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.

(Cain Velasquez‘s new Lugz commercial. Yeah, he smashed that. Props: YouTube.com/MMAFightClub)

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…

– Punch Drunk Preview: WEC 50 (Heavy.com/MMA)

- Cro Cop Says He’s Not Ready for UFC 119 but Still Guarantees a First Round Knockout (MiddleEasy)

– Backstage: Ariel Helwani vs. Ed Soares (MMA Fighting)

– Total Fighter Payroll for Strikeforce Challengers Phoenix: $53,250 (MMA Convert)

– 10 Taekwondo Knockouts That Will Blow Your Mind (MMA Scraps)

– Shane Carwin still silent on steroid connection; media as well (Watch Kalib Run)

– Pettis: ‘Roller Doesn’t Want Any Part of My Stand-up’ at WEC 50 (Versus MMA Beat)

– Chael Sonnen Syndrome: Urijah Faber trash-talking his way to the WEC Bantamweight Title shot? (LowKick)

- Rafael Cavalcante: “I have been working hard for not just this fight, but for my dream, every day for six years.” (Five Ounces of Pain)

– Strikeforce Houston: Noons & Gurgel on Standing and Banging for a Title Shot (FIGHT! Magazine)

(Video courtesy FunnyorDie)

If you told me that Urijah Faber would be part of one of the best shoe commercials I’d ever see and that the shoes the ad was promoting would be K-Swiss, I’d likely just laugh until things got very uncomfortable for both of us, before walking away.

Well, I’m a big enough man to admit when I’m wrong, like when I said Vladimir Matyushenko had a good chance at beating Jon Jones. Only this time, I don’t feel bad about being wrong. Maybe it has something to do with Faber’s decapitated melon, with the California Kid headband still attached, being booted out of the cage by Kenny Powers.

Whatever it was, this commercial was pure win from start to finish.

(Damn, as if the constipation wasn’t bad enough…)

Urijah Faber‘s scheduled bantamweight debut against Takeya Mizugaki at WEC 50 (August 18th, Las Vegas) has been canceled, due to a knee injury that Faber suffered in training on Monday. The California Kid confirmed the bad news via Twitter earlier today, and told Heavy: "Somebody was going to take me down during training. They swept me and I heard a loud pop. They said it would be six weeks before I could train again, but it may heal even faster."

According to MMAJunkie, a replacement will not be found for Mizugaki. Tough break, but on the bright side, it’s a miracle that Faber can even walk at all at this point. WEC 50 will be headlined by the bantamweight title (re-)match between Dominick Cruz and Joseph 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 CombatLifestyle.)

After sifting through over 250 entries — most of them surprisingly hilarious — we are pleased to announce the winners of our latest caption contest, brought to you by Ranger Up. But first, some honorable mentions…

danomite: Angela could only watch and wait patiently for the day to come when she too would be old enough to drunkenly walk over to some guy she’s never met before and ask him to scribble his name on her boobs.

jimmylegs: Guy in the background: "Which one do you want? I’ll take the freaky chick wearing the hat."

Slampage: Darrill Schoonover gets a sweet autograph from Urijah.

Harry Nips: "We’re keeping it PG-13 for the kid. Urijah, do you mind putting some underwear on your ass-chin?"

cagepotato: "I can’t wait to go home and show this to my boyfriend, Jose."
[Ed. note: No, we're not shouting out ourselves. Some joker started an account as "cagepotato" to post this. Luckily, he/she did us proud.]

hotsaucemonster: "and could you make it out to Ebay?"

Millertime84: Do me a Faber, sign these Knockers.
[Ed. note: As the great Mark Twain once said, "If you don't like a good pun, then fuck you."]

And the winners are…

(Top: TUF 11 "Minority Report" member Kris McCray models the War Eagle Flag shirt from Ranger Up. Directly above: The War Eagle Crown and Phoenix Rising shirts.)

