(If I’ve told one reporter, I’ve told them all. No Nick Ring questions. At all.)

The UFC has recently announced a middleweight clash between TUF 11 winner Court McGee and up and comer Constantinos Philippou for the promotion’s second installation on FX, which goes down March 3rd at the Allphones Arena in Sydney, Australia.

Coming off a unanimous decision victory over Korean slugger Dongi Yang, McGee is a perfect 3-0 in his octagon career, submitting Kris McCray back in June of 2010 to win the glass plaque and doing the same to Ryan Jensen in his post-TUF debut the following October. After dropping a decision to Nick Catone in his own debut, Philippou has notched two straight, scoring a split decision over Jorge Rivera at UFC 133 before absolutely blistering Jared Hamman at UFC 140. This one’s gonna be a brawl, ladies and gents.

(And here we have Ronda Rousey dumping Karo Parisyan on his head. Props: DantheWolfman)

Some selected highlights from our friends around the MMA blogosphere…

- The Great ‘Must Retire’ List of 2011 (MMA Convert)

- Bellator’s 10 Best Fights of 2011 (The Fight Nerd)

- Photo Gallery: Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos Training for Hiroko Yamanaka (Lowkick.Blitzcorner.com)

- The 25 Most Outrageous MMA-Related Videos on YouTube (BleacherReport.com/MMA)

- Spike TV to Counter-Program ‘UFC on FOX 2′ With ‘UFC Unleashed: Evans vs. Davis’ (MMA Payout)

- Arianny Celeste: Chael Sonnen Is Very Polite To Me Backstage (FightLine)

- Keith Kizer: Urine Is ‘Obviously’ Better Than Blood for Steroid Testing (Fight Opinion)

- Dana White Sees Jon Jones as #2 Pound-for-Pound Fighter in the World (Five Ounces of Pain)

- Joseph Benavidez Inspired to Become a Great Champion in New UFC Flyweight Division (MMA Mania)

- Demian Maia: I Know I Can Submit Michael Bisping (MMAFighting)

- Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira Avoids Surgery on Broken Arm (5th Round)

- Can Someone Please Help Felice Herrig With Her Wardrobe Malfunction? (MiddleEasy)

Announcement comes at roughly the 6:25 mark. Props: MMAFighting.com

We can end the speculation. After last night’s UFC 140, Dana White announced that flyweight MMA will debut in the UFC on March 3, 2012. The event is going to be broadcast on FX and take place in the land where people ride around in their kangaroos all day, Australia. Details, such as a specific venue and fights possible for the card, have yet to be officially released, though we’re willing to bet it’ll be at Sydney’s Acer Arena (just a wild guess).

The UFC is unveiling their newest roster editions with a bang. A four man flyweight tournament is set to begin on March 3, presumably in order to crown the inaugural flyweight champion, and will feature Ian McCall vs. Demetrious Johnson and Joseph Benavidez vs. Yasuhiro Urushitani. Demetrious Johnson and Joseph Benavidez should both be fresh in your mind, as they have had successful runs in the UFC at bantamweight yet are better suited for flyweight competition. As for McCall and Urushitani, we’ve got them profiled after the jump.

(I guess it’s true what they say; life imitates art.) 

It has recently been reported that a welterweight contest between Paulo Thiago and Mike Pyle has been added to the rapidly awesoming UFC 142 card, which goes down January 14th in Rio. Thiago, a Brazilian superhero of sorts, last competed in the UFC’s return to Brazil at UFC 134, notching a unanimous decision victory over David Mitchell. It was Thiago’s first win in his past three contests, so a win over Pyle is likely necessary if he wants to keep his job that doesn’t involve Brazilian gangs, which, according to this one documentary I saw, are fucking terrifying. Pyle, on the other hand, just saw a three fight win streak (one that included an upset win over British prospect John Hathaway) snapped at the hands of Canadian wrecking machine Rory MacDonald.

(Look into my crystal ball Kenny, and ye shall see thine future.) 

There is a lot on the line at UFC 136. Not just the two titles and the future title match implications, but a chance for two men to finally capture the gold that has long eluded them. I’m speaking of Kenny Florian and Gray Maynard of course, who’ve both been chasing UFC gold for the better part of their careers, only to fall inches short of the finish line. For Gray, who many people felt deserved a title shot over current champion Frankie Edgar in the first place, it was the resilience of the champ that proved to be his undoing. And for Florian, it was just a terribly unlucky spell when it came to title fights. But come Saturday, both men will have a chance to erase our doubts and finally move up to that deluxe apartment in the sky.

