Brown-Faber caps memorable evening
SACRAMENTO, Calif – A year ago this weekend at Arco Arena, Urijah Faber and Jens Pulver elevated the popularity of World Extreme Cagefighting and the featherweight division to new levels with a five-round war.
The hype coming into Sunday night's fight, with Mike Brown giving Faber a title rematch in Faber's hometown, was that it would be equal to or better than last year's Faber fight in the same building.
The fight lived up to its billing, and WEC 41 was one of the best shows from start-to-finish in recent years.
Brown (22-4) retained the featherweight belt he won from Faber (22-3) in November, winning a unanimous decision after a grueling five-round match.
Brown's power advantage seemed to spell the difference in a fight where Faber had the quickness edge and seemed to connect more, but was never able to hurt the champion. Faber suffered a broken right hand in the first round, so he wasn't able to hurt Brown even when he connected with solid shots over the remainder of the fight. The broken hand also hurt Faber's ability to finish his submission attempts on the ground.
Faber, who was hospitalized after the fight, tried to use elbow shots instead of right hands, but in standup exchanges, Faber's shots annoyed Brown but never rocked him seriously. The night ended with the near-sellout hometown crowd of 13,027, an all-time record for a featherweight fight, being disappointed with the decision.
Brown won 49-46, 49-46 and 48-47 on the judges scorecards in a fight where several of the rounds were close, but Brown dominated the wrestling end, and seemed to hurt Faber more with his punches than Faber hurt him.
The crowd, most of whom didn't realize Faber was hurt and that he wasn't throwing a lot of rights, gave the fight standing ovations at different times in what was among the year's most exciting battles. At no point did it appear either man had the fight in the bag. Even with Faber behind on the scorecards, he went for two guillotines and a choke in the fifth round to give the crowd hope for a finish.
"I knew he's going to try to be elusive," said Brown, a Maine native who trains with the Florida-based American Top Team. "I wanted to keep the pressure on. That's how I fight. He tried to keep punching from the outside, but I kept up the pressure.
"I went five rounds and it's the first time I've gone five rounds. I don't want to make a career of it but it satisfies me to say I've done it."
Brown hoped he silenced some critics who saw his November title win, where he capitalized on Faber being in a bad position, as a fluke. In addition, with this event being on a different level from any event he had ever headlined, he had some trouble with how heavily he was booed by the hostile crowd.
"I'm not a trash talker, so I didn't understand why people would call me all those names," said Brown, who came into the fight ranked No. 9 in the Yahoo! Sports pound-for-pound poll.
From a business standpoint, the night was a mixed blessing. There is no question that Faber drew the crowd and has been the key person responsible for WEC's highest TV ratings. But the night established Rio de Janiero's Jose Aldo Jr. and Boston's Josh Grispi as legitimate contenders, as they scored quick wins over Cub Swanson and Pulver, respectively.
Aldo Jr. (15-1), 22, who a lot of people believe is the future of the division, was talked of after the show as the most likely next opponent for Brown, who is almost 34. Aldo Jr. set a WEC record for the fastest win, with an eight-second knockout of Swanson (13-3). He came right out and connected with a flying knee, which cut Swanson over the left eye. Swanson was face down taking punches when ref Steve Mazzagatti called it off.
"My goal is a title shot and I'm ready to go," said Aldo Jr. through an interpreter.
Grispi (13-1), 20, finished lighter weight pioneer Pulver in only 33 seconds. Pulver went for a takedown and was caught in a guillotine that he couldn't get out of.
"Both of them are great fighters," said Brown. "They both have great records."
Grispi had mixed emotions after winning the biggest fight of his career. He actually looked despondent in the ring, feeling badly with how quickly he beat Pulver, who he looked up to growing up.
"Yeah, I felt bad," Grispi said. "I love the guy. He told me, 'Don't be sorry.'"
"I told him, 'Don't you ever feel bad, this is a great win for you because the truth is, If I had the chance, I'd have dropped you,'" said Pulver, whose career is at a crossroad after losing his third straight fight in less than 94 seconds. Pulver (22-12-1), who was the first UFC lightweight champion, nearly brought the crowd to tears when he brought up how he started his career in Sacramento (he started training in a camp with Bob Shamrock in nearby Lodi) and this may be where it ends.
After the show, he didn't know his future.
"I don't know," Pulver said about whether he'll fight again. "It's all about where you can get employed. This is a business. Where do you go? I've been fighting tough guys. I always knew when I started that some day there would be these kids who would start training in sixth grade and grow up and they would come up and I would have to face them. If they want to have me back I would love to be back. I'm 33 years old and feel great physically."
