The Brazilian Scored His Sixth Consecutive KO Over Mike Brown.

There is no question about it.

Jose Aldo is for real.

The 23-year-old Brazilian finished WEC featherweight champion Mike Brown in the second round to claim the WEC featherweight championship. Aldo broke down into tears as the title was placed around his waist.

Manny Gamburyan  stayed away from Leonard Garcia’s explosive striking en route to a unanimous decision victory over the 30-year-old Texan.

For full results, see below.

• Jose Aldo def. Mike Brown via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 1:20 to become new WEC featherweight champion.
• Manny Gamburyan def. Leonard Garcia by unanimous decision.
• Karen Darabedyan def. Rob McCullough via split decision.
• Shane Roller def. Danny Castillo via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 3:32
• Kamal Shalorus def. Will Kerr via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 1:26
• L.C. Davis def. Diego Nunes via unanimous decision.
• Cub Swanson def. John Franchi via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 3, 4:50.
• Antonio Banuelos def. Kenji Osawa via unanimous decision.
• Ricardo Lamas def. James Krause via unanimous decision.
• Frank Gomez def. Seth Dikun via unanimous decision.

Mike Brown is ready to bang with Jose Aldo in a possible candidate of 'Fight of the Year'.

Mike Brown enters a new era of his featherweight title reign in the WEC.

He’s actually entering the bout as a favorite.

Brown is considered a favorite in his upcoming bout with 23-year-old knockout artist Jose Aldo Wednesday at WEC 44 at The Pearl in the Palms in Las Vegas. Brown, whose last three bouts included Urijah Faber (twice) and Leonard Garcia in Texas, hasn’t lost a fight in nearly four years, and he doesn’t expect this fight to be the one that ends his winning streak.

“Some people like to think I’m a favorite,” Brown (22-4) said. “[Jose’s] fans think he’s going to crush me. I have momentum on my side this time. It feels a little different.”

Brown is considered by many to be the top featherweight in the world, and his status is highly regarded even by WEC general manager Reed Harris who stated that if Brown beats Aldo, Brown may go down as “the greatest featherweight of all time.”

Brown is fully aware of Aldo’s striking prowess, as 10 of Aldo’s 15 fights have ended with a  knockout including an eight second destruction of Cub Swanson at WEC 41.

But it’s the ground game that Brown has focused on as well.

Aldo is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, and fans wouldn’t have known given his desire to stand and trade. Aldo’s last submission victory not due to strikes: March 19, 2005.

Brown, however is thankful that he has his teammates at American Top Team, who have single handedly transformed his ground game.

All of Brown’s defeats have come via submission with his most recent being in December of 2005 against Masakazu Imanari on a DEEP card in Japan. It has been the only fight during Brown’s stint with American Top Team in which he has tasted defeat, and Brown was quick to point out that he tore his ACL in the fight.

“I thought I was controlling the fight when [the injury] happened,” Brown said. “I’m with so many world class jiu-jitsu guys, with ATT and it helps. ATT has been improved that my part of game.”

Brown, like many fans, haven’t seen any of Aldo’s jiu-jitsu game, meaning that he’ll get to test it live if the fight goes to the ground.

It’s no concern to Brown, because he views his submission game as one of his strengths.

“It’s hard [to prepare for his ground] because he doesn’t have a lot [of footage],” Brown said. “All the fights I’ve seen he’s stayed on his feet, but a few older fights when he does go to the ground. He doesn’t go to the ground often.

“My submission game is my strength now. It used to be a weakness.”

As for Aldo’s esteemed striking. That should be an issue, considering some of Brown’s training partners include Gleison Tibau, welterweight contender Thiago Alves and most recently Kimbo Slice.

“We have a really well-rounded camp,” Brown said.

There is only one way the fight can finish in Brown’s mind — one man going out.

“Someone is going down for sure,” Brown said. “If I fight I like can, I can beat anyone in the world. There is only one way to find out and throw down on the 18th, and someone is going down.”

Danny Castillo looking to make quick work of Shane Roller.

Danny Castillo is straightforward when he talks about his WEC 44 match against Shane Roller.

” I don’t think he’s even going to take the chance of getting hit with a big shot,” Castillo told MMAMadness.com. “He comes from a good camp. If he has a smart game plan, he’s going to keep it to the ground, try to take down, and my game plan is to use good footwork and sprawl and brawl.”

