How good is the WEC Champ - Mike Brown
How Good is Mike Brown, the WEC Featherweight Champ?
June 27, 2009
Who are the top featherweights? According to mmaweekly.com the list is:
1. Mike Brown: WEC Champ
2. Urijah Faber
3. Hatsu Hioki
4. Wagnney Fabiano
5. Jose Aldo
Quite frankly, I don't much about #3 through #5 in these rankings. The next fighter after Faber that I am familiar with is #8, Leonard Garcia. However, I have watched Mike Brown and Urijah Faber fight each other twice and they have been awesome bouts. The first bout ended in a brutal knockout of Faber by Mike Brown. Faber was hit so hard that it looked like he was clotheslined by Brown. Look out JBL, Brown took your clothesline from hell to a new level. After that hit, it was remarkable that Faber was so enthusiastic to have a rematch with Brown. The second fight ended with another Brown victory, but it was not the decisive victory that Brown enjoyed in the first match. Brown grinded out a tough decision that was somewhat tainted by Faber breaking his hand in the second round. Faber continued to fight gamely, but he was unable to punch with right hand or clinch his hands effectively. Nonetheless, Brown holds two victories over his next closest competitor, which makes him the best Featherweight in the world.
Brown's road to fame is rockier than most as the big time for MMA is the UFC, and it does not have a 145 pound division, which relegates Brown to the WEC. Brown could match strength and talent pound for pound with the best UFC fighters. He has superb grappling skills, and he has awesome power in his hands. Brown is an experienced, well-rounded fighter that is not easily ratlled. Should Brown consider moving up to lightweight to challenge for the UFC belt? Consider these matchups:
Brown vs. BJ Penn
Brown vs. Kenny Florian
Brown vs. Clay Guida
First off, Brown's brute strength and conditioning matches up well with any of these opponents. I would say that BJ Penn has a similiar style to Urijah Faber. BJ has good standup skills without a lot of power, but BJ has the best submissions game in MMA. THIS WOULD BE AN AWESOME FIGHT! I could see it staying on the feet for 1-2 rounds with BJ using his superior speed against Brown. Could Brown land the big punch to stop Penn? I don't know, but I sure would like to see if he could, how about the rest of you fans?
Brown has superior strength to Kenny Florian. I believe that Kenny would struggle to secure his Muay Thai clinch on Brown that allows for Kenny to land his devastating knees. They would provide an epic battle on the ground as Florian's submission skills are awesome. Brown is powerful on the ground, which could make him overly aggressive and prone to a Florian submission. Another awesome matchup.
Brown vs. Guida. Guida is not the caliber of Penn or Florian, but damn, he makes great fights. Guida took a destroying kick to the chin from Diego Sanchez, but all he did was get back up and give Sanchez all he could handle. A Mike Brown right to the chin would tell us if Guida's chin is just the best in MMA. These guys would battle tooth and nail from bell to bell. This would be a fight for the fans, and it would a great introduction of Mike Brown to the UFC.
Zuffa, please get Brown into the UFC lightweight division.
By: Carl Estes
Owner of www.mmasizzle.com
MMA fan since UFC #1
More Articles
- Josh Barnett and Fedor Off
- Like Baseball, the UFC is Seeing Its Share of Controversy
- Who Are The Best Welterweights In The UFC
- Chuck Liddell needs a win in UFC 97
- How good is the WEC Champ - Mike Brown
- Cain Velasquez - Is He the Next Heavyweight Champ
- UFC 101 Picks
- Couture vs Nogueira
- Twitter followers wanted
- Franklin vs. Silva Catch Weight Masterpiece