year-and-a-half, the WEC announced today that it will officially be putting an event on pay-per-view in April, seriously, for real this time. WEC 48 (April 24th, Sacramento), will be headlined by the featherweight title fight between reigning champion Jose Aldo and former champ Urijah Faber, with the lightweight title rematch between Benson Henderson and Donald Cerrone in the co-headlining spot; also, Mike Brown will continue his path back up the 145-pound ladder with a scrap against Manny Gamburyan.

In return, the WEC is boldly asking that you shell out $44.99, or four cents more than the standard price for a UFC PPV show – which feels a little presumptuous, considering the promotion is low on genuine stars and it’s the first time that a WEC broadcast hasn’t been free. Of course, if there’s any WEC event that’s worthy of your money, it’s this one, and hardcore MMA fans know that the WEC may put on the most consistently entertaining events on the planet. Still, is that enough to justify a $45 reaming? In this economy? Check out the poll on the right side of the homepage, and let us know how you feel. Any predictions for how many buys this card will take in?

IF YOU MISSED KNOCKOUTS #25-13, CLICK HERE.

#12: Fedor Emelianenko adds Brett Rogers to his vast collection of scalps at Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Rogers (11/7/09).

#11: Brian Bowles shocks the world, earns the WEC’s bantamweight title, and breaks Miguel Torres‘s 17-fight win streak at WEC 42 (8/9/09).

#10: Lyoto Machida makes Rashad Evans do the stanky leg at UFC 98. (5/23/09)

#9: Dan Hornbuckle starches Akihiro Gono with a kick to the face at Sengoku 9 — then takes a moment to think about what he’s done (8/2/09).

#8: Scott Smith pulls off the greatest comeback knockout of the year against Cung Le at Strikeforce: Evolution (12/19/09).

#7: Dan Henderson shuts Michael Bisping‘s big spotted-dick-eating mouth at UFC 100 (7/11/09).

#6 (tie): Marius Zaromskis high-kicks Hayato Sakurai into a living death at the DREAM welterweight GP semi-finals; later that same night, Marius Zaromskis does the same exact thing to Jason High (7/20/09). Congrats, Jason, you’re on the wrong end of this list twice.

#5: Yahir Reyes cracks Estevan Payan with what might be the nastiest spinning-backfist in MMA history at Bellator 6. (5/8/09)

#4: Jose Aldo needs just 8 seconds and a well-timed flying knee to wreck Cub Swanson — and earn a title shot — at WEC 41 (6/7/09).

#3: Anderson Silva shows Forrest Griffin the true power of a Jedi at UFC 101 (8/8/09).

#2: Fedor Emelianenko shoots Andrei Arlovski out of the air at Affliction: Day of Reckoning (1/24/09).

Fedor vs. Arlovski – Watch more Funny Videos

#1: Marcus "Lelo" Aurelio proves that Capoeira is MMA’s most effective style — at least for one night — against Keegan Marshall at North American Challenge 24 (4/4/09).

("God damn you, Jose, don’t you ever leave me again!" Photo courtesy of Sherdog.)

The WEC doled out a meager $276,500 in official salaries and bonuses for their "Brown vs. Aldo" event on Wednesday night, proving once again that short people are paid far less than their taller counterparts. Mike Brown earned just $15,000 for his failed title defense, and only five fighters broke the $20,000 mark. The numbers are below. Keep in mind that they don’t include income from sponsorships and "locker room bonuses" — which in the WEC probably amount to a No Fear energy drink and cab fare back to the hotel — or deductions for taxes, insurance, licensing fees, athletic commission fines, and alimony.

Jose Aldo: $36,000 (includes $13,000 win bonus, $10,000 Knockout of the Night bonus)
Mike Brown: $15,000

Manny Gamburyan: $36,000 (includes $18,000 win bonus)
Leonard Garcia: $14,000

Karen Darabedyan: $6,000 (includes $3,000 win bonus)
Rob McCullough: $20,000

(Aldo vs. Brown. Props: MMA Linker. If the video doesn’t load for you, click here.)

Last night at WEC 44 in Las Vegas, Jose "Junior" Aldo went from exciting prospect to King of the Featherweight Mountain. The 23-year-old Nova Uniao standout picked up his sixth-straight TKO victory in the WEC — as well as his first major title — by shutting down incumbent champion Mike Brown‘s advantages in strength and wrestling while unleashing his own fearsome finishing ability as soon as the opportunity presented itself.

The first round of their main event battle saw both men trade heavy strikes, with Aldo impressively defending Brown’s takedown efforts. Aldo found his moment early in the second frame, rattling the champ with a flying knee and punches, then shoving his off-balance opponent to the canvas when Brown came in with a left hook. Aldo quickly transitioned to back-mount on the ground, and began firing punches to the side of Brown’s head. Brown tried to roll out of danger, but found himself caught in a mousetrap-like body lock that kept him pinned on his stomach. Eventually he turtled, and "Worst Referee in the History of Fighting" Steve Mazzagatti had to step in and do his job.