Roller was a three-time Division I All American wrestler at Oklahoma State, and Castillo, a former NAIA All American, knows that he is in for a battle.

“His background in wrestling is probably one of the best in the WEC if not the best in terms of wrestling and accolades and so on,” Castillo said. “It’s going to be a real tough fight.”

Castillo expects to see a mental toughness out of Roller consistent with high caliber wrestlers.

 ”Those wrestlers that wrestle at that high of a level are tough to break mentally and tough to psyche out so I’m prepared for a battle, a real war,” Castillo said.

While Castillo recognizes Roller’s strengths, he is also confident in his own abilities. A first round TKO over previously undefeated Ricardo Lamas at WEC 42 has served as more fuel.

” As the weeks go by I’m peaking in my strength and conditioning,” Castillo said. “I’m feeling fast, and when you have a good session on those mitts and your punches are snapping, and the feet come together, it’s a great feeling.”

Castillo has also heard whispers that this fight could have title implications, but rather than look ahead, he tries to stay focused on the task at hand.

 ”I just really train for each fight, and I’m really confident that if I have a good training camp, and I’m healthy, and I have the right game plan, I can beat anyone in the WEC,” Castillo said. ” My confidence is really high, but I am a humble fighter so I know that having too much confidence can also be a downfall.”

Still, a win would give Castillo four straight victories in the WEC, and he feels the pressure to continue to string wins together.

” There’s not too many people that have won four straight in the WEC and the ones that have have belts around their waist,” Castillo said. ” It puts a little bit of pressure, but it’s not bad pressure, it’s good pressure. It’s the pressure I need to motivate me to fight.”

The way Castillo approaches each fight virtually guarantees that there will be pressure.

“Every fight I take is the most important fight of my life, so this is definitely a really important fight,” Castillo said.

If he does beat Roller at WEC 44, the next most important fight of his life could be for championship gold.

Lamas prepares to climb back up the latter.

Ricardo Lamas (6-1) surprised the MMA world when he upset IFL/WEC veteran Bart Palaszewski at WEC 39, especially after only taking the fight with a week’s notice.

But his after his impressive debut, Lamas hit a bump in the road.

A loss to Danny Castillo at WEC 42 put the promising fighter in unfamiliar territory, which usually means trouble for the next guy in line for Lamas. 

To make matters worse, Lamas competed with Castillo before falling to Castillo by TKO.

“Because of my loss, I’m coming back more angry and with bad intentions” said Lamas.

The fighter that drew the task of having to fight Lamas is James Krause (10-1), who is also coming off the first loss of his career.

Lightweight contender Donald Cerrone submitted Krause in his WEC debut in June.

Lamas is fully aware of the challenges that he is going to be facing with Krause.

“Krause is good on the ground but I’ll feel comfortable no matter where the fight goes,” Lamas said. “I roll with black belts and high level jiu-jitsu guys all the time and I do just fine.”

But the Chicago-based fighter thinks his opponent is the one that should be worried.

“I don’t think Krause has fought anyone like me before with my wrestling background.” said the NCAA Division III All-American out of Elmhurst College.

Krause has been known to bring it, but Lamas has done his homework.

“I’ve seen some of his old fights and he always attacks hard right out of the gate so I’ll be ready for that.” said Lamas.

Lamas is expecting to have his hand raised in the end of the battle, and fight night can’t come any faster.

“I’m pumped and ready for war,” Lamas said.

Leonard Garcia went back to the basics in order to get back on track.

Leonard Garcia changed something in his training camp, entering his fight with Jameel Massouh at WEC 42.

The adjustment backfired, and it almost cost Garcia his second straight fight. 

Garcia narrowly escaped the Massouh fight with a split decision victory, and the lesson was learned.

Garcia didn’t need to get bigger or stronger, instead he just had to do what he did best — carry the loaded dynamite in his hands, show a competent ground game, and listen to the trainers at the most high-profile camp in the world.

“I wouldn’t do the things I normally do,” Garcia (13-4) said. “I thought: Strength and conditioning. I got blinded by my strength and conditioning coach, who was fired after that fight. I was overtrained. That wasn’t Leonard Garcia.”