The honorable military men over at Ranger Up have just given birth to some new t-shirt designs, and they’d like a few select members of the Potato Nation to have them. Here’s how to win: Check out the photo after the jump, come up with a caption that makes us laugh, and post it in the comments section. Please submit your entries by Sunday at midnight PT; we’ll choose three winners on Monday, who will be eligible for one of the t-shirts shown above. Sounds good? Well get going, and if you have a chance please check out Ranger Up’s full line of badass (and occasionally hilarious) t-shirts, and visit The Rhino Den for RU’s original articles on MMA and military life.

(Have an AMP energy drink, Urijah. You’ve earned it. / Photo courtesy of MMAFighting.)

According to new reports on Heavy and f4wonline, early estimates indicate that Saturday’s "Aldo vs. Faber" event generated between 150,000 and 200,000 buys. In other words (assuming the estimates are accurate), the WEC’s first attempt at pay-per-view was a smashing success. A couple points to put those numbers in perspective:

— 150k-200k is not too far off from the 240,000 buys that UFC 110 pulled in, with its roster full of MMA stars.
— Affliction did no more than 100,000 buys with its first event.

As a starting point for WEC-product on pay-per-view, it’s very encouraging, and proves that Zuffa knows how to promote and package their fights. Now that fans know the WEC is worth their money, Zuffa is in an even better position for the next time they want to charge us. Of course, the lineup has to be just as compelling as "Aldo vs. Faber"’s. At this point, what could the WEC offer to make you shell out another $45? Urijah Faber vs. Miguel Torres as a co-headliner seems like a no-brainer to me…

Related:
– Urijah Faber’s leg is still nasty-looking.
– Ratings for the "Aldo vs. Faber" prelims broadcast on Spike shot up during the Garcia vs. Jung fight.

(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?

 
(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: 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?

(Props: MMA Share)

If you’re feeling a little down today and are considering taking a long hot bath with a clock radio to top off the evening, you aren’t alone.  Today is what many have come to call "Blue Monday."  It’s officially the most depressing day of the year.  In an effort to help you soldier through it, we found some fun videos that only sort of have to do with MMA. 

Those of you who read Neal Taflinger’s excellent profile piece on Fedor Emelianenko in the October ’09 issue of Fight Magazine may recognize this little scene on the M-1 Global tour bus.  Those of you who didn’t read it will have to live with that decision for the rest of your sad lives.  Taffy is the guy with the bright orange hair in the back of the bus trying to conduct an interview via Fedor’s interpreter.  Fedor is the Russian dude grinning from ear to ear after shoving some ice down the back of Gegard Mousasi‘s trousers.  Some things transcend all language and cultural barriers, and ice in somebody’s pants is undoubtedly one of those things. 

More MMA-related pick-me-ups await you after the jump.

("Could you take it again? I think I blinked that time." Photo courtesy of Sherdog.)

With another WEC event in the books, it’s time once again to see what these poor bastards are living on. Urijah Faber‘s $62,000 haul represented a little over 20% of the total $302,000 disclosed payroll from Sunday’s show, and was about triple what Jamie Varner and Benson Henderson individually earned for their efforts. Mike Brown came in a not-so-close second with his $38,000 check. The numbers are below, courtesy of MMA Junkie…

Benson Henderson: $22,000 (includes $11,000 win bonus)
def. Jamie Varner: $18,000

Urijah Faber: $62,000 (includes $26,000 win bonus, $10,000 Submission of the Night bonus)
def. Raphael Assuncao: $13,000

Kamal Shalorus: $10,000 (includes $5,000 win bonus)
def. Dave Jansen: $4,000

Mike Brown: $38,000 (includes $19,000 win bonus)
def. Anthony Morrison: $4,000

(The Urijah Faber story continues over at FightMagazine.com. See previous installments here and here.)

This isn’t the first time Urijah Faber has told the story of the night he was almost killed by an angry Indonesian mob, but it’s the kind of tale that we never tire of hearing.  At first you find yourself feeling bad for Urijah, who’s just trying to dance with some girls and ends up getting hit in the head with brass knuckles, which we didn’t even know existed outside of old-timey cartoons and pro wrestling matches. 

