With WEC Middleweight Champion Paulo Filho seeking professional help for substance abuse, Chael Sonnen now will face undefeated Bryan Baker at the March 26 event that is set to air LIVE on the Versus network at 9 p.m. ET.

The past month had been a soap opera of sorts for Sonnen with the barrage of rumors on whether or not Filho would defend his title in their scheduled rematch later this month.

During an interview last Friday with MMAWeekly.com, Sonnen put a human spin on the Filho situation.

Here's a snip:

"I've got a goal to beat Paulo in the ring, but that's it. I don't have a goal to beat him in life or for him to have a bad life. Sounds like he's maybe got a couple of things that he's working on outside of the ring and I really hope that goes well for him."

The Team Quest fighter goes on to reaffirm his goal of being WEC champion despite the Filho saga.

Another snip:

"If the title shot comes, great. If he's not ready to compete by then, and I'm purely speculating, what I would think is that at some point, (the WEC is) going to have to take that title away if he's not ever going to get in the ring."

Sonnen hopes to get back in the win column after his controversial loss to Filho last December. Riding a five-fight win streak, Chael was taking the fight to Filho before getting caught in an armbar late in the second round. Continually refusing to submit, the referee called the bout based on scream Sonnen let out.

Chael was granted a rematch based on those circumstances, but it hasn't panned out ... yet.

Bryan Baker is an up-and-coming middleweight. Currently training at American Kickboxing Academy, the All-American wrestler and Judo Black belt will face his toughest test to date against the cagey Sonnen.

It should be a nice complement to the main event of the evening between WEC Light Heavyweight Champion Doug Marshall and top contender, Brian Stann. To check out the remaining WEC official fight card click here.

Despite numerous reports that he was postponing his rematch with Chael Sonnen (19-9-1) on March 26, WEC Middleweight Champion Paulo Filho (14-0) will indeed headline the upcoming WEC event as scheduled.

In addition, the WEC announced the entire March fight card this week.

Filho's participation in the March event was confirmed by his manager, Ed Soares, in an interview with Sherdog.com on Thursday afternoon. Reports that he would exercise a clause in his contract to postpone the bout until June because of depression appear to be inaccurate.
Here's a snip from Soares:

"He went through some personal issues, and he basically pulled everything together. During difficult times you get to see who your true friends are, and everyone is coming together to help him get ready for this fight."

After a lackluster round and a half in their first encounter, Filho won the December 2007 contest after catching Sonnen in an armbar at the end of the second round. Sonnen refused to submit when asked repeatedly by the referee; however, he stepped in and stopped the bout after Sonnen unleashed a scream that was audible to those even watching on television.

After protesting the decision, the WEC granted Sonnen an immediate rematch based on the controversy.

Continue reading this post »

The rematch between undefeated WEC middleweight kingpin Paulo Filho and Chael Sonnen has been postponed to June 1 in Sacramento, Calif., according to the Brazilian MMA Web site Tatame.com.

However, the reason for the postponement is a bit puzzling. The movement of the rematch was apparently requested by Filho. Though no official reason has been cited, it appears per Filho's comments that one possible motive maybe his own mental health.

Here's a snip:

"I wasn't on a good moment, had depression but I'm rising now and the Americans forced me to fight now. I'm not afraid of winning or losing, but I wasn't motivated to train, wasn't training well, so I decided to do what the contract says and transferred the fight to June."

Filho vs. Sonnen was originally scheduled as the headlining bout of the March event. Now, the featured bout appears to be the WEC light heavyweight title matchup between champion Doug "The Rhino" Marshall and Brian Stann.

Also rumored to be on the March bill is a fight of former welterweight challengers between Brock Larson and John Alessio, as well as Tim McKenzie vs. Steve Cantwell and Marcus Hicks vs. Ed Ratcliff.

