WEC 53: Henderson vs. Pettis was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting that took place on December 16, 2010 at Jobing.com Arena in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, Arizona.^[2] The event was the first time that Zuffa has hosted an event in Arizona. This was the final WEC event, due to the merger with the UFC.

Background[link]

This was the final WEC event before merging with the Ultimate Fighting Championship in 2011.^[3]

This event was unique in that the WEC and AMP Energy allowed fans to choose the location of the event.^[4] The fans were given 30 options and the finalists were Milwaukee, Nashville and Phoenix. During the live telecast of WEC 50, Phoenix was announced as the winner of the contest.^[5]

The winner of the WEC Lightweight Championship fight between Ben Henderson and Anthony Pettis was scheduled to face the winner of UFC 125's Frankie Edgar-Gray Maynard title fight in 2011 to unify the WEC and UFC lightweight championships. However, the Edgar/Maynard fight ended in a split draw (necessitating a UFC 136 rematch, which Edgar won.) Though Anthony Pettis won the final WEC lightweight title bout, he opted not to wait for the Edgar/Maynard winner and instead fought Clay Guida at The Ultimate Fighter: Team Lesnar vs. Team Dos Santos Finale, losing by unanimous decision.

The WEC Bantamweight Championship fight between Dominick Cruz and Scott Jorgensen determined both the final WEC Bantamweight Champion and the inaugural UFC Bantamweight Champion ^[6], making this the only UFC title fight ever to take place on another promotion's card, and the first UFC title bout to air on free television since UFC 75 in July 2007.

Maciej Jewtuszko was expected to face Ricardo Lamas at this event^[7], but Jewtuszko had to withdraw as he suffered a broken hand during training. ^[8] Jewtuszko was replaced by WEC newcomer Yuri Alcantara.^[9]

This event was named Sherdog's 2010 Event of the Year.^[10]

The event drew an average of 615,000 viewers on Versus.^[11]

Results[link]

Preliminary card[link]

• Bantamweight bout: Renan Barão vs. Chris Cariaso

Barão defeated Cariaso via submission (rear naked choke) at 3:47 of round 1.

• Lightweight bout: Ricardo Lamas vs. Yuri Alcantara

Alcantara defeated Lamas via KO (punches) at 3:26 of round 1.

• Lightweight bout: Danny Castillo vs. Will Kerr

Castillo defeated Kerr via KO (punches) at 1:25 of round 1.

• Bantamweight bout: Eddie Wineland vs. Ken Stone

Wineland defeated Stone via KO (slam) at 2:11 of round 1.

• Bantamweight bout: Brad Pickett vs. Ivan Menjivar

Pickett defeated Menjivar via unanimous decision (29–28, 29–28, 29–28).

• Lightweight bout: Jamie Varner vs. Shane Roller

Roller defeated Varner via submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:55 of round 1.

• Lightweight bout: Zhang Tiequan vs. Danny Downes

Downes defeated Zhang via unanimous decision (29–28, 30–27, 29–28).

Main card[link]

• Lightweight bout: Bart Palaszewski vs. Kamal Shalorus

Shalorus defeated Palaszewski via split decision (30–27, 28–29, 29–28).

• Lightweight bout: Donald Cerrone vs. Chris Horodecki

Cerrone defeated Horodecki via submission (triangle choke) at 2:43 of round 2.

• Bantamweight Championship bout: Dominick Cruz (c) vs. Scott Jorgensen

Cruz defeated Jorgensen via unanimous decision (50–45, 50–45, 50–45) to retain the WEC Bantamweight Championship and become the first UFC Bantamweight Champion.

• Lightweight Championship bout: Ben Henderson (c) vs. Anthony Pettis

Pettis defeated Henderson via unanimous decision (48–47, 48–47, 49–46) to become the final WEC Lightweight Champion.