But then, once you start to think about it, your sympathies almost can’t help but lie with the angry mob.  They must have looked at Faber, a 5’6" American kid with long, girlish locks who had just hurt their friend and thought, ‘Well here’s a slam dunk.’  Then he starts dropping people on the pavement and elbowing people in the face and suddenly the reputation of your nation’s bloodthirsty mobs is in jeopardy.  Of course they picked up hammers and bottles and rocks.  You let that guy get home and start telling this story to the world, pretty soon no one is going to take an Indonesian mob seriously.  Once you’ve lost that, what have you got?     

(Photo courtesy of MMA Weekly.)

Three months after Benson Henderson squeaked past Donald Cerrone in a grueling (and controversial) five-rounder at WEC 43, and a year after Jamie Varner defended his lightweight title in his own contentious battle against Cowboy, the WEC’s top two lightweights met last night at the ARCO Arena in Sacramento to determine an undisputed 155-pound ruler — and this time, the scorecards would not be necessary.

Henderson’s inhuman ability to resist submission holds served him well in WEC 46′s main event. The first round saw Varner latch on a tight guillotine against the fence after slamming Henderson to the mat, but "Smooth" stayed calm and escaped. Except for one strange moment when Varner wandered away with his back turned after taking a body kick — apparently looking for a pause in the action, which he didn’t receive — Varner seemed to have the edge early on. The second round was an evenly-pitched striking battle, with both fighters testing out their kicks; Henderson looked comfortable against the champ, but wasn’t pushing the pace.

In the end, Henderson’s reactive style turned out to be the perfect strategy. Midway through the third round, Varner shot in for a double-leg takedown, and Smooth countered with a flying guillotine that made Varner tap almost immediately, earning him the WEC’s unified lightweight title. Varner wasn’t exactly gracious in defeat: "S*** happens. I was winning the fight, all he was doing was throwing body kicks. I got the takedowns, had the control…go ahead and boo. I came to fight, Ben came to grapple. Two different things." Christ, what a bitch.

(Faber works out on a public tennis court and scares the hell out of the local kids in Fight Magazine’s latest video project.)

Urijah Faber had a rough 2009.  He rebounded from his shocking upset loss to Mike Brown with a submission win over the increasingly beatable Jens Pulver, then lost a second fight to Brown that resulted in some seriously messed up mitts.  A 1-1 year with a little hand surgery might be no biggie to some fighters, but considering that Faber had beaten the hell out of everyone in his path from October of 2005 up through June of 2008, you can see how that many bummers in a row might have been a new and unpleasant experience for him. 

This Sunday Faber jumps back in against 27-year-old Brazilian Rafael Assuncao, who is 15-1 and currently riding a nice little six-fight winning streak of his own.  His only loss so far was a somewhat suspect decision against Jeff Curran who, it should be noted, Faber beat by submission back in 2007.  Obviously, the WEC has to be hoping for a Faber renaissance in 2010, since he’s still one of the most recognizable names they have.  Assuncao is not exactly an easy win for anybody at this point, but Faber needs a victory like Mizuto Hirota needs a cast and some Vicodin right now.

After the jump, relive Assuncao’s scrap with Curran and ask yourself, could this man get Urijah’s year off to a very bad start, or is he fodder for a brand new "California Kid" highlight reel?

(If he can handle that, he can handle anything.)

According to a new report by MMA Weekly, former WEC featherweight champion Urijah Faber will return to action for the first time since his decision loss to Mike Brown in June, when he takes on top contender Raphael Assuncao at WEC 46 (January 11th, Sacramento). Faber has spent the last few months rehabbing the hand injuries he suffered against Brown, but described the January event as "perfect timing for me."

Though Assuncao may not be a household name yet, the 14-1 submission specialist has won both of his appearances in the WEC (decisions over Jameel Massouh and Yves Jabouin) and we consider him to be one of the ten best featherweights in the world right now. Faber vs. Assuncao is slated to be WEC 46′s co-main event, supporting the lightweight title unification bout between Jamie Varner and Benson Henderson — unless Henderson needs more time to recover from his own injuries, in which case it’ll be up to the California Kid to carry the card. Will Faber be able to re-establish himself in the division he ruled for almost three years, or will Assuncao put himself on that map as the WEC’s next featherweight star?