Though no fights have been officially announced for the June 1 card it is expected that WEC Featherweight Champion, Urijah Faber, will put his 145-pound belt on the line in front of his hometown crowd against his biggest challenger to date, former UFC lightweight titlist Jens "Little Evil" Pulver.

The Faber vs. Pulver bout looks to be the most hyped fight in WEC history so adding the Filho vs. Sonnen fight to the card will make the June event the biggest WEC bill yet.

For those who watched Jamie Varner upset "Razor" Rob McCullough last week at WEC: "Condit vs. Prater" to capture the WEC Lightweight title, you witnessed a rarity in mixed martial arts (MMA) competition.

During the early stages of the third round, Razor stepped up his game oh so briefly from his performance in the first two rounds and hit Varner with a solid punch, causing "The Worm" to lose his mouthpiece.

Varner immediately shot for the takedown, which resulted in McCullough taking the top position and trying to get in some ground and pound. Varner was able to get up from the ground and, in a surprising move, he called a timeout to get his mouthpiece.

Fighters are not allowed to request timeouts in MMA. Nonetheless, the ref took Varner's cue and stopped the action.

The Worm's corner washed out his mouthpiece before restarting the action. This delay in the action some say caused Varner to recoup. However, he sees it different as told to AdCombat.com.

Here's the snip:

"The fact is that was the first break in the action. When Rob hit me, I went into survival mode and went for the takedown. Rob was on top of me trying to finish. When I got up he backed away and I called for my mouthpiece. Rob could have rushed me and I was watching him for that. The referee saw the break and that Rob was backing up not moving forward and for my safety he allowed me to get my mouthpiece. I really did not feel like the referee knew or saw any break and he did the right thing allowing Rob to attempt to finish me, when he was able to he gave me the mouthpiece back. Did the mouthpiece rest help me? No I was 13 minutes into the biggest fight of my life, I needed a day to recover not a few seconds. I think it was pretty text book."

Varner clearly dominated McCullough throughout the entire fight. Varner's assessment is right on. Even with the clean shot from Razor, "The Worm" was hurt but not so much where he looked disoriented or even close to being stopped.

It's a weird situation ... but much ado about nothing.

During Wednesday's WEC "Condit vs. Prater" televised fight card, it was confirmed during the broadcast that two title bouts would headline the next event on March 26 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

WEC 33 will feature the much anticipated rematch between undefeated middleweight kingpin, Paulo Filho (16-0), and Team Quest's Chael Sonnen (19-9-1). The other championship match up has "The Rhino" Doug Marshall (7-2) putting his WEC light heavyweight title on the line against undefeated Brian Stann (5-0).

The immediate rematch between Pride FC vet Filho and collegiate wrestling powerhouse Sonnen should be a dandy. Sonnen pressed the action in the first bout against a lethargic–looking Filho before being caught in an armbar at the end of the second round.

Sonnen claims he never submitted but the ref stopped the bout based on a loud scream when Filho twisted his arm like a pretzel. Sonnen was visibly upset after the bout. And with the controversy over that stoppage, the WEC quickly scheduled the rematch.

Filho will look to redeem himself from his bad performance while Sonnen will have even more confidence coming into the second bout. This bout is certainly worthy of the headlining slot.

Don't blink during the WEC 205-pound title match between champ Doug Marshall and challenger Brian Stann.

This one could end in a hurry as both fighters are known for their punching power and look to get their opponents out of the cage as soon as possible. In fact, Stann has yet to have a fight reach the second round as he's finished all of his opponents in the first stanzas via knockout.

However, Marshall showed a more well-rounded game in his last title defense. The Rhino submitted Ariel Gandulla with an armbar in his first round victory. We'll see if Marshall continues his evolution into a multi-faceted fighter or if he'll fall victim to the punching power of Stann.

WEC 33 will be broadcast live on Versus Network at 9 p.m. ET. Look for more details concerning the preliminary bouts in the weeks to come.

The WEC: "Condit vs. Prater" fighter weigh-ins took place on Tuesday afternoon and it was not all smooth.

