Congratulations to Tyler Toner, as he makes his WEC debut!
The WEC has signed several fighters to their impressive roster. I can’t help but wonder if they are adding depth and talent to their divisions as a precursor to absorption by the UFC. I am absolutely for this happening, as I believe it will help the UFC put on additional cards with more talent on the cards and fights with high levels of energy and excitement. The other bonus, is, that The Ultimate Fighter series could benefit from additional weight classes to draw from, making the competition a little higher level, talent wise.
Of course, the big benefit would be to the fighters themselves. Higher profile promotion, more exposure and a new pay scale that would make a huge improvement in their salaries and bonuses. Guys at the high end, like Urijah Faber and Mike Brown, would get the bigger money they deserve, but lower level fighters would see their pay vastly improve.
With that said, here are the recent signings by the WEC:
Click “read more”!
Colorado featherweight Tyler “Thunder” Toner (9-1), will be making his debut against fellow newcomer Brandon Visher (12-0) from Hawaii at WEC 45 on December 19th.
Toner is the Ring of Fire FW Champion and also recently knocked out Muay Thai world champion, Kenichi Ogata, in a Shootboxing bout. Toner trains at Trevor Whitman’s Grudge Training Center, Easton Brazilian Jiu-jitsu and under Duane “Bang” Ludwig.
Brandon Visher is a veteran of several Hawaiian promotions and is currently the featherweight champion for Up & Up Cagefighting.
Other signings:
British bantamweight Brad Pickett, a Cage Rage veteran.
Urijah Faber’s Team Alpha Male fighter, Chad Mendes, former All-American wrestler at Cal-Poly.
California lightweight Karen Darabedyan, who will be facing “Razor” Rob McCullogh at WEC 44.
These signings, big upcoming fights like Jose Aldo vs Mike Brown and the impending return of Jens Pulver, are creating excitement for the promotion as it enters the end of year and new year shows, Should be great as always!
Congrats to all the fighters making their WEC debuts!
This article was originally published at ultimatefightsource.com which is the new MMA and grappling website by Easton students Shawn Portela and Mark Long. Please visit the site, register and wish Tyler congratulations and good luck on the next big step in his MMA career! Go get ’em Tyler!!!
