In the build up to this fight, many were quick to dismiss the challenge of Ed Ratcliff against a top quality fighter such as Don "The Cowboy" Cerrone. However, as it turned out on fight night, he was just a couple of minutes away from an outstanding victory.
Main Event Round-by-Round
Cerrone (155lbs) started slowly as expected. Ratcliff (155lbs) was getting off with his punches and kicks, looking sharp in the process, although as the round progressed, 'The Cowboy' Cerrone would get into it more. However, he would lose a point for two seperate knees to Ratcliff's groin, despite the fact they were unintentional.
Unbelievably, he would lose a point in round two as well for exactly the same reason, although this time, he only connected with one knee to the groin. However, concurrently Cerrone dominated the whole round with his excellent Muay Thai and combinations, and Ratcliff was looking disorganised (and probably would have been regardless of the low blows).
A hyped up Don 'The Cowboy' knew he needed to finish the fight in the third as he'd had two points deducted, and he did just that. The end came after 3:07, when he sank in a rear naked choke after attempting an audacious choke/leg lock submission.
This was a great win for Cerrone (now 11-2 1NC), and he will surely be the No. 1 contender for the 155lbs belt after the Ben Henderson vs. Jamie Varner fight. Even though Ratcliff (7-2) was dominated for large periods, he has plenty of time left in his career to come again, and when his ground game develops, he could well be a force at lightweight.
WEC 45 Undercard
Anthony Njokuani (156lbs) proved why he is considered to be the top lightweight in the WEC stand-up wise with an impressive TKO win over 22 year old Canadian Chris Horodecki (155lbs). The fight started off fairly evenly, but after Njokuani had reversed a takedown of his foe's, and Horodecki turned his back and walked away, a head kick dropped the WEC debutant, and Anthony went in for the kill, punishing Horodecki with rapid ground and pound. He moves to 13-2, while Horodecki's record now stands at 13-2 after he was stopped at 3:33 of round one.
Joseph Benavidez looked explosive in stopping submission specialist Rani Yahya (135.5lbs) on the card. Yahya started well, showing good leg kicks and a decent jab, but out of nowhere, Benavidez threw a combination with a huge right hook to finish it off which put Yahya down. Benavidez then jumped on him, and ground and pounded his foe until the referee pulled him off after 1:35 of the first round. This great win takes him to 11-1, whereas Yahya decreases to 15-5.
Takeya Mizugaki (135lbs) came on strong at the end of his bout with Scott Jorgensen (135lbs), but ultimately, the early lead the American gained would earn him the "W". In the first, Jorgensen dropped his foe twice, and nearly sank in a guillotine choke. The second exhibited Jorgensen's great wrestling, with him getting three superb takedowns and utilising 'dirty boxing' well. Mizugaki took the third, scoring two takedowns himself at the end, and gaining control on the ground, but he couldn't finish the fight, and Jorgensen walked out a points winner, with all three judges scoring the bout 29-28 in his favour. Jorgensen improves to 8-3, while Mizugaki has dropped to 12-4-2.
Brandon Visher (144lbs) showed incredible power in finishing off skilled stand-up fighter Courtney Buck (146lbs). While Buck's striking had more variety than that of his foe, Visher's boxing was solid technically, and explosive to say the least - Buck was hurt every time he was touched. Ultimately though, a better ground game gave him the win, as Buck, after being taken down and giving away his back, rolled to his front, and Visher unleashed some huge right hammer fists. The referee therefore jumped in after 4:45 of round one, declaring Visher the winner.
The UK's Brad Pickett (135lbs) did well on the undercard, submitting the tough Kyle Dietz (135lbs) with a Peruvian neck tie. Standing, Dietz had the advantage, but Pickett would soon catch leg kicks and end up on top where he dominated. The fight ended after 4:36 of round two.