American Top Teamer, Micah Miller, tipped the scales at 147.5 lbs -- a pound and a half more than the featherweight limit. Micah was allotted some additional time to make weight and came in at 146 pounds on his second attempt.

Remember: All non-title fighters have a one-pound allowance for their matches while all championship combatants must make weight on the button.

Here are the complete results via WEC.tv:

170 lbs.: WEC Welterweight Champion Carlos Condit (167.5) vs. Carlo Prater (170)
155 lbs.: WEC Lightweight Champion Rob McCullough (155) vs. Jamie Varner (155)
135 lbs.: WEC Bantamweight Champion Chase Beebe (135) vs. Miguel Torres (133.5)
135 lbs.: Antonio Banuelos (136) vs. Manny Tapia (135)
145 lbs.: Leonard Garcia (145) vs. Hiroyuki Takaya (143)
145 lbs.: Mark Hominick (146) vs. Josh Grispi (143)
135 lbs.: Del Hawkins (135) vs. Coty Wheeler (134.5)
135 lbs.: Yoshiro Maeda (136) vs. Charlie Valencia (136)
145 lbs.: Chance Farrar (146) vs. Micah Miller (146)*
135 lbs.: Scott Jorgensen (136) vs. Damacio Page (135)

*Made weight on second attempt

This fight card, which includes three title bouts, takes place at the Santa Ana Star Center in Albuquerque, N.M. and will be broadcast LIVE on the Versus on Wednesday, February 13 at 9 p.m. ET.

It's going to be sick.

A year ago, Leonard Garcia was just one of many up-and-coming MMA fighters looking for his big break. At that point, the "Bad Boy" had racked up a at 9-1 record competing in smaller local promotions. Little did he know that his next fight would springboard him into MMA folklore.

Houston, Texas, provided the setting for Leonard Garcia to make his auspicious Octagon debut against lightweight sensation, Roger Huerta, at UFC 69. The clash would become one of the fights of the year.

Though Huerta won a clear but hard fought unanimous decision and later beczme the first MMA fighter to grace the cover of Sports Illustrated, Leonard Garcia earned a reputation as a tough as nails brawler during his three round slugfest with Huerta.

He recently told MMAWeekly.com:

"I was excited about being able to fight a guy as tough as Roger (Huerta), but this year I hope to do more. Last year I got my name out there, and I feel l should accomplish more than I did."

After compiling a 1-2 record in the UFC with a win over Allen Berubie and a loss to Cole Miller, Garcia moved to the WEC to compete at his more natural fighting weight of 145 pounds. Garcia -- a member of Team Jackson in Albuquerque, New Mexico -- is looking to move into contention in the WEC's packed featherweight division.

Here's a snip:

"Now that I'm going to be at 145, I think it is going to allow me to get to where and do the things I was supposed to do at 155. Last year it was good to get my name out there, but this year is the year I'm going to work towards achieving my goals and get a title somewhere."

The "Bad Boy" is already starting to reap the benefits from dropping down a weight class.

Another snip:

"I'm a little bit faster and I look leaner. Strength-wise everybody thinks I feel stronger now than what I did. I'm doing more push-ups, pull-ups, and cleans, so I'm getting a lot stronger now at 145 than I was at 155."

Even with the new weight division and new promotion, Leonard Garcia still faces the same old task of fighting another exciting combatant. For the WEC: "Condit vs. Prater" show on February 13, Garcia will make his WEC debut against the explosive Hiroyuki Takaya.

Garcia's thoughts on the upcoming challenge:

"Hiroyuki is a tough guy, so I think that this is going to be one huge step in my career. I don't think it's going to be the only step, but I think it's a pretty big jump coming into the weight class and fighting a guy as high-profile as him."

Finally, Garcia has a suggestion for the fans watching his upcoming fight.