Bonus Awards[link]

Fighters were awarded $10,000 bonuses.^[12]

• Fight of the Night: Benson Henderson vs. Anthony Pettis
• Knockout of the Night: Eddie Wineland
• Submission of the Night: Shane Roller

See also[link]

• List of WEC Events

External links[link]

• Official WEC website

References[link]

Anthony Pettis
Anthony "Showtime" Pettis
Born	(1987-01-27) January 27, 1987 (age 25) Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Other names	Showtime
Nationality	American
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight	154.5 lb (70 kg; 11 st 1 lb)
Division	Lightweight (155 lb)
Reach	72 in (183 cm)
Style	Taekwondo, Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Fighting out of	Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Team	Roufusport
Rank	3rd degree black belt in Taekwondo      purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Years active	2007 - present
Mixed martial arts record
Total	17
Wins	15
By knockout	6
By submission	6
By decision	3
Losses	2
By decision	2
Amateur career
Total	1
Wins	1
By submission	1
Other information
Website	Official UFC Profile
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Anthony Pettis (born January 27, 1987) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the lightweight division and is currently signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional MMA competitor since 2007, Pettis has made a name for himself mainly fighting in his home state of Wisconsin. He is a former fighter for the World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC), where he was the last WEC Lightweight Champion before merging the promotion into the UFC.

Early life[link]

Born to Eugene Pettis Jr. and Annette Garcia, Anthony Pettis grew up in the south side of Milwaukee, Wisconsin along with his older brother Ray Pettis and younger brother Sergio "Lil' Showtime" Pettis.^[1] Pettis is of Mexican and Puerto Rican ancestry, his grandfather Anglicized the family name from Perez to Pettis, to avoid discrimination. Pettis attended Dominican High School.^[2][3]

Career[link]

Anthony "Showtime" Pettis made his professional MMA debut in December 2007. He compiled an undefeated record of 8-0 in shows all based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin before debuting with the WEC. Pettis also has a professional kickboxing background.

Pettis is coached by legendary Kickboxer and MMA trainer Duke Roufus and is a member of Roufusport where he trains with fighters Alan Belcher, Erik Koch, Ben Rothwell, Ben Askren and Danny Downes.^[4]

World Extreme Cagefighting[link]

Pettis made his WEC debut at WEC 41, where he defeated Mike Campbell via triangle choke.

He was then expected to fight Rob McCullough at WEC 44 on November 18, 2009, but was pulled off the card with an undisclosed injury.^[5]

Pettis suffered his first professional loss on December 19, 2009 at WEC 45, dropping a close, decision to Bart Palaszewski.^[6]

Pettis rebounded from the loss with a victory over Danny Castillo on March 6, 2010 at WEC 47, earning Knockout of the Night.^[7] Training for the fight, as well as Pettis' family life, were both documented on an episode of the MTV show, World of Jenks.^[1]

Pettis suffered virtually no damage in the bout with Castillo and made a quick return at WEC 48 against Alex Karalexis.^[8] He won the fight via submission in the second round.

Pettis faced Shane Roller on August 18, 2010 at WEC 50.^[9] Pettis surprised many by taking down Roller multiple times and frustrating him with fast paced scrambles. Pettis displayed a diversity of striking not seen in professional mixed martial arts competition, namely two Capoeira kicks. The martelo as well as the aú batido.^[10][11][12] After several submission attempts, Pettis finally secured a fight ending triangle choke in the closing moments of the fight, earning a Submission of the Night bonus.

