Iraq War Hero Stann Wins WEC Title in Vegas

Report by Brady Crytzer
Photography courtesy of Josh Hedges/WEC

In a sport known for its contrasts, Wednesday evening’s World Extreme Cagefighting light heavyweight title bout was no different. In one corner stood the crude and heavily tattooed WEC champion Doug “Rhino” Marshall.  Decorated with tattooed images of spider webs and naked women, Marshall’s reputation as a heavy-handed slugger has made him one of the most exciting fighters in the division. As for his opponent, United States Marine Captain Brian Stann stood decorated in his own right, only his canvas was adorned with military honors including a Silver Star earned in Iraq.

With both fighters known for their affinity for trading blows, it didn’t take long for the cage to heat up as they exchanged immediately. Following a looping haymaker that was off target by Marshall, Stann connected with a crisp leg kick. As the fighter’s battled for control in the center of the cage, Stann began to land more frequently and the fighters clinched against the cage.

While it appeared that the fight was about to hit the floor, Marshall created enough space to land a wild overhand right. In retaliation, Stann unloaded his arsenal of hard punches in a fantastic toe-to-toe exchange. While each man threw knockout punches at a frantic pace, it was the short left hook of Stann that crumpled “The Rhino” to the canvas. Referee Herb Dean halted the contest at 1:35, making Captain Brian Stann the new WEC light heavyweight champion.

“This is for all of my friends that died in combat,” Stann said. “I have to live life to its fullest for them. That’s what this belt means to me.”

Brian Stann remains undefeated at 5-0 while Doug “Rhino” Marshall falls to 7-3.

Sonnen Outclasses Unbeaten Baker

In a complete mismatch, WEC No. 1 Contender Chael Sonnen outclassed Bryan “The Beast” Baker, handing him his first professional loss via unanimous decision.

From the opening seconds of round one, Sonnen took Baker to the mat and hammered away with hard shots. Baker, who was previously unbeaten before Wednesday night, had no answer to the very apparent amateur wrestling credentials of Sonnen. Throughout the round, Sonnen continued to hold Baker down and land hard punches.

Round two worsened Baker’s night as he continued to be dropped hard by multiple takedowns. Though he attempted  to control his opponent’s wrists, Baker received a number of brutal elbows for his efforts. The final round was more of the same as Sonnen had his way with the youngster for the remainder of the round. Scorecards were irrelevant as the final bell sounded. With scores of 30-26 and 30-25 twice, Sonnen walked away with an impressive middleweight victory.

“Bryan is very tough,” Sonnen admitted. “I would much rather fight him now while he is a 23 year old than later on down the road when he is a more developed fighter.”

Undercard Action

Lightweight Marcus Hicks finished opponent Ed Ratcliffe in the opening round with a guillotine choke.

Hicks, who gave up nearly five inches in height, rushed his taller opponent with hard haymakers that landed clean. After failing to secure a guillotine choke, Hicks once again began scoring on Ratcliffe. Hurt by the punches, Ratcliffe allowed himself to be caught in a choke once again but failed to escape.

He quickly submitted to his more powerful opponent just 42 seconds into the round.

In a fast paced light heavyweight bout, up and comer Steve Cantwell stopped the veteran Tim McKenzie in the first round of their three round contest with a tight choke.

McKenzie, known as “The Wrecking Machine,” holds a 2006 victory over Doug “Rhino” Marshall but found no such luck against Cantwell. After landing a quick inside leg kick, McKenzie was quickly met with a hard kick to the head followed by two short punches. After pulling guard in desperation, Cantwell returned to his feet where he scored with a second headkick. As McKenzie fell to the canvas Cantwell landed three more punches from mount forcing his opponent to roll to his belly. Cantwell locked in a tight rear naked choke at 2:13 giving him the victory.

Hiromitsu Miura made the most of his spotlight opportunity knocking out Blas Avena at 2:35 of the opening round. Miura made waves instantly as he sent Avena to the canvas with a left hook. Showing terrific killer instinct, Miura quickly landed two devastating right hands that ended the contest.

In a highly anticipated clash between two top welterweights, John “The Natural” Alessio found himself on the losing end of a first round disqualification after illegally kneeing opponent Brock Larson to the face.

After nearly securing a guillotine choke, Alessio was slammed to his back. Following an exciting scramble, Alessio worked to his feet where he blasted the still downed Larson to the face.

The bout was waved off immediately at 1:50.

Former welterweight title challenger Rich Crunkilton rebounded on a positive note scoring a three round unanimous decision victory over a very tough Sergio Gomez. Scorecards varied greatly with totals of 30-26, 29-28 and 30-27.

In welterweight action Alex Serdyukov submitted Ryan Stonitsch in spectacular fashion with a tight triangle choke at 1:35 of the opening round.

Chris Manuel and Kenji Osawa battled for three rounds to an exciting and controversial majority draw. Official scorecards read 29-28 twice and 28-28.

Light heavyweight Logan Clark scored a first round TKO over Scott Harper to begin the action. The official time of the stoppage was 4:37.