Unfortunately, Florian and Maynard are not the only men who have felt the repercussions of looking directly into the belt. There are a few guys out there who just seem destined to be number 2 in a company that loves to fuck with the number 2. Anyway, we thought we would awkwardly point out six of them, excluding “Kenflo” and “The Bully,” from across the room for your reading pleasure. And we’re going by Brock Lesnar rules here, so interim belts don’t count. Enjoy.

Horse Takes MMA Kick To The Nuts – Watch more Funny Videos
(Testicle-torture fetishist Nasty the Horse has a painful — or totally satisfying? — encounter with Fabricio Werdum.)

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…

- ‘Rampage’ Jackson’s Toughest Role? Convincing Us He Still Wants to Fight (MMA Fighting)

- Five Fights You Shouldn’t Miss at UFC 130 (LowKick)

- MTV Is Planning a New MMA Reality Show in the Vein of a ‘Redneck Jersey Shore’ (MiddleEasy)

- Eddie Wineland vs. Joseph Benavidez Booked for ‘UFC Live 5′ in August (Five Ounces of Pain)

- Antonio McKee Thinks He May Have Been Cut by UFC Because He ‘Rubbed Joe Silva the Wrong Way’ (MMA Mania)

- UFC 129 ‘St. Pierre vs. Shields’ Did Really Big Business (MMA Convert)

- Zoila & Jorge Gurgel talk MMA & Marriage (TheFightNerd)

- ‘Strikeforce Challengers’ Headed to Las Vegas (NBC Sports MMA)

- Video: Shane Carwin Releases “Here We Go: Camp Carwin” Episode 1 (5thRound)

- The Top 5 MMA Fighters Not Currently Fighting Under the ZUFFA Banner (BleacherReport.com/MMA)

(Munster Mulisha! Pic: MMA Convert)

There was good reason for Jose Aldo to immediately start gobbling up the headlines after the UFC crowned him and Dominick Cruz its newest champions at the beginning of this year. Aldo after all has been known to suspend the rules of space and time during his fights and in one of his two most recent performances, ground the former consensus GOAT’s lead leg into andouille sausage. Still, with all the attention afforded the featherweight champ these past few months, we couldn’t blame bantamweight kingpin Cruz if he were sitting around right now mumbling something like “Wait ’till they a get a load of me.”

Because, while Aldo has been tabbed the immediate breakout superstar of the lighter weight classes, Cruz has certainly been no slouch. His unique blend of evasive footwork and striking has so far been a riddle no one at 135-pounds can unravel. Slated for a second bout with Urijah Faber at UFC 132, Cruz will get the stiffest test of his career during his first Octagon appearance. That bout could potentially see a realignment of the bantamweight Top 5. Until then, here’s how we see the cream of the 135-pound crop …

(Faber vs. Mizugaki; fight starts at the 6:59 mark, and the nasty finishing sequence begins at 10:49. Props: borntoride5656. Get a look before it’s pulled…)

In the first phase of its two-part farewell tour, the WEC transcended its lame-duck status with yet another thrilling card last night in Las Vegas. Urijah Faber left no doubt in fans’ minds that he’ll be a force at bantamweight, needing less than one round to take out Takeya Mizugaki in the main event. After a few exchanges contested on the feet and in the clinch, Faber snatched a guillotine, then brilliantly transitioned to Mizugaki’s back to secure a rear-naked choke. Mizugaki gamely tried to defend, but eventually passed out rather than tapping; he was asleep for a solid 10 seconds before referee Josh Rosenthal recognized what was up. The victory earned Faber a $10,000 Submission of the Night bonus, which he vowed to split with his teammate Joseph Benavidez. 

Following his dominant showing, it appears likely that Faber will get the next bantamweight title shot against the winner of Dominick Cruz vs. Scott Jorgensen at WEC 53. When asked about that matchup following the event, Faber said “[Scott and I] have a good relationship. He’s a guy I helped get into the sport a little bit. We’ve trained a bunch together. He’s mentally tough. I’d rather fight Dominick, but I’m rooting for Scott [to win that fight].”