His last WEC fight came against Ben Henderson on December 16, 2010 at WEC 53 for the WEC Lightweight Championship.^[13] The fight was closely contested throughout, providing back and forth action, both standing and on the ground. In the fifth round, Pettis combined Parkour with a Savate Fouette to create what is now called the Showtime Kick by springing off of the cage with his right foot, making a shearing movement with his left leg, then kicking Henderson in the face with his right foot.^[14][15] Pettis won the fight via unanimous decision (48-47, 49-46, 48-47) to become the final WEC Lightweight Champion. The fight was also awarded as Fight of the Night which won Henderson and Pettis an extra $10,000.^[16]

Ultimate Fighting Championship[link]

In October 2010, World Extreme Cagefighting merged with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As part of the merger, a majority of the WEC fighters were transferred to the UFC.^[17]

Pettis was expected to face the winner of Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard, which took place at UFC 125.^[18] However, the bout was declared a draw, and Edgar/Maynard 3 was scheduled for UFC 130, but both fighters received sustained injuries before the fight, which was postponed.^[19]

Instead of waiting for the winner of Edgar/Maynard 3, Pettis faced Clay Guida on June 4, 2011 at The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale.^[20] Despite repeatedly getting taken down by Guida, Pettis showed good defense off his back, controlling Guida's wrists and making multiple submission attempts, while taking little damage, even securing Guida's back but Guida was able to escape and in return secured Pettis's back to end the third round ultimately giving Guida the victory via unanimous decision.^[21][22]

Pettis defeated Jeremy Stephens via split decision on October 8, 2011 at UFC 136 in a closely contested bout. Pettis used superior wrestling which was showcased in round 2, where he was able to take Stephens down three times.^[23]

Pettis faced Joe Lauzon on February 25, 2012 at UFC 144.^[24] He won the fight via first round KO, with a head kick followed by punches. His performance earned Knockout of the Night honors.

Showtime Sports Bar[link]

Along with Duke Roufus, Pettis owns the Showtime Sports Bar in Milwaukee.^[25][26]

Commercials[link]

Pettis along with Jon Jones, Urijah Faber, Joseph Benavidez, Mark Muñoz, Chad Mendes, and Scott Jorgensen starred in a Form Athletics (now owned by K-Swiss) commercial.^[27]

Championships and Accomplishments[link]

Mixed Martial Arts[link]

• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • Knockout of the Night (One Time)
• World Extreme Cagefighting
  • WEC Lightweight Championship (One time, final)
  • Knockout of the Night (One time)
  • Submission of the Night (One time)
  • Fight of the Night (One time)
• Gladiators Fighting Series
  • Gladiators Fighting Series Lighweight Championship
• Sherdog
  • 2010 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year^[28]
• MMA Live
  • 2010 Breakout Star of the Year^[29]

Mixed martial arts record[link]

Television[link]

Pettis appeared on episode 4 of World of Jenks, where documentary maker Andrew Jenks lived with Pettis for a week before his fight against Danny Castillo at WEC 47.^[1] The episode gave an inside look into Pettis' fight preparations as well as giving insights into his family life.^[1]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Professional MMA record for Anthony Pettis from Sherdog

Biography portal

• Official UFC Profile
• Professional MMA record for Anthony Pettis from Sherdog
• WEC Bio

Benson Henderson
Born	(1983-11-16) November 16, 1983 (age 28) Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA
Other names	Smooth, Bendo
Nationality	American
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight	154 lb (70 kg; 11 st 0 lb)
Division	Lightweight (155 lb) Welterweight (170 lb)
Reach	70 in (178 cm)
Style	Muay Thai, Wrestling, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Taekwondo
Stance	Southpaw
Fighting out of	Glendale, Arizona
Team	MMA Lab
Rank	Black belt in Taekwondo      Brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu NAIA All American Wrestler
Years active	2006 - present (MMA)
Mixed martial arts record
Total	18
Wins	16
By knockout	2
By submission	8
By decision	6
Losses	2
By submission	1
By decision	1
Amateur career
Total	3
Wins	2
By knockout	2
Losses	1
By knockout	1 (although his full amateur MMA record is unknown)
Other information
University	Dana College
Notable school(s)	Decatur High School
Website	http://www.smoothben.com/
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
last updated on: March 13, 2012

Medal record
Competitor for  United States
Men's Grappling
IBJJF World Jiu-Jitsu Championship
Bronze	2011 Long Beach	-76 kg (Brown)

