The date was December 16, 2010. The event was WEC 53; the final WEC event in history. The location was Glendale, Arizona. On that date, at that event, and at that location, Anthony “Showtime” Pettis made history when he became the final Lightweight Champion in the history of the WEC. On that day, Pettis did something that hadn’t been done by anyone in over three years; he defeated Benson “Smooth” Henderson. The fight itself featured a beautiful display of fluid and technical striking, combined with ground exchanges that would make Royce Gracie proud.
The fight was also dead even going into the fifth and final round, with no fighter having a clear advantage no matter where the fight took place. The final fight in WEC history would end up being a fight of the night effort between Henderson and Pettis. The fact that it was, is not important. The fact that it was fight of the year—is just a side note. How so? Well, with just over a minute remaining in the fifth and final round, in a fight that was still up for grabs, Pettis left no doubt in anyone’s mind who the better fighter was.
After pushing Henderson back with a right head kick (that was blocked), Pettis ran towards the cage, climbed half way up it, pushed off the cage with his right foot, and delivered a kick to the face of Henderson. The massive blow immediately dropped Henderson, but to his credit, he would survive the onslaught that ensued. However, that kick would seal both fates, as Pettis would take home the win, and the title, with a unanimous decision victory.
As I watched that sequence of events unfold, it was impossible to stand up and cheer, because of the fact that I was in pure shock. How could anyone land what will forever be known as the “Showtime Kick”? With that kick, Pettis stamped his own ticket to the big show. He will now be able to challenge the UFC Lightweight Champion, Frankie Edgar. Or would he?
After winning the title from Henderson, we expected Pettis to take on the winner of Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard, which went down at UFC 125. After that epic fight ended in a draw, Pettis was left to thread water. The rematch between Edgar and Maynard was originally set for UFC 130, but both fighters would sustain injuries, pushing that fight to UFC 136. Instead of waiting for the winner of that fight, Pettis would take a dangerous fight with Clay Guida at the TUF 13 finale, on June 4th, 2011. That fight would unravel everything that Pettis worked hard for; he would end up losing a unanimous decision to Guida.
Pettis would make his return at UFC 136: Edgar vs. Maynard III. He would fight Jeremy Stephens at that event; a fight he would win by split decision. Pettis would fight next at UFC 144, which coincidently is the event in which his rival, Ben Henderson, would capture the lightweight belt from Frankie Edgar. Pettis would go on to defeat Joe Lauzon with a vicious head kick, which he followed up with punches.
Pettis would spend the rest of 2012 on the shelf. He would make his return at UFC on Fox 6 on January 26, 2013, in a grudge match against Donald Cerrone. Pettis would go on to make quick work of “Cowboy”, finishing Cerrone with a brutal liver kick, followed by punches. The win catapulted Pettis back to the front of the line. But which one?
On February 5th, the UFC announced that Pettis would drop to 145 for a fight with Jose Aldo at UFC 163. But again, Pettis was plagued by an injury, which forced him out of this fight. Luck would return to Pettis as T.J. Grant was forced out of his own fight with Ben Henderson. Pettis was then announced as the new challenger to Henderson. This fight would take place at UFC 164 in Pettis’ hometown of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This fight is three years in the making.
So here we are; a little over three weeks away from one of the most highly anticipated rematches in UFC history. A fight between a man who has been the King at 155 for a year in a half (Henderson) and a man who arguably has the champ’s number (Pettis). You cannot possibly write a better storyline for this one; it all but writes itself.
Anthony Pettis is arguably the best striker in the lighter weight classes. Heck, he is arguably the second best striker in the world, behind Anderson Silva. To make matters worse for opponents, his ground game is top notch as well; no matter if he is on top, or on the bottom. While Henderson and Pettis are both black belts in Taekwondo, it is Pettis who is the more dynamic and devastating striker of the two. What he does in the cage cannot be duplicated in the cage, nor can it be simulated in training. To make a reference to Professional Wrestling; I would say that Pettis has educated feet, ala Rob Van Dam. He can finish you with a high kick (Lauzon), or a kick to the body (Cerrone).
Pettis is the best example of a gift and a curse fighter. He is a gift for anyone that has to train him or train with him, and a curse to any fighter that is standing across from him. Aside from the former Middleweight Champion, Anderson Silva, I cannot think of any other fighter that has a higher probability of finishing a fight in spectacular fashion than Pettis. His style has made him a huge fan favorite. So much so that he is a huge favorite to win, at least amongst fans.
Pettis will also have the hometown advantage at UFC 164. While I am not a fan of a title challenger being the hometown guy, I am excited to see what kind of atmosphere is going to be present in Milwaukee. Make no mistake about it, with or without the known variables, Pettis is the single biggest threat to Ben Henderson’s reign as champion. There are actually betting sites that either have him as a slight favorite, or dead even with the champ.
On August 31st, Henderson is going to have to try to overcome Pettis. He is also going to have to be ready to answer anything that Pettis throws his way, and not watch in awe, as he did while Pettis was throwing the Showtime Kick. He is going to have to fight to ignore the large crowd, who will be firmly in the challengers’ corner. On August 31st, Henderson is going to have to respect what Pettis brings to the table, for if he doesn’t, there will be a new Lightweight Champion by the name of Anthony “Showtime” Pettis.
Thanks for reading and feel free to comment below. You can follow me on Twitter: @IzzyGonzalezMMA and the site @lastwordonsport
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Photo Credit: Marianamizzle via Wikimedia Commons
