Short on Height, Big on Skill

"No one wants to see midgets fight!"

It’s a common refrain from the less-educated combat-sport aficionados among us, and it gained credence in the stateside world of mixed martial arts after the UFC’s lightweight division flopped on two separate occasions.

Yet here are World Extreme Cagefighting’s bantamweight and featherweight divisions growing rapidly in popularity, as they put on show-stopping fights with casual regularity. Apparently all it took was some money, marketing and mettle.

So the time has arrived to shine a light on two divisions short on behemoths but big on skill. Who knows? Maybe after reading this you can pretend to be the MMA snob in your circle of friends. You can send your thanks in cash, by the way.

One of the featherweights stacking cash under the WEC banner is incumbent champion Urijah Faber (Pictures), whose surfer looks and Attention Deficit Disorder-inspired exploits have turned him into a poster boy and pound-for-pound contender. Combining an arsenal of high-impact slams with slashing ground-and-pound made Faber a force to be reckoned with, but his ground acumen and constantly evolving striking game have turned him into the division’s alpha male.

Being king brings with it plenty of would-be usurpers, however, and the WEC is loaded with up-and-comers looking to get their Fidel Castro on.

Perhaps the most intriguing of those prospects is Jose Aldo (Pictures), the Brazilian who recently dismantled the original featherweight kingpin, Alexandre Franca “Pequeno” Nogueira. With brutally accurate strikes and the aggression to make good use of them, Aldo is the kind of fighter who may take advantage of Faber’s newfound willingness to stay on his feet.

Rugged veteran Mike Thomas Brown (Pictures) -- next in line to take on Faber in September -- has the sort of well-rounded game to keep the champion on his toes. When facing an opponent who excels in every facet of the game, the only solution may be to match and perhaps exceed his versatility.

While those two are obvious candidates to pull a coup d’etat on Faber, keep an eye on this weekend’s fistic festivities at WEC 35, which features a featherweight scrap between Micah Miller (Pictures) and Josh Grispi. Two of the WEC’s most dynamic prospects, they have surprising experience despite looking like they’ve never had to shave. Don’t let appearances fool you, though. Funky grapplers with a willingness to take punishment for the sake of scoring a submission are a dangerous lot.

The real wildcard of the bunch, however, is Leonard Garcia (Pictures), who, up until recently, looked like he’d be doing a dime behind bars before ever seeing the inside of a cage again. With his legal entanglements put to bed for the time being, it’s time for everyone to remember that this is the same guy who smashed the atoms in Hiroyuki Takaya (Pictures)’s chin.

Seemingly revitalized as a featherweight after he took part in some sanity-testing scraps in the UFC lightweight division, Garcia has the jiu-jitsu to give Faber pause on the ground and, suddenly, the striking to do the same standing.

If you’re looking for a fighter who personifies offensive versatility, you need only to look at the bantamweight division’s mulleted monarch, Miguel Torres (Pictures). With a wolf cut that makes the ladies swoon and the sort of otherworldly skill that defies description, Torres has been even better than advertised inside the cage.

Long regarded as the best bantamweight on this side of the Pacific, Torres utilized textbook jiu-jitsu in capturing the WEC’s 135-pound title against Chase Beebe (Pictures) in February. Combine that with refined muay Thai and Torres is basically a walking cyanide pill, lethal in any dosage.

Still, there’s a long line of youngsters nipping at Torres’ heels, eager to take his spot at the top.

Manny Tapia (Pictures) was handed that opportunity, but injuries have kept him on the shelf and out of the title picture. While it’s anyone’s guess how Tapia will rebound from the knee injuries that have hounded him of late, the undefeated Mexican slugger would love to be the one who proves there’s a difference between having a champion’s skill and a champion’s chin.

While Tapia could challenge Torres on the feet, Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace Will Ribeiro (Pictures) looks like the guy to test the 34-1 champion on the mat.

Need proof? Look no further than his showing against former bantamweight champion Beebe, who struggled to corral Ribeiro’s jiu-jitsu game and dropped a split decision to the WEC neophyte in June. Mix in Ribeiro’s willingness to test the waters standing, and you have the sort of fighter who could mix it up with Torres and provide the sort of challenge the mulleted one has yet to face.

This weekend may see someone leapfrog those two in the rankings when freshly minted bantamweight Damacio Page matches wits and fists with Brian Bowles, who recently knocked off Shooto stud Marcos “Louro” Galvao.

While Bowles is your classic rugged wrestler, Page is a headfirst bruiser who can dish out the damage on the feet and on the mat. It’s a vintage style clash that will produce one more contender for the gold that calls Torres’ waist home.

Just how much longer the gold stays around the waist of Faber or Torres is anyone’s guess with the rogues’ gallery that awaits both men in the coming months. Either way, if you haven’t jumped on the bandwagon already, it’s high time you watched some “midgets” fight. It sure beats a couple of out-of-shape heavyweights flailing about like they’re battling over the last Oreo.