Benson Henderson (born November 16, 1983) is an American mixed martial artist. He is currently fighting for the Ultimate Fighting Championship and is the current UFC Lightweight Champion. Henderson is known for his aggressive style and his ability to escape from deep submission attempts. As of March 2012, Henderson is ranked as the #1 lightweight fighter in the world by Sherdog.^[1]

Early life[link]

Henderson was born in Colorado Springs, Colorado to a Korean American mother and an African American father.^[2] He was raised in Federal Way, Washington. He attended Decatur High School from 1998 to 2001. Ben became a part of the high school's wrestling team. After graduating from high school, he attended Dana College in Blair, Nebraska and graduated in 2006 with a double major in criminal justice and sociology. While attending Dana College, Henderson was on the wrestling team, and was twice named an NAIA All-American. Henderson is a proud Christian, and uses his fighting to share his beliefs. He is known to quote scripture after bouts, and walks into each fight to a gospel song.

"I don't drink—I've never had a sip of alcohol. I've never had a puff of a cigarette or weed or anything like that. Growing up in Tacoma, that wasn't a very popular choice. I made a decision, and whenever it came up, I passed the dutchie to the left hand side ... People have seen that. They see I don't do the club scene. By people seeing that, that affects them in a bigger way than me talking about it." ^[3]

Henderson is currently a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Brown belt under John Crouch, who is a black belt under Royce Gracie.^[4]

Mixed martial arts career[link]

Henderson compiled a 2–1 record as an amateur before turning professional in 2006, winning his first match against Dan Gregary.^[5] He lost his third fight to Rocky Johnson via submission. However, this defeat was a minor setback. He rebounded with four straight wins before facing his toughest fight yet, against a UFC veteran, Diego Saraiva. Henderson came prepared as he dominated Saraiva for three rounds, winning a unanimous decision and his 7th professional win.

World Extreme Cagefighting[link]

Three months later, Henderson made his World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) debut against Anthony Njokuani. Henderson defeated Njokuani with a guillotine choke early in round two. He made his second appearance in the WEC at WEC 40 knocking out contender Shane Roller.

Henderson was given an opportunity to fight for the Interim WEC Lightweight Championship against Donald Cerrone when lightweight champion Jamie Varner was unable to defend his title due to an injury. The fight was the main event for WEC 43 which was held in Texas. Henderson won an exciting back-and-forth fight by unanimous decision. Both Henderson and Cerrone were awarded with an additional purse of $20,000 for fight of the night.^[6] The bout was also awarded 2009 Fight of the Year for all of MMA by Sherdog.com^[7]

Henderson defeated Jamie Varner with a Guillotine choke to unify the WEC Lightweight Championship at WEC 46 on January 10, 2010. After being outboxed and outwrestled in the first two rounds, Henderson came back and caught Varner in a standing Guillotine choke ending the fight at 2:41 of the third round.^[8]

Henderson had his first title defense in a rematch with Donald Cerrone on April 24, 2010 at WEC 48, defeating Cerrone via guillotine choke in the first round.^[9]

Henderson faced Anthony Pettis on December 16, 2010 at WEC 53.^[10] Henderson lost his title by unanimous decision. The fight won Fight of the Night honors.

Ultimate Fighting Championship[link]

In October 2010, World Extreme Cagefighting merged with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As part of the merger, all WEC fighters were transferred to the UFC.^[11]

Henderson made his UFC debut at UFC 129 on April 30, 2011, defeating Mark Bocek via unanimous decision.

