WORLD EXTREME CAGEFIGHTING® ANNOUNCES URIJAH FABER vs. JENS PULVER PLUS, MIGUEL ANGEL TORRES DEFENDS HIS TILE AGAINST MANNY TAPIA SUNDAY, JUNE 1, 2008 LIVE FROM THE ARCO ARENA IN SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA

For Immediate Release

Tickets Go on Sale Saturday, March 29 at 10am PT

 

Las Vegas – One is a legend in the sport of mixed martial arts; the other is an established star on his way to greatness. But when MMA pioneer Jens Pulver challenges WEC Featherweight Champion Urijah Faber on Sunday June 1st at ARCO Arena in Sacramento, California, only one of these 145-pound fighters will emerge with the victory in the most important featherweight bout of all-time.

The World Extreme Cagefighting® (WEC™) organization is pleased to announce WEC: Faber vs. Pulver, a card which not only features the epic clash between the two best featherweights on the planet, Faber and Pulver, but a WEC bantamweight title fight between Mexican warriors Miguel Angel Torres and Manny Tapia, and the highly anticipated debut of Mark “The Filipino Wrecking Machine” Munoz.

Tickets for WEC: Faber vs. Pulver go on sale Saturday, March 29 at 10 a.m. and are priced at $185, $125, $75 and $35 (not including applicable services or taxes). Tickets may be purchased by calling Ticketmaster Charge-By-Phone at 916-649-TIXS, 530-528-TIXS or 209-551-TIXS or by visiting the ARCO Arena Box Office. Tickets also are available online through www.wec.tv or www.ticketmaster.com.

WEC: Faber vs. Pulver will be televised live nationally on VERSUS beginning at 9:00 pm ET/6:00 pm PT. All live WEC events will be presented in Hi-Definition (HD) and SAP where available. For more information and how to find VERSUS in your local viewing area, visit http://www.versus.com/findversus.

In the main event, one of the MMA’s best pound for pound, Urijah Faber, defends his WEC Featherweight title against UFC® and PRIDE® veteran Jens “Lil Evil” Pulver.

With technique, tenacity, and charisma, Sacramento’s own Urijah Faber (20-1), has proven time and time again why he is considered one of the best fighters in MMA today. Faber captured the WEC title in March of 2006 with a decisive second round stoppage of Cole Escovedo. Since then, he has continued to dominate the division, defending his crown with first round wins over Joe Pearson, Dominic Cruz, and Chance Farrar. His most recent victory came against Jeff Curran, where he displayed top notch submissions, choking Curran out in the second round. But on June 1, he will return home to fight for the first time in close to two years when he battles his toughest opponent yet in former UFC Lightweight Champion Jens Pulver.

A true MMA pioneer who put the lighter weight classes on the map, Jens Pulver (22-8-1) has reinvigorated his career with a return to the featherweight division, where he is currently unbeaten in eight fights, including a 35 second submission win over Cub Swanson in his WEC debut last December. Now closing in on Faber and a shot at becoming one of the few fighters in history to win a major title in two different weight classes, Pulver plans on bringing more than a “Lil’ Evil” to the cage with him on June 1st.

WEC Bantamweight Champion Miguel Angel Torres (33-1) captured the attention of the worldwide MMA community when he put on a groundfighting clinic against Chase Beebe, capturing the title with a guillotine choke just 3:59 into the championship bout. After years of fighting, Torres has finally earned his place as one of mixed martial arts’ best, pound for pound, but his reign won’t be complete until he defends his title against Mexico’s Manny Tapia.

Manny Tapia (10-0-1) is a television favorite due to his aggressive style and KO power. He burst onto the WEC scene with an impressive TKO over Brandon Foxworth, and then followed that victory up with a three round war against veteran Antonio Banuelos that he won via a hard-fought decision. Having shown both heart and skill in the cage, now all he needs is a belt around his waist, something he hopes to take from Torres on June 1st.

Also on the card, Vallejo’s Mark “The Filipino Wrecking Machine” Munoz (3-0) will be making his long awaited WEC debut at 185 lbs. Munoz is a former NCAA Division I wrestling champion, and he is considered one of the top wrestlers to ever enter into the sport of MMA. With an unbeaten record thus far, Munoz has transitioned well to the fighting world and he will be looking to continue on his path of excellence when he steps into the world famous WEC cage.

The remaining bouts for WEC: Faber vs. Pulver will be announced in the near future. All bouts subject to change. For more information about WEC: Faber vs. Pulver and current WEC fight news, visit www.wec.tv.

About World Extreme Cagefighting

The WEC brand is recognized as one of the premier mixed martial arts organizations in the United States. Founded in 2001, the WEC features many of the most prominent athletes in the sport of mixed martial arts today. Owned and operated by WEC Holdings LLC., and headquartered in Las Vegas, Nev., the WEC produces live and taped events annually that are distributed through the Versus network. In addition to its U.S distribution, WEC programming is shown on the TSN network in Canada. For more information and current WEC fight news, visit www.wec.tv.

World Extreme Cagefighting® and WEC™ are registered trademarks, trademarks, trade dress or service marks owned exclusively by WEC Holdings, LLC in the United States and other jurisdictions and are licensed to WEC Productions, LLC.

About VERSUS

VERSUS (VERSUS.com) celebrates real competition in all its forms. Now in more than 72 million homes, the network is the national cable home of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the Stanley Cup Playoffs as well as best-in-class events like The Tour de France, the America's Cup, the Professional Bull Riders (PBR), World Extreme Cagefigthing (WEC), Professional Boxing, the Boston Marathon and Davis Cup. The network also offers collegiate sports from top conferences such as the Pac-10, Big 12 and Mountain West. VERSUS features the best field sports programming on television and is a destination for sports fans, athletes and sportsmen to find exclusive, competitive events that audiences can't find elsewhere. VERSUS, a wholly owned company of Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ: CMCSA, CMCSK), is distributed via cable systems and satellite operators throughout the United States.

ABOUT MALOOF SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Maloof Sports & Entertainment includes the Sacramento Kings (NBA), Sacramento Monarchs (WNBA) and ARCO Arena. Led by Joe and Gavin Maloof, and owned by the Maloof family with long-term, local partners, the organization is committed to the community in Sacramento and to making a positive, meaningful difference in the lives of families in need and at risk in the Sacramento region. Maloof Sports & Entertainment has donated more than $13 million to the Sacramento region in nine years of Maloof family ownership. For more information about Maloof Sports & Entertainment, please visit kings.com, sacramentomonarchs.com and arcoarena.com or call 916-928-0000.