As for his new home at 135, Faber was psyched: "When I first started fighting there was no 135-pound weight class. So it’s not like I had the choice. I was just the best guy at 145. So now it’s my time to shine down here. I’m at my most competitive weight. It’s my time. It’s a new era baby!"

(Where’s a loaded musket when you need one? Props: Fighters Only)

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…

– Josh Koscheck, Georges St-Pierre Get UFC 124 Hype Officially Underway at Press Conference in Montreal (MMA Fighting)

– Diaz, Thomson Top 211K Fighter Payroll For Diaz vs. Noons II (Heavy.com/MMA)

– SB Nation Exclusive: UFC 120′s Mike Pyle Reflects on His Career in MMA (Watch Kalib Run)

– Why Dan Hardy vs Carlos Condit Should Be the Headline Fight at UFC 120 (Five Ounces of Pain)

– Joseph Benavidez vs. Wagnney Fabiano Booked for WEC 52 (Versus MMA Beat)

- Nick Diaz: How Do These Guys Expect to Beat Me? [VIDEO](FightMagazine)

– Comeback "Gracie Style": Exclusive interview with Daniel Gracie (LowKick)

– Antonio Silva vs. Valentijn Overeem Official For Strikeforce ‘Henderson vs. Babalu’ (MMA Convert)

– Classic Fight: Royler Gracie vs. Genki Sudo @ K-1 MMA Romanex 2004 (MMA Scraps)

– Marloes Coenen Gets a Hero’s Welcome in Amsterdam (MiddleEasy)

(Props: YouTube.com/Heavy)

— If you thought last night’s WEC main event wasn’t as close as the judges scored it, Dominick Cruz would respectfully agree with you. As the reigning bantamweight champ said after his fight with Joseph Benavidez (skip to the 2:59 mark above): 

"In my humble opinion, I thought I won all the rounds…I think that the crowd has a big part to play in the judges’ opinion sometimes. Also, he caught me with a real slick knee up against the cage that made me bleed real bad. I would assume the blood could have swayed the judges a little as well."

Benavidez was also surprised that one of the judges saw it his way: "I figured I didn’t do enough to win, but I wasn’t watching the fight, so when the judge did say my name it was quite a surprise. I was like "wow, could this happen? Is this, like, the work of God or something?" For the record, FightMetric gave every round to Cruz for outpointing Benavidez in striking (103-46 total) and takedowns (5-0 total).

— $10,000 performance bonuses were handed out to the following fighters…
Knockout of the Night: Newcomer Maciej Jewtuszko for using a spinning back elbow and a pair of nasty uppercuts to wreck Anthony Njokuani in 96 seconds.
Submission of the Night: Anthony Pettis for finishing Shane Roller via triangle choke with just nine seconds left in the fight, after wearing Roller down with his impressively-flashy striking attacks. (How ’bout that capoeira head kick in round one?)
Fight of the Night: Scott Jorgensen and Brad Pickett for their 15-minute smash-up which went all over the cage and didn’t slow down for one second. Round two was easily one of the best MMA rounds of 2010.

(Benavidez must be standing on the stack of cash he gave Nelson Hamilton before the fight)

Well WEC 50: Cruz vs. Benavidez II is in the books and in usual WEC fashion, the card didn’t disappoint.

The fact that six out of 10 fights on the card went to the judges’ scorecards is a testament to the WEC matchmaker Sean Shelby’s adeptness, because even the bouts that went the distance were wars of attrition in which both fighters left everything in the cage.

A few up-and-comers climbed further up the title contention ladder while a few others dropped a few rungs down, but none of the fights were disappointing.
The only real question mark of the show was which fights the judges were watching as they seem to have decidedly different opinions on who won a few of the bouts.

In the main event of the evening, bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz controlled the majority of action, possibly losing two rounds of the five round title affair to challenger Joseph Benavidez. Benavidez landed a handful of power shots throughout the bout, but it was Cruz’s takedowns that were the real deciding factor in the fight.

Personally, I had the fight at 49-46 for Cruz, but it arguably could have gone 48-47 depending on how you look at round two. For Nelson "Doc" Hamilton to score the the bout 48-47 for Benavidez it makes me wonder if he was watching America’s Got Talent on his iPhone instead of watching the fight.