(Props: caposa3)

MMA compilation-video specialist "Caposa" has just released the fourth installment of a series featuring the year’s most memorable knockouts and submissions in North America. He also has a separate series devoted to Japanese MMA; you can see that, as well as parts 1-3 of this series, by clicking here. And if you do delve deeper into his work, you’ll notice that Caposa favors understated ambient music to soundtrack his vids, adding a soothing counterpoint to the visual brutality. Great stuff. This guy just might join the ranks of such MMA highlight reel legends as GenghisCon and me.

As part of his ongoing attempt to Twitter the shit out of his recovery from a broken hand suffered in the WEC title fight with Mike Brown, former featherweight champ Urijah Faber recently posted pictures of his brand new working hand.  No more sickeningly crooked bones for “The California Kid.”  Now it’s just a few stitches and some painful memories.  Thanks, science. 

But lest his spirits get down after the decision loss followed by surgery and physical therapy, he got a ‘Get Well’ card from Mrs. Hilsabeck’s second-grade class.  Sweet, right?  But to the kid who wrote “You are the best!” right there in the middle – you just refuse to accept the updated rankings, don’t you?  Nothing but a bunch of nuthuggers in Mrs. Hilsabeck’s class.

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.

(How’s taste this career-shattering loss? Photo by Esther Lin for Showtime Sports.)

What a weekend of fights, and amazingly, all without the benefit of the initials “UFC.”  Instead we had Strikeforce and the WEC (okay, a Zuffa property, but still) teaming up to blow our minds without charging us fifty bucks for a pay-per-view.  Now we begin the difficult task of using the Potato Index’s completely arbitrary numerical rankings system to see who’s up and who’s down after the eventful weekend.

Mike Brown +209
He beat Faber fair and square, no flukes needed, and he also proved he can last through five tough rounds.  Instead of making broken hand-related excuses for Faber, let’s finally all give Brown the unqualified props he clearly deserves.

Urijah Faber -37
We can play the ‘what if?’ game with his broken hand all we want, but that’s the fight game.  That he still fought well and fought hard afterwards, even in a losing effort, deserves to be mentioned.  But he’s not the world’s best featherweight as long as Brownie is around, and that deserves mentioning too.

(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.

(Fredbird hypes up Robbie Lawler before he throws out the first pitch at yesterday’s Cardinals/Reds game at Busch Stadium. Photo courtesy of Esther Lin/Strikeforce.)

- Urijah Faber and Mike Brown fill out Sports Illustrated‘s "Cheerleader of the Week" questionnaire. Hilarity ensues. (Asylum)

- Due to Cung Le’s movie career, Strikeforce will soon introduce an interim middleweight belt. (CageWriter)

- As if Team U.S.A. needed another reason to hate Jason Pierce. (SPIKE)

- Fedor Emelianenko discusses why he couldn’t sign with the UFC. (MMA Fanhouse)

- USA Wrestling is trying to bribe wrestlers not to jump ship to MMA. (Fightlinker)

- It’ll be Choi vs. Minowa and Mousasi vs. Sokoudjou in the second round of DREAM’s "Super Hulk" tournament. (MMA Mania)

- Kenny Florian will join the broadcast team at WEC 41 on Sunday. (MMA Junkie)

- Weigh-in results for tonight’s Bellator show. (MMA Madness)

- Mike Brown discusses how he got his start in fighting, and how his loss to Joe Lauzon turned his career around. (Scores Report)

- Urijah Faber is packing on leg muscle and working on a clothing line. (Ask Men)

- Redneck backyard MMA fight ends in head-kick KO. (NothingToxic)

- Spiders Flee From Paris Hilton’s Vagina. (HolyTaco)

- Trailer and production photos from It Might Get Loud, starring Jimmy Page, Jack White, and the Edge. (ScreenJunkies)

- Wreck of the Week: Drunk Fan Edition. (AllLeftTurns)

- Daily Market Madness. (WallStreetFighter)

- The Citizen Kane of beer pong trick-shot videos. (Break)