Garcia looks to return to form when he takes on Manny Gamburyan Wednesday at WEC 44 in Las Vegas. To prepare for the bout, Garcia has gone back to his old training methods.

Though Garcia is expecting the two of them to stand and trade, he’s ready if the fight goes to the ground.

“I do better when people pressure me,” Garcia said. “It’ll be a hell of a fight on the ground as well. He has really strong takedowns. With that being said, I’ve done wrestling. I feel confident coming into this fight.”

So what drove Garcia to drastically change his training camp for his bout against Massouh?

Garcia said the loss to featherweight champion Mike Brown made him want to become stronger to compete.

“Mike just made me feel human again,” Garcia said. “I thought my kickboxing was superior and my jiu-jitsu was good enough and roll with everybody. After Mike put me back in my place, it raised my eye brows and made me reevaluate myself. At that time killing myself was the answer.”

By killing himself Garcia meant he spent day and night focusing on becoming just as strong as Brown and worked on his cardio non-stop. There were days when he became concerned that he was diabetic, because he was constantly drained and tired.

He rarely trained his jiu-jitsu or his stand up, only taking part in the classes offered at Greg Jackson’s gym.

All of it because Garcia never wanted to lose agin.

“That was my drive to do that to kill myself like an idiot,” Garcia said. “I never wanted to lose again. … Every time I would leave the gym shaking, thinking I was doing the right thing.”

In the fight against Massouh, Garcia won the first round, but he got caught in a D’arce choke in the second round, and at times looked like he was out on his feet.

Luckily for Garcia, Massouh’s arms tired out and the hold was released, but Garcia was still groggy.

After the third round, Garcia looked extremely fatigued and was relieved when the decision went his way.

“I didn’t listen to my coaches. All I can say is that the choke was deep,” Garcia said. “I did feel weird when I came out of it.”

After the fight, all of Garcia’s teammates talked to him about going back to what worked.

“All of my teammates have pointed me in the right direction,” Garcia said. “For them to take time out of their day, sit down, talk and work with me, you feel important. … Everybody was putting their two cents and I’m putting it all together.”

Garcia knows what’s at stake. A win would put him back in contention for another crack at Brown, while a loss sets him back down the featherweight ladder.

And did Garcia learn his lesson? He said so, and it’s time to prove that he did

“[Training is] a science,” Garcia said. “You can’t kill your body. … This is a fight for the fans. I’m going to never stop coming forward. I look forward to a great showing.”

Franchi is ready to rebound from his first loss in what could be an upset special!

John Franchi is a calm, laid back individual.

When asked about how he took the first loss of his career against Manny Gamburyan at WEC 41, Franchi answered the question nonchalantly.

“I wasn’t devastated,” Franchi (6-1) said. “It happens. I went back to the drawing board and changed a few things in my training camp. I feel ready to go.”

Franchi is set to take on Cub Swanson Wednesday at WEC 44. Swanson, like Franchi, is coming off of an eight-second knockout loss to WEC 44 headliner Jose Aldo.

Franchi said he feels honored to be on a card with such high-profile names, and it marks the third time that Franchi is fighting on a card headlined by Mike Brown.

So each time Franchi steps into the cage, he wants to put on a show for the fans and he expects no different entering his bout with Swanson.

“I’ve been fortunate with all my fights. I’ve been on a lot of great cards,” Franchi said. “This is another one and it’s going to be huge. … I want to put on a show for the fans. That’s what everyone looks forward to. Fans dig that kind of thing.”

In his last bout, Franchi lost to an experienced fighter in Gamburyan in a fight that saw Franchi get outwrestled by the stronger fighter.

“I got wrestled to death,” Franchi said. “I tried to do what i could. Manny is pretty strong. He imposed his will and it happens.”

Franchi admits that he’s relatively new to the MMA game. His first professional fight was in 2007 and has only fought seven times.

In contrast, Swanson has been a professional since 2004 and has 16 career fights under his belt.

“It’s going to be tough,” Franchi said. “I’m young in the sport. As far as the fight goes. I don’t have much to lose. He’s coming off two hard fights. I’m ready to prove my way up. He might his way out.”

Franchi didn’t make wholesale changes in his training camp with Team BombSquad, and the training camp has left him in high spirits.

“I feel great right now,” Franchi said. “Cardio is great. I can’t complain. I feel good. … It makes me feel good and watching his fights. I tried to pick techniques that might help me.”