(Whatever Benavidez throws at him in the cage, it won’t be nearly as intense as that horrible freakin’ ice bath. Props: YouTube.com/fightmagazine)

Headlining tomorrow night’s WEC 50 card on Versus is Dominick Cruz (15-1) attempting his first bantamweight title defense against old rival Joseph Benavidez (12-1). Cruz won their first meeting at WEC 42 by unanimous decision. Will he be able to repeat the performance, or is Joe B gettin’ that belt? Let’s go to the stats…

AGE
Cruz: 25
Benavidez: 26
Advantage: Even

HEIGHT
Cruz: 5’8"
Benavidez: 5’4"
Advantage: Cruz. Seriously, Ariel Helwani looks like a giant standing next to Joe. Though to be fair, Miguel Torres is 5’9", and Benavidez wrecked him.

FINISHING PERCENTAGE
Cruz: 44% (7 out of 16 fights ended in stoppage victories)
Benavidez: 77% (10 out of 13 fights ended in stoppage victories)
Advantage: Benavidez

(Cruz and Benavidez’s first meeting last August: Dominick may have gotten the nod for Octagon control, but Joe definitely had the mad-dogging advantage. Photo courtesy of SI)

Next Sunday’s WEC 49 might be low on marquee fights, but the organization will be making up for it in a big way at their August 18th show, which is slated to go down in Las Vegas. As reported yesterday, former featherweight champ Urijah Faber will make his bantamweight debut at the event, following a 2-3 stretch in his last five fights — including an agonizing loss to Jose Aldo in his last title challenge. Faber’s opponent is expected to be Takeya Mizugaki (12-4-2, 2-2 WEC), who made his WEC debut in a memorable five-round war against Miguel Torres last year, and has since picked up decision victories against Jeff Curran and Rani Yahya. Faber has stated in the past that he cuts very little weight to make 145 pounds, and a drop to 135 wouldn’t be a problem for him.

Headlining the card will be an even more important bantamweight scrap: Dominick Cruz‘s first title defense against Faber’s teammate Joseph Benavidez, who Cruz previously outpointed at WEC 42. Cruz became champion in March thanks to a brilliant striking performance against then-champion Brian Bowles. Benavidez earned his title shot by choking out Miguel Torres at the same event, and hopes to avenge the only loss on his record. The 8/18 show — which we’ll refer to as WEC 50 until further notice — will be broadcast on Versus.

Semi-related: The day before he handles color-commentary duties for WEC 49, Kenny Florian will be working the booth for the TUF 11 Finale.

(Video courtesy YouTube ProMMARadio)

In an interview with ProMMARadio this weekend, former WEC featherweight champion Urijah Faber confirmed that he will be dropping down to bantamweight to test the 135-pound waters.

 “From the sound of things, they want me to go down to 35. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a long time — go down and have some fights down there. So, I’ll probably have a couple of fights down there and maybe go back up to 45; we’re not real sure yet."

(Photo courtesy of Sherdog.)

The WEC paid out $276,500 in disclosed salaries and bonuses for their WEC 47 card on Saturday, with bantamweight contender Joseph Benavidez taking home the biggest cut. Benavidez’s $39,000 haul — including his win bonus and submission bonus — made him one of just three fighters to earn over $20,000 from the event. The numbers are below; keep in mind that they don’t include income from sponsorships or undisclosed "locker-room bonuses," or deductions for taxes, insurance, and licensing fees.

Dominick Cruz: $18,000 (includes $9,000 win bonus)
Brian Bowles: $12,000

Joseph Benavidez: $39,000 (includes $14,500 win bonus, $10,000 Submission of the Night bonus)
Miguel Torres: $26,000

Javier Vazquez: $12,000 (includes $6,000 win bonus)
Jens Pulver: $14,000*

L.C. Davis: $18,000 (includes $9,000 win bonus)
Deividas Taurosevicius: $9,000

(Looks like someone deserves a lollipop for being such a brave boy. Photo courtesy of Brian Bowles‘s Twitter.)

Fans were treated to a night of upsets at WEC 47, as favorites Brian Bowles and Miguel Torres both went down to unceremonious defeats in Columbus, Ohio. As you see in the above photo, Bowles wasn’t kidding about that injured hand. He claims to have broken it on the very first punch he landed, which then threw his whole game off and eventually prompted him to relinquish his title when he couldn’t continue past round two. That makes Dominick Cruz your new 135-pound champ, and the way the title’s been bouncing around lately he better get all the enjoyment he can out of it while it lasts.

