Monday, July 26, 2010
by Brian Knapp ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it )

25917

Jose Aldo file photo: Dave Mandel | Sherdog.com

World Extreme Cagefighting featherweight champion Jose Aldo will defend his crown against the surging Manny Gamburyan in the WEC 51 “Aldo vs. Gamburyan” headliner on Sept. 30 at the 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colo. The promotion on Monday made the matchup official, along with four other bouts.

Aldo, unbeaten in seven WEC appearances, will carry a 10-fight winning streak into his second title defense. The 23-year-old Nova Uniao thoroughbred last appeared at WEC 48 in April, when he dominated Urijah Faber en route to a unanimous decision. A Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, Aldo has finished six of his last seven foes. He expects a stern test from Gamburyan.

“I know that he has good judo and punching power, but I expect to knock him out,” Aldo said in a release. “He’s not taking my belt.”

A finalist on “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 5, Gamburyan secured his shot at the belt with a first-round knockout against former champion Mike Thomas Brown in April. The 29-year-old Armenian holds other notable victories against reigning Sengoku middleweight champion Jorge Santiago and one-time WEC featherweight title contender Leonard Garcia. A Gokor Chivichyan protégé, Gamburyan has secured more than half (six) of his 11 career wins by submission.

“I feel blessed to have this opportunity,” Gamburyan said. “This is a fight featuring the number one and number two fighters in the world in this division, so there are no secrets to my game plan. Everything has to be perfect. I think he’s a great fighter and I respect him as a champion, but I fight to destroy. It’s my time, and I’ve got to shine.”

In the co-main event, former lightweight champion Jamie Varner will lock horns with Donald Cerrone in a rematch of their divisive January 2009 encounter.

Varner defeated Cerrone by split decision at WEC 38. The “Cowboy” landed an illegal knee to the side of Varner’s head, as the Arizona Combat Sports fighter attempted to return to his feet during the fifth round of their title bout. Varner was unable to continue, so the fight was scored from that point. After the fight, it was revealed that Varner suffered a broken foot, a lesion in his eye -- which left his vision blurry for about six weeks -- and a broken hand that required two reconstructive surgeries to repair.

“This Cerrone fight has been a question mark in my career, and everybody has question marks in their life,” Varner said. “This fight is the opportunity to turn that question mark into a period or an exclamation mark. This is a good opportunity to shut him up and silence the critics and let them see that I’m the real deal.”

“I’ve wanted this fight for a long time,” Cerrone said. “There’s definitely bad blood there. Jamie is definitely the perfect fight for me to get motivated and come back stronger than ever.”

Varner last appeared at WEC 49 in June, when he battled the unbeaten Kamal Shalorus to a controversial draw. Cerrone has not competed since he submitted to a first-round guillotine choke from current lightweight titleholder Benson Henderson in April.

Other fights greenlit for WEC 51 include a bantamweight scrap pairing former champion Miguel Torres with Charlie Valencia, a featherweight duel pitting Garcia against Mark Hominick and a featherweight matchup between Chan Sung Jung and George Roop.