WEC 44 is just a few hours from now, and as we already told you once, the Mike Brown-Jose Aldo title fight promises to be a war that you do not want to miss.  Ever since Brown shocked the world against Urijah Faber, we’ve all had our chance to see what kind of tools that particular contractor is using to build his foundation, but what about Aldo?  You may not be completely familiar with the 23-year-old Brazilian, but the good news is that it won’t take you long to get caught up.  In his last three WEC fights, he’s spent a grand total of 6:02 in the cage, winning all three via TKO.  Add in introductions and a couple of rewinds to fully appreciate his explosive finishes, and you can see it all in around seven minutes. 

Take the time to enjoy the man’s body of work, won’t you?  He’d do the same for you, or at least he would if you did anything aside from reading the internet and playing those damn video games.

Aldo vs. Mickle, and a very low-fi version of Aldo vs. Perez are both after the jump.

(Genghis Con says, get hyped for Brown vs. Aldo.  That’s an order, soldier.)

With so much going on this week, you might be forgiven for completely forgetting about Wednesday night’s WEC event.  At least, you might be forgiven by most people.  Myself, I’m the type to hold a grudge.  I’m also the type to act on that grudge by stabbing you with a broken bottle of Mad Dog while screaming incoherently.  But that’s me.  I’m old fashioned.  Let’s bet on some fights, shall we?

Betting odds come to us courtesy of BestFightOdds.com.

Mike Brown (-113) vs. Jose Aldo (+102)
Manny Gamburyan (+105) vs. Leonard Garcia (-105)
Rob McCullough (-145) vs. Karen Darabedyan (+145)
Danny Castillo (-135) vs. Shane Roller (+115)
Kamal Shalorus (-160) vs. Will Kerr (+145)
Diego Nunes (-160) vs. LC Davis (+145)
Cub Swanson (-270) vs. John Franchi (+260)
Antonio Banuelos (-200) vs. Kenji Osawa (+190)
Ricardo Lamas (-225) vs. James Krause (+215)
Seth Dikun (+150) vs. Frank Gomez (-155)

The breakdown…

(Props: wec)

Heads up: WEC 44 goes down next Wednesday in Las Vegas, with featherweight champ Mike Brown defending his belt against terrifying knockout artist Jose Aldo, who has ended all five of his appearences in the WEC via highlight-reel stoppage; his last opponent, Cub Swanson, lasted all of eight seconds. But is Mike Brown scared? Nah. "He’s never faced the caliber of fighter that I am," Brownie says. "It’s not gonna be an easy fight of course, but if I do my thing, I’m gonna win the fight." Check out the full lineup here.

(Props: flexwheelR via CRE)

Some heart-pumpin’ MMA compilations to chase away the Monday blues. Above is a tribute to GSP that’s so cool it almost makes us forgive the use of French rap music. After the jump, #4-ranked featherweight Jose Aldo‘s greatest hits; Aldo takes on WEC champ Mike Brown in November. Also, a Gegard Mousasi career overview that features a bunch of early fights that you probably haven’t seen before.

(You know, Cub, in bull riding this would have been considered a victory. Photo courtesy of Newsday.)

— According to an interview on intheguard.tv, WEC featherweight/human highlight-reel Jose Aldo says he’ll be getting a much-deserved shot at Mike Brown‘s belt at WEC 45 (November 11th, location TBA). Aldo has racked up five consecutive TKO/KO victories during his stint in the WEC, most recently slicing Cub Swanson’s head wide open in 8 seconds at WEC 41 last month. Brown made his second successful title-defense at the same event, out-pointing Urijah Faber in a classic five-rounder to pick up his tenth straight win. 

— With Strikeforce middleweight champ Cung Le out of action due to a blossoming acting career, Scott Coker has announced that Jake Shields will fight for the organization’s interim middleweight title in October; the exact date, location, and Shields’s opponent will all be announced later. Shields has long been known as one of the best welterweights in the world, but his first-round choke-out of Robbie Lawler last month proved that he could be very competitive at a higher weight. Plus, his homey’s already got the welterweight division on lock…

Gash of the year, right there; props to Bloody Elbow for the tip. Video of the Jose Aldo flying knee that gave him that cut is below, and some more WEC 41 fights are after the jump in case you missed the show on Sunday.

(Mike Brown — toughest ginger alive. Photo courtesy of MMA Weekly.)

I know we say this almost every time there’s a WEC show — but how insane was that card last night? The main event rematch between featherweight champ Mike Brown and Urijah Faber became the latest Legendary WEC Title Fight, with the two best 145-pounders in the world slugging it out for all 25 minutes. Though every round was close, Brown got the edge from the judges thanks to his consistent takedowns and submission attempts. But who knows what would have happened if Faber didn’t break his right hand in the first round? The California Kid showed a tremendous display of guts in pushing through the pain; instead of punching with the busted paw, Faber switched to standing elbows, which turned out to be surprisingly effective. Still, the champ took everything Faber dished out, and aside from a couple of close guillotine attempts from the hometown hero, Brown steadily pushed the pace, ground down the challenger, and stayed out of trouble.

Faber’s loss may not be enough to drop him from the #2-spot in the featherweight rankings, especially when you take his injury into account. Brown and Faber have become the Federer and Nadal of the WEC — they should just keep fighting every year, no matter what the score is.