In another minor shock, 5’4” Joseph Benavidez swarmed all over former champ Miguel Torres before securing a guillotine choke in the second round that forced Torres to tap out. With the victory, Benavidez claimed the $10,000 bonus check for Submission of the Night. The other bonus awards went to Anthony Pettis for his Knockout of the Night-winning finish of Danny Castillo, and to George Roop and Leonard Garcia, who earned Fight of the Night in a three-round draw during the prelims.

(Torres celebrates a victory; Benavidez mourns a fallen hero.)

Seven months after finding himself on the business end of the 11th-greatest knockout of 2009, former WEC bantamweight ruler Miguel Torres will return to the cage at WEC 47 (March 6, Columbus), according to a new report by MMA Mania. Torres is likely to face off against Team Alpha Male product Joseph Benavidez (11-1), who recently defeated Rani Yahya by first-round TKO at WEC 45. Benavidez’s sole loss came in August against Dominick Cruz, who is now slated to take on Bowles for the 135-pound strap at WEC 47.

Torres has been laying low since his loss to Bowles, but according to his Twitter page, he’s been splitting his time between training, watching It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and working it. In other words, when it’s time to throw down with Benavidez, he’ll be ready.

(When Cowboy finds out that’s not a woman, he’s going to lose his shit. Photo courtesy of the WEC 45: After the Weigh ins set on CombatLifestyle.)

In the interest of equal time, we’d like to present the payout information for Saturday’s WEC card, in which 20 fighters split a combined $212,000 in disclosed salaries and bonuses. Only Donald Cerrone and Joseph Benavidez earned more than $20,000. It’s a good thing that all of these guys have well-paying day jobs and fighting is just something they do to supplement their income on the weekends. Here are the numbers, courtesy of MMA Junkie…

Donald Cerrone: $34,000 (includes $12,000 win bonus, $10,000 Fight of the Night bonus)
def. Ed Ratcliff: $19,000 (includes $10,000 Fight of the Night bonus)

Anthony Njokuani: $18,000 (includes $4,000 win bonus, $10,000 Knockout of the Night bonus)
def. Chris Horodecki: $12,000

Joseph Benavidez: $25,000 (includes $12,500 win bonus)
def. Rani Yahya: $9,000

Scott Jorgensen: $19,000 (includes $7,000 win bonus, $5,000 Fight of the Night bonus)
def. Takeya Mizugaki: $13,000 (includes $5,000 Fight of the Night bonus)

(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.”

(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.

(Do you have to be so smug about my misfortune, Henderson? Photo courtesy WEC.tv)

Potato Nation, let me level with you here.  The old Gambling Addiction Enabler had himself one hell of a bad night on Sunday.  As in, he has spent all day talking himself out of cutting his wrists with shards of the beer bottle he smashed against the wall just after Jeff Curran lost.  The fact that this horrible gambling outing came after his great success at UFC Fight Night 18, that just makes it hurt so much more.  The highs are high indeed, and the lows so miserably low.  The Snoop Dogg posters I bought with my UFC 96 winnings, they mock me even as I write these words.  

On to the sad particulars, and let’s see if we can’t learn from this disaster.

The Bet: $20 on Shane Roller
The Result: Lost, due to possibly bullshit stoppage
Thoughts: I refuse to beat myself up for this bet.  Roller had Henderson hurt early and nearly finished him with a guillotine.  Alas, it wasn’t to be.  I have to admit, this fight does make me rethink my betting philosophy for WEC events.  When two relatively inexperienced guys both drop each other within the first two minutes of the fight, picking the winner is basically a crapshoot.  Lesson learned?

(Fred Sanford, bitch. Photo courtesy of the WEC 40 weigh-ins gallery on Combat Lifestyle.)

From tonight’s "Torres vs. Mizugaki" show at the UIC Pavillion in Chicago, Illinois:

Rafael Dias def. Mike Budnick via unanimous decision
Akitoshi Tamura def. Manny Tapia via unanimous decision
Rani Yahya def. Eddie Wineland via submission (rear-naked choke), 1:07 of round 1
Wagnney Fabiano def. Fredson Paixao via unanimous decision
Dominick Cruz def. Ivan Lopez via unanimous decision [fight halted in third round after Lopez took an illegal knee and couldn't continue; match went to the scorecards, with the incomplete third round included]
Anthony Njokuani def. Bart Palaszewski via TKO, 0:27 of round 2