Henderson next faced Jim Miller on August 14, 2011 at UFC on Versus 5.^[12] Henderson dominated the streaking Miller throughout the fight, utilizing a stiff jab, great transitions, and vicious ground and pound throughout the match to snap Miller's 7 fight win streak, the third longest in the UFC at the time. Despite being threatened with multiple deep submission attempts, Henderson escaped each attempt and advanced position with increasingly brutal punches and elbows. He earned a unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-26).^[13]

Henderson faced Clay Guida on November 12, 2011 at UFC on Fox 1.^[14] He won the fight via unanimous decision after three rounds in a action packed war that earned both fighters Fight of the Night honors. With the win, he became the #1 contender for the UFC Lightweight title.

Henderson faced Frankie Edgar on February 25, 2012 at UFC 144.^[15] Henderson defeated Edgar via unanimous decision to become UFC Lightweight Champion. Henderson left relatively unscathed and outlanded Edgar 100 to 81 in the striking game. Both participants earned Fight of the Night honors for their performance.

A rematch with Edgar is expected to take place on August 11, 2012 at UFC 150.^[16]

Personal life[link]

Ben has one older brother, Julius Henderson, and one younger one^[17]

Championships and accomplishments[link]

Amateur wrestling[link]

• National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
  • NAIA All-American (2005, 2006)
• Washington Interscholastic Activities Association
  • WIAA 4A High School State Championship Runner-up (2001)
  • WIAA 4A All-State (2001)

Mixed martial arts[link]

• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • UFC Lightweight Championship (One time, current)
  • Fight of the Night (Two times)

• World Extreme Cagefighting
  • WEC Lightweight Championship (One time)
  • One successful title defense
  • WEC Interim Lightweight Championship (One time)
  • Fight of the Night (Two times)
  • Submission of the Night (One time)

• MMAFighting
  • 2010 Fight of the Year vs. Anthony Pettis on December 16
  • 2009 Fight of the Year vs. Donald Cerrone on October 10

• Sports Illustrated
  • 2009 Fight of the Year vs. Donald Cerrone on October 10

• Sherdog
  • 2009 Fight of the Year vs. Donald Cerrone on October 10

Submission grappling[link]

• International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation
  • 2011 World Jiu-Jitsu Championship Brown Belt Bronze Medalist
• Arizona State Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation
  • AZSBJJF MVP of the Year (2010)
  • 2011 Arizona State Championship Brown Belt Openweight Bronze Medalist
  • 2011 Arizona State Championship Brown Belt Middleweight Silver Medalist
  • 2011 Arizona Open Brown Belt Openweight Silver Medalist
  • 2011 Arizona Open Brown Belt Middleweight Gold Medalist
  • 2011 Southwest Classic Brown Belt Openweight Gold Medalist
  • 2011 Southwest Classic Brown Belt Middleweight Gold Medalist
  • 2010 Arizona State Championship Purple Belt Openweight Gold Medalist
  • 2010 Arizona State Championship Purple Belt Middleweight Gold Medalist
  • 2010 Arizona Open Purple Belt Openweight Silver Medalist
  • 2010 Arizona Open Purple Belt Middleweight Gold Medalist

Mixed martial arts record[link]

Amateur mixed martial arts record (Incomplete)[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Site
• Professional MMA record for Benson Henderson (fighter) from Sherdog
• Official UFC Profile

Reed Harris (November 5, 1909 – October 15, 1982) was an American writer, publisher, and U.S. government official.

Harris was born on November 5, 1909, in New York City. He attended Staunton Military Academy^[1] and in 1932 graduated from Columbia College, where he edited the school newspaper, the Columbia Spectator.^[2] His college classmates voted him "most likely to succeed."^[3] He was a member of the Student League for Industrial Democracy.^[4]

In the fall of 1931, he characterized the college football program as a "semiprofessional racket." He was expelled in April 1932,^[5] but following student protests he was readmitted twenty days later.^[2] In the fall of 1932, he published King Football: The Vulgarization of the American College (1932), an exposé of commercialism in college football and an attack on higher education that accused United States schools of turning out "regimented lead soldiers of mediocrity."^[6][7] "To put forth winning football teams," he wrote, "alumni, faculty and trustees will lie, cheat and steal, unofficially." He called the players "privileged mugs," said the faculty had a "percentage of utter numbskulls," attacked Columbia President Nicholas Murray Butler, and praised college newspaper editors and Soviet Russia.^[8] The book included a defense of academic freedom that included the right of communists to teach.^[4]

