Frank Mir

(Props: bigguvnor)

You have to hand it to British MMA fighters — what they lack in technique, they more than make up for in willingness to flail their arms around until someone gets knocked out. Like a pasty, heavyweight version of Sanchez vs. Guida, Ashley Pollard and Ian Hawkings gave the crowd what they paid for at Ultimate Challenge UK in August, slugging it out like two albino gorillas fighting over a female in estrus. Pollard eventually won when Hawkings's natural instinct to run like hell got the better of him. Deal with it, Floyd Mayweather!

(Photo courtesy of Sherdog.)

Nothing lasts forever — even cold November rain, and the seemingly untouchable bantamweight championship run of Miguel Torres. No, Torres did not ruin Brian Bowles's boyish face at last night's WEC 42, as many (everybody?) assumed he would. Instead, Bowles nearly knocked the former champ's mullet off during a violent belt-taking that was reminiscent of Brown vs. Faber 1.

Torres was in trouble from the beginning of the match, as Bowles sent him to the canvas with a heavy right hand. After Bowles dropped some elbows from the top, Torres was able to kick Bowles off of him. Moments later, Torres launched forward with a barrage of punches that had Bowles on his heels, but Bowles fired off a sharp right hook that dropped Torres again, and started throwing down bombs until Torres was in dreamland. Brian Bowles — who picked up a $10,000 Knockout of the Night bonus for his shocking of the world — is the new WEC bantamweight champ. “No excuses,” Torres said after the fight. “Brian is going to be a good champion, but he’ll see that the responsibilities that go along with being the champion are not easy.”

("Another opponent that will tool me on the ground? YES!" Photo courtesy of MMA Frenzy.)

According to a new report on Sportsnet.ca (which was also confirmed by MMA Mania), former UFC interim heavyweight champ Frank Mir is tentatively scheduled to face Cheick Kongo at UFC 107 (December 12, Memphis). Mir will try to bounce back from his crushing loss to Brock Lesnar at UFC 100, while Kongo is coming off his own smothering defeat against Cain Velasquez at UFC 99. The match would support the headlining light-heavyweight scrap between TUF 10 coaches Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Rashad Evans.

We know Kongo hits hard, but if Mir can get this one to the mat, his massive jiu-jitsu advantage could decide the fight. No matter what happens, both guys have a lot to lose in this one. (I wonder if Mir will keep pushing his "cocky bastard" routine now that he's been completely humbled?) Speaking of UFC 107, Rampage and Rashad will be the subjects of a Primetime mini-series on Spike, showcasing their preparations for the match. Think about it, know it, see it.

(Props: MMA Mania)

The WEC's next title bout will go down August 9th in Las Vegas, with undisputed bantamweight ruler Miguel Torres (37-1 confirmed record, 5-0 WEC) making his fourth belt defense against exciting contender Brian Bowles (7-0, 4-0 WEC). Despite the large difference in experience, the above promo video does its best to convince you that Bowles is a serious threat. "If I have to pick anybody out there, if I was Miguel Torres's manager, who I would want to avoid, it would have been Brian Bowles," says WEC analyst Frank Mir, proving why he's paid to fight and do color commentary, not manage careers. "To beat me you have to kill me," Torres says. "To beat me, you gotta take my heart out of my chest, and stab me with a knife." Luckily, Bowles has been training with MMA legend Mola Ram.

WEC 42 will also feature a possible #1 bantamweight contender match between Joseph Benavidez and Dominick Cruz, and the return of Leonard Garcia against Jameel Massouh.

Photos courtesy of The Las Vegas Sun, UFC.com, Sherdog, and MMA Weekly. Click all for larger images; lots more after the jump.