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After an improbable and world-changing 17-year run in the fight biz, the UFC is finally set to crown its first bantamweight champion. The historic honor, and a sparkling new UFC belt, will go to the winner of Thursday night’s battle between Dominick Cruz and challenger Scott Jorgensen at WEC 53 in Glendale, Ariz. The 25-year-old Cruz, who previously lived and trained in Arizona for a time, feels like a man of destiny. “I’ve been put in this position for a reason,” said the reigning WEC titleholder, making his second defense of the belt he won in March from Brian Bowles. “God has blessed me with this position to make history. None of this happened by accident. I’m excited that we’re coming over to the UFC and we get to be the very first guys that have ever fought in this division. It’s just an awesome feeling and I think it’s definitely going to be like a legacy that we’ve all started.” In weighing the gravity of his present situation, Cruz (16-1) alluded to legendary pioneers such as Randy Couture and Royce Gracie and “all those guys that started the UFC.” “Well, in a sense that’s kind of a way a lot of us guys have done for the 135- pound division,” Cruz continued. “We’ve kind of jump-started it and set the bar for everybody else who’s here to follow. So I’m just pumped that God has blessed me with these opportunities.” Standing in Cruz’s way is a former Division I wrestling standout that has skyrocketed up the bantamweight rankings since dropping his WEC debut to Damacio Page nearly 3 years ago. Jorgensen (11-3) credits the loss to Page as the turning point in his career, and has caught fire since by overwhelming seven of his last eight foes. The lone setback during that span – via split decision to Antonio Banuelos – was a contest many believed Jorgensen actually won. Fighting out of Boise, Idaho, Jorgensen has raised eyebrows with a rapidly-improving standup arsenal. He has stood and banged for extended periods of time against Banuelos (twice), Brad Pickett, Takeya Mizugaki and Kenji Osawa, and has never been outclassed in that realm, to the surprise of many. In fact, Jorgensen usually lands the more damaging punches on his feet, and his guillotine choke is downright wicked, making him even more dangerous. But does he have what it takes to dethrone Cruz, who has won seven straight largely by mystifying his opponents, almost toying with them, with his speedy and elusive style of dancing around the cage, landing combos and then darting out of harm’s way? “Dominick, he’s a champ, you know?” Jorgensen said. “He finds a way to win. But his style to me is just – he moves a lot and he’s very mobile but I feel it’s a very defensive style. You know, he uses his strikes to set up his movement and his movement to set up his strikes and in both ways he tries to stay out of big exchanges. He tries to land quickly and get out but I don’t feel like they’re very effective strikes. You know, they’re scoring points but they don’t hurt.

MONTREAL, December 11 – It wouldn’t be a Stefan Struve fight without some adversity, but as is the young heavyweight’s custom, that adversity is usually followed by triumph, and that was the case once again at the Bell Centre, as Struve stopped Sean McCorkle in UFC 124 main card action Saturday night. Struve vs. McCorkle Struve opened the fight with a flush right hand, but instead of fading, McCorkle picked his foe up and slammed him. Next up was a kimura attempt, yet after some maneuvering, Struve was able to break free. McCorkle kept the heat on with some ground strikes, while Struve looked for a submission from the bottom. After a stalemate, Struve quickly turned the tables, reversing position on the Indiana native, and unleashing a string of unanswered ground strikes, bringing in referee Yves Lavigne to stop the fight at 3:55 of the opening round. See post-fight interview With the win, Struve improves to 25-4; McCorkle falls to 10-1. Jim Miller vs. Oliveira Lightweight contender Jim Miller made no secret of his desire to move to the next level after five consecutive UFC wins. Well, he made an example of unbeaten phenom Charles Oliveira, handing the 21-year old his first pro loss via first round submission to make it six in a row. See post-fight interview “I think a lot of people underestimated me coming into this fight,” said Miller. “Charles is a tough kid with a lot of potential, but I’m one of the best in the world. I wanted to go out and prove a point. I want my shot.” Oliveira drilled Miller with a series of head kicks to open the bout. The tough kid from Jersey walked through them, with the two finding their way to the mat. Miller escaped a quick guillotine attempt from Oliveira and began firing off ground strikes. Oliveira looked to nail a submission, but Miller wasn’t having it, and with a blazing fast transition, he locked in a kneebar, forcing a tap out at the 1:59 mark. With the win, Miller improves to 19-2; Oliveira falls to 14-1. Stevenson vs. Danzig After losing four of his previous five fights, lightweight Mac Danzig’s career got a much needed boost as he scored a one punch first round knockout of Joe Stevenson in a clash of former Ultimate Fighter winners. See post-fight interview “I’ve been landing it for years and years and I never knew how to put power into it the right way,” said Danzig. “I just started loosening up and popping it the way it’s supposed to go.” Danzig’s slicker standup gave him an edge early on, but after a couple overhand rights landed by Stevenson, “Joe Daddy” started to get reckless. Stevenson proceeded to lunge in, and Danzig made him pay, responding with a single left hook that sent him face first to the canvas. Referee Dan Miragliotta immediately jumped in, halting the bout at the 1:54 mark. “I knew he was going to come in and lead with that left,” said Danzig. “I studied tape of him and I knew he was going to walk right into that. And the whole thing with that is to aim for the jaw. I used to aim for the forehead. Hit the jaw and the guy goes out. I’m here to stay.” The win ups Danzig’s record to 21-8-1; Stevenson falls to 36-12. Alves vs. Howard Welterweight contender Thiago Alves broke a two-fight losing streak in impressive style, using a precision Muay Thai attack to drill out a three round unanimous decision win over John Howard. See post-fight interview Scores were 30-27 across the board for Alves, who lost back-to-back bouts to Georges St-Pierre and Jon Fitch. Alves and Howard met at the center of the Octagon to begin the bout and they delivered the standup action they promised, with Alves holding an immediate and decided edge