"To the fans, just letting you know that on paper this looks like Fight of the Night. Don't blink; don't take your eyes off the fight for one second, because you'll miss something. I'm going to give you all everything I've got. I don't know what he's bringing to the table, but he better bring everything he's got, because I'm bringing mine."

We wouldn't expect anything less from Garcia ... no matter who or where he fights.

Much like another famous Wild West gunslinger Billy the Kid, Carlos Condit (20-4) is blazing a trail back home to New Mexico. "The Natural Born Killer" headlines the WEC: "Condit vs. Prater" event on Wednesday, February 13, 2008, from the Santa Ana Star Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

The WEC live event, which will feature not one, not two but three championship fights, is slated to air on The Versus Network at 9 p.m. ET. It marks the first time since the Zuffa purchase that the WEC will venture outside the confines of Las Vegas, Nevada to host an event.

Jiu-jitsu ace Condit defends his welterweight belt in front of his hometown crowd against the formidable Carlo Prater (21-5-1). The Albuquerque native looks to avenge his first ever pro loss at the hands of Prater. Prater hopes that history repeats itself as his previous victory over Condit was four years ago in Albuquerque.

In what promises to be an exciting lightweight championship match, Muay Thai knock-out artist "Razor" Rob McCullough (15-3) defends his title against submission specialist Jamie "The Worm" Varner (13-2). The two fighters have had a total of only five fights go the distance, so this one is likely to end early, either with Varner taking a nap or McCullough tapping.

Miguel Torres (20-1) comes into his bantamweight championship fight riding an amazing 13-fight win streak with three knockout wins and 10 submission victories. Champion Chase Beebe (13-1) has also been on a roll, winning his last six fights with four submissions and two decisions. Both fighters hail from Chicago, so Windy City supremacy is on the line as well as the WEC bantamweight championship.

The undercard features a hard-hitting fighter climbing his way up the bantamweight ranks, Manny Tapia. "The Manger" puts his undefeated mark on the line against undersized Antonio Banuelos in what could be a quick night of work for Tapia.

Leonard Garcia — who was in a UFC 2007 "Fight of the Year"-type battle with Roger Huerta -- makes his WEC debut against K-1 and Shooto veteran, Hiroyuki Takaya, in a battle of entertaining featherweights.

Nineteen-year-old featherweight phenom and WEC newcomer, Josh Grispi, faces a stern test in his bout with the proven Mark "The Machine" Hominick. American Top Team member and brother of Ultimate Fighter Cole Miller, Micah Miller and former WEC featherweight title challenger, Chance Farrar, meet in a bout of once-beatens.

And the always-exciting Charlie Valencia locks horns with experienced Japanese fighter Yoshiro Maeda in bantamweight action.

Here's the complete line up for WEC: "Condit vs. Prater:"

170lbs: Carlos Condit (20-4) vs. Carlo Pater (21-5-1) vs. for the WEC welterweight title
155lbs: Rob McCullough (14-3) vs. Jamie Varner (10-1) vs. for the lightweight title
135lbs: Chase Beebe (12-1) vs. Miguel Torres (18-1) vs. for the bantamweight title
135lbs: Manny Tapia (9-0-1) vs. Antonio Banuelos (15-4)
145lbs: Hiroyuki Takaya (9-4-1) vs. Leonard Garcia (14-3)
145lbs: Josh Grispi (10-1) vs. Mark Hominick (12-7)
135lbs: Del Hawkins (22-12) vs. Coy Wheeler (6-1)
135lbs: Charlie Valencia (9-3) vs. Yoshiro Maeda (22-4-2)
145lbs: Micah Miller (8-1) vs. Chance Farrar (5-1)
135lbs: Scott Jorgensen (4-1) vs. Jess Moreng (8-1)

This is going to be a fantastic night of fights — don't miss it!

Note: MMAmania.com reader Stephen Roe contributed to this write up.

Carlos Condit doesn't resemble a fighter, much less a champion of a major MMA organization. He looks like a college student, normal and unassuming -- certainly nothing at all like his nickname, "Natural Born Killer."