Harris worked as a freelance journalist in New York City^[4] until 1934, when he joined the Works Progress Administration, where he helped edit Project, a magazine that publicized the work of the Federal Emergency Relief Administration, and later became assistant director of the Federal Writers' Project.^[9] He resigned effective July 1, 1938, unhappy with the FWP's leadership for failing to rein in its more militant left-wing staff members.^[10]

Harris edited travel books for a short time at Robbins Travel House.^[4] In 1939 he became an administrative officer for the National Emergency Council, a body tasked with inter-agency coordination.^[11] He was planning chief for the Office of War Information (OWI) from 1942 to 1944, then joined the air force, and returned to the OWI in 1945 when it became part of the State Department.^[1][4] In 1950, he became deputy director of the International Information Administration (IIA), the parent agency of the Voice of America.^[4]

For three days in February and March 1953, he testified before Senator Joseph McCarthy's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. McCarthy quoted from King Football and Harris denied that it represented his current opinions. Harris disavowed ever believing in communism except in the sense of collectivism in "convents and monasteries." According to Time, "Harris showed a bureaucrat's tendency to engage in long-winded arguments with his pursuers."^[7] He accused McCarthy of using one-sided testimony to charge the IIA with supporting communism and said McCarthy's efforts were harming anti-communist propaganda efforts. At one point he told McCarthy: "It is my neck, my public neck, you are trying very skillfully to wring."^[1][4][12]

Two IIA employees testified that they had prevented State Department officials from suspending Hebrew-language broadcasts to Israel in 1952 and 1953, when it was important to attack Soviet anti-semitism.^[13] Harris explain it as a budget decision based on the ineffectiveness of the service and that the decision was suspended only to allow a new administration to make the decision after taking office in 1953.^[14] Others charged that several IIA employees received important posts despite failing security tests, including Theodore Kaghan and Ed Schechter, and Charles Lewis.^[13]

Some of Harris' testimony was televised, but the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) network aired only part of his rebuttal to McCarthy, even after Harris had complained of unfair coverage. ABC instead showed "a commercially-sponsored giveaway show" designed "to amuse the housewives," according to a New York Times writer, who wrote: "The episode showed more clearly than anything else how both Senator McCarthy and television are putting show business considerations above the minimum canons of fair play and responsible journalistic behavior....The tyranny of time is always a problem in broadcasting. But this tyranny must not be extended to a deadly serious inquiry where men's reputations are at stake and national policy is in the balance."^[15]

Harris resigned on April 14, 1953, effective April 24, saying he had planned to return to private business for along time and had delayed doing so while he prepared a statement of his accomplishments and documentation of his loyalty through fifteen testimonial letters, which he sent to Sen. McCarthy's Subcommittee.^[1][16] In response to his resignation, McCarthy said "resignation" was the wrong word to describe it, that it was "the best thing that has happened there in a very long time" and added: "I only hope that a lot of Mr. Harris' close friends will follow him out."^[1] IIA head Robert L. Johnson expressed regret at Harris' departure and wrote him: "If I were you, I would be a very proud man today. So many of us are neophytes in the service of our country while you are completing seventeen years of devotion to the responsibilities of government."^[1]

For several years, Harris headed a Washington-based company called Publications Services Inc. In 1962, Edward R. Murrow, director of the United States Information Agency, the successor to the IIA now independent of the State Department, appointed him deputy director.^[2]

Harris married the former Martha Tellier of Cambridge, N.Y. They had three children.^[2]

Harris died on October 15, 1982, in Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring, Maryland. He had a heart ailment and Alzheimer's disease.^[17]

References[link]