WEC held its last event last Thursday and will soon be merged with UFC.  For its 53’rd event, WEC’s main event was Ben Henderson vs. Anthony Pettis.  The fight had everything an MMA fan can hope for:  submission attempts, stand up war, reversals and one move that’ll be shown in every highlight reel from now on.  If you haven’t seen the fight, you should stop reading this article.  You’re only cheating yourself by reading the outcome beforehand.  This article won’t do the fight justice, it was that GOOD.

I’ve always been a fan of WEC, I like that the majority of the fighters come out to win.  They don’t stand around for the whole fight waiting to counter.  They’ll take risks and put on shows for the fans.  WEC’s icon, Urijah Faber, did this against Mike Brown and paid the price.  Faber went for a spinning elbow and got dropped.  He lost the belt that night and haven’t regained it ever since.  But Faber hasn’t lost any fans because everyone knew he took a risk to make the fight more exciting.  I know as an MMA fan, I’d rather have fighters put on a show and lose than throw jabs for five rounds and secure a win.  

That WEC fighting tradition continued last week.  In the last match of its organization, the champ Ben Henderson put everything on the line against the crafty striker, Anthony Pettis.  I thought Pettis was going to win with a KO but boy was I wrong.  Both fighters really surprised me.  They were excellent on their feet and on the ground.  Henderson almost got a rear nake choke but Pettis escaped it.  I thought Pettis was going to tap for sure.  Pettis is known for his striking but tried some nifty submissions and got Henderson’s back several times.  Both fighters were throwing down , with Pettis getting a slight edge.  Henderson’s combos were fast and crisp, I didn’t think he’d be that good standing up.  The fight went all five rounds and both fighters gave it 100% from start to finish.  Just when the fight was about to end, Pettis threw a kick to Henderson’s face that looked like unreal.  Pettis jumped towards the cage with his right leg, sprang against the cage and kicked Henderson in the head for a flash KO.  All I could say was “……..OH SHIT…..” then back to silence.  I couldn’t believe Pettis still had the energy to bust a move like that.  Henderson survived the round but Pettis got the unanimous decision.

The last fight of WEC represented whas the organization was all about: big heart, great skills and entertainment!  When WEC moves to UFC, I hope UFC fighters learn a thing or two about putting on a good show.  Sometimes it’s not all about winning but giving back to the fans..or both.

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