Joseph Benavidez Makes a Big Impression at WEC 40

Joseph Benavidez put in an impressive performance to defeat Jeff Curran at World Extreme Cagefighting 40: Torres vs Mizugaki. With the fight on Curran’s home soil, disappointed local fans showered Benavidez with boos, though the verdict was well-deserved and beyond reproach.

“I feel like I’m prepared for anyone,” Benavidez said afterward. “I’m not totally satisfied with my performance but I’m really happy to get the win over a great opponent like Jeff. I owe it all to Urijah Faber and the rest of my team.”

Benavidez was busier and more aggressive than Curran for much of the contest, even dropping “The Big Frog” with a right hand in the first round that landed on the bridge of Curran’s nose (Curran seemed to have all of his mental faculties after the blow, and may have fell partially due to being off-balance). Curran was competitive throughout, tagging Benavidez with a beautiful straight right hand that stopped him dead in his tracks. But the speedy Benavidez scored several takedowns and controlled the action on top, occasionally landing some decent punches and elbows.

The judges scored it 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 for Benavidez. Curran, meanwhile, dropped his third straight fight.

For one minute and forty one seconds, the lightweight fight between Ben Henderson and Shane Roller kept fans in suspense. A few seconds into the bout, Roller hit Henderson and dropped him, then sunk in a tight guillotine choke. Roller squeezed and squeezed and squeezed. Henderson wouldn’t tap. The former NAIA All-American wrestler escaped the submission and returned to his feet. Then he returned the favor – clipping Roller with a left hand and then following it up with a laser left hand that landed flush on Roller’s chin, made his neck snap back and put him on his rump against the cage. Henderson pounced and swung away wildly, trying to seize that small window of wooziness to put Roller away. Roller fought to regain guard and tried to hug Henderson, who continued swinging. The referee decided Roller was not intelligently defending himself and halted the bout.

“I hit him hard,” Henderson said. “I think I caught him with a one-two and then I just stayed on top and just pounded him.”

An already crowded featherweight division will have to make some room for Rafael Assuncao, who repeatedly clocked Jameel Massouh with big over hand rights en route to a unanimous decision victory. The fiery Brazilian dropped Massouh early in the first round with a booming right, then fought off a heel hook submission attempt. Later in the round Assuncao stunned Massouh yet again with a big shot.

Rounds two and three played out in similar fashion, though Massouh gamely absorbed the shots and stayed on his feet. Massouh seemed hesitant on his feet and intent to take the fight to the mat. But even when the fight hit the mat, he was hard-pressed to endanger the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt. In the end, Assuncao’s takedowns, power punching and Octagon control carried him to victory.