But once he enters the cage, the WEC welterweight champion becomes something else entirely. Condit turns into a scowling, lethal mixed martial artist.

"I'm not your typical fighter," Condit revealed in a recent interview at WEC.com. "I'm not a super muscular guy, I don't have tattoos or a cool mohawk. People don't give me my due as a tenacious or dangerous fighter. These people doubt me and its fuel for the fire."

This Albuquerque, New Mexico, native takes the road less traveled. Instead of training with local MMA guru, Greg Jackson, and his stable of high profile fighter's like Keith Jardine, Georges St. Pierre, Rashad Evans, etc., Condit chooses to workout down the street at FIT NHB.

Here's another snip from Condit:

"I have a lot of guys out of my camp that you haven't heard of, but you will soon. We don't have a lot of big name guys, but we have the guys that you need to be successful. The formula that we're using, and the tools we have at my school -- that's what has brought me the success that I've had."

Condit's rematch with Carlo Prater (one of his four defeats) on February 13 should prove to be an exciting bout. With all his recent success, Condit isn't taking Prater lightly.

Another snip:

"He's a good jiu jitsu fighter and has good Muay Thai. He's pretty good in the clinch, a very talented fighter and a legitimate contender."

Condit later went on to explain in the interview, "I'm leaps and bounds from where I used to be back then. It doesn't haunt me at all. It's not even in the back of my mind, really. It's a motivating factor for sure, but that was about three and a half years ago. I hate to make excuses, but back then I did it more as a hobby. These days this is my livelihood and what I do for a living. I know the mistakes that I made and I've remedied those problems."

The Santa Ana Star Center should be packed with many of the champ's hometown fans on fight night. One of these attendees will be New Mexico governor and former Presidential candidate, Gov. Bill Richardson -- Condit's father is a high ranking staffer in Richardson's cabinet.

Condit recently revealed his mantra for life. And he hopes that it will hold true for his rematch with Prater.

Final snip:

"We make our own destiny in this world. Your destiny is basically in your hands right now."

Condit -- unlike most of us -- has second chance to chart his own destiny in the rematch with Prater next week on Versus. Don't miss it.

Whether it's a show of sportsmanship or a chance to redeem his past performance, WEC Middleweight Champion, Paulo Filho, has reportedly accepted a rematch against Chael Sonnen for the 185-pound title in March, according to Tatame.com.

The showdown could also possibly mark the last fight for the Brazilian at middleweight.

Here's the snip:

"WEC Champion at 84kg category, Paulão Filho gave Chael Sonnen a revenge, whom defeated at WEC 31, at 2007 December, with an arm-lock. According to Paulão Filho's boxing coach, Josuel Distak, Sonnen asked for a revenge after the fight. 'Last fight I had a lot of weight problems with Paulão, that's why he wasn't well. Sonnen asked for a revenge and we accepted. Thanks God this will be Paulão's last fight at 84 category.'"

Their encounter in December 2007 was shrouded in controversy. Sonnen -- an alternate on the U.S. Olympic Greco-Roman wrestling team in 2000 -- dominated the action against the jiu-jitsu powerhouse before getting caught at the end of round two with an arm bar.

While in the submission, viewers and ringside attendees could clearly hear Sonnen repeatedly telling the referee not to stop the fight. However, the ref called the fight because of a "verbal submission". Sonnen protested the call immediately; but, ultimately, handled the loss with class in the post-fight interview.

Filho and his training camp attributed his lackluster performance against Sonnen to a tough weight cut. In recent weeks, Filho's trainers and his own father have hinted that he is contemplating a move to his "more natural weight" of 205 pounds after the Sonnen rematch.

At 5' 8", however, a move to 205 pounds for Filho would make him one of the shortest competitors in the light heavyweight division.

With all of the questions surrounding the ending of the first fight, as well as Filho's possible future plans, perhaps granting the rematch is the right move on the part of the WEC brass.