Franchi expects an exciting fight with two guys whose styles match up with each other.

Win or lose, Franchi wants to have fun in the cage and prove he’s capable of competing with the best of the best in the WEC.

“I’m going to have fun,” Franchi siad. “I’ve had all the hard work. I think it’s going to be a high-paced fight. … Everyone in the (featherweight) class is crazy. It’s awesome and inspiring.”

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Can the Brazilian Score His Sixth Consecutive KO Over Mike Brown?

While the combat sports community is focused on the likes of Randy Couture, Brandon Vera, Dan Hardy, and Mike Swick this weekend, there is a fiery Brazilian who believes that he’ll soon captivate the world’s attention.  

Jose Aldo, a 23-year-old explosive striker in the World Extreme Cagefighting^® featherweight division, is riding a five-fight win streak in the organization, including an eight-second TKO over Cub Swanson in his last fight in June. Just days away from his first world title shot against champion Mike Brown at The Palms Casino in Las Vegas on Nov. 18, the native of Rio de Janeiro feels that his time to rule the featherweight division has come.

“Everything in my life happens so fast for me,” Aldo said. “So I don’t feel any pressure for this fight. I might feel nervous before the fight, but that’s it. I want to bring the featherweight title back to Brazil. Mike Brown is an excellent fighter and a world champion. But I’m hungry to win the belt. It’s something I’ve wanted since I started this sport and I’m excited that the opportunity has arrived.” 

On the heels of one of the most highly-anticipated fights in company history, WEC General Manager Reed Harris is anxious to see whether Aldo can derail the reigning champion. Given Brown’s 10-fight winning streak and Aldo’s knack for finishing fights, Harris believes the main event on Nov. 18 will be one for the ages.

“This is a fight that the entire sports world is excited to see,” Harris said. “For Mike, the fight with Aldo is a chance to cement his legacy as the best 145-pounder ever. For Aldo, this is an opportunity to continue his domination of the weight class. 

“I’ve had some of the world’s best fighters tell me how fired up they are for Brown-Aldo,” Harris continued. “Guys like Shane Carwin and Chuck Liddell can’t wait for this fight. They know that Mike Brown and Jose Aldo are going to bring it on Nov. 18. This is what MMA is all about.”

With anticipation for the fight building, Aldo understands that Nov. 18 could be a launching pad to superstardom in the sport. When he fights Mike Brown at The Palms in less than a week, Aldo hopes to become just the third Brazilian to win a WEC world title. 

“The dream is coming true,” Aldo said. “I’ve wanted this shot for a long time, so I’m very focused on this fight. Mike Brown is a very good fighter and I respect him. But I’m going to be even better than I was last time.”

Given the damage inflicted in his last fight, the thought of an even better Aldo could be a scary fact for many in the WEC featherweight division.

On Nov. 18, could we be seeing the beginning of the Jose Aldo era?

WEC signs deal to show fights in Brazil.

The agreement gives thousands of viewers in Brazil access to the best light weight fighters in the world, including Brazilians Aldo, Wagnney Fabiano, and Diego Nunes.

“We are pleased to announce this partnership with Globosat and excited that the fans in Brazil have an opportunity to see their own Jose Aldo fight for a world title on Nov. 18,” WEC Vice President Peter Dropick said. “Brazil is home to some of the top mixed martial artists in the world and the fans there are very passionate about the sport. We are happy to bring WEC programming to Combate Brasil.”

“MMA is attracting more Brazilian fans each day,” Armando Augusto Nogueira, manager of pay-per-view channels and international events for Globosat, said. “That’s why Combate offers, besides UFC, another great event of this sport, WEC. For the first time, we will show WEC, which involves the exciting lighter categories of MMA.”

World Extreme Cagefighting® joins a television line-up that includes world-class boxing and the Ultimate Fighting Championship®. By giving Brazilian fans access to the world’s elite light weight mixed martial artists via live broadcasts and ancillary programming, Dropick believes the WEC brand will continue its steady growth internationally.

“Brazil is home to some of the most legendary fighters in the history of our sport,” Dropick said. “We are confident that WEC fighters like Jose Aldo, Wagnney Fabiano, and others can carry on the legacy that started with Hall of Famers like Royce Gracie.”