Is WEC 48 the Most Stacked Fight Card in MMA & PPV History?

Friedrich Nietzsche said that for art to exist, for any sort of aesthetic activity or perception to exist, a certain physiological precondition is indispensable: intoxication.

It is safe to say the folks at Zuffa have successfully enamored UFC fans with their visceral form of violently-controlled art.

For the WEC, however, the Zuffa crew are still filling out their canvas with the colors required to completely draw in the fans needed to support the WEC's current more 'starving artist lifestyle.'

Ironically, some of those in the know feel the WEC’s artistic eminence is superior to that of the UFC.

The WEC's less-weighty warriors, with just as much or more skill, talent, and heart perform in a scaled down cage to force a frenetic kind of action that would make Jackson Pollock stand up and take notice.

This weekend, as WEC 48 features the best paint the organization has to splatter, the question arises: Is this the most stacked fight card in MMA History? 

It can be compared to the magnitude of UFC 100, which all fans appreciate, both as a fight card and for the historical subtext. 

UFC 100 featured antagonist Brock Lesnar taking on protagonist Frank Mir in their highly anticipated and less hotly contested remix. Georges St. Pierre took Thiago Alves down at will, defending his belt for a third consecutive time. 

In the evening’s third featured fight, Dan Henderson cold-cocked Michael Bisping into neither here nor there in perhaps the night’s most entertaining exchange. 

Rounding out the evening was the “fight of the night” between Yoshihiro Akiyama and Alan Belcher and a welterweight tilt between Jon Fitch and Paulo Thiago. 

Needless to say, beyond the significance of the number 100, the fight card was stacked. 

Let’s dissect WEC 48, which is taking place this Saturday night from the ARCO Arena in Sacramento, California.

In the main event, Urijah Faber, the WEC's most popular fighter—approximately half the size of Brock—will blissfully step into the cage opposite a young man that very well could be the featherweight version of Anderson Silva. 

The California Kid (is he dreamin'?) wants to regain the belt he held for so long, and doing so might require a trip to hell and back. His opponent, Jose Aldo, is no devil though; nay, he may be one of the gentlest souls you will never meet in the sport. 

Art, when in possession of contrast, creates visual interest, excitement and drama...and this fight is chock full of all of that.

Nietzsche himself would be proud and approve of this altercation, likely while intoxicated. 

In the co-main, we have another title fight. Stacked fight cards require that these days.

Benson Henderson, the unlikeliest of champs, mister modest-as-they-make-‘em nice guy, will look to defend his belt for the first time against a familiar dance partner: The brash-talking, rebel without a cause, Donald Cerrone.

Their 2009 showdown was a back-and-forth exchange that had many stamping it 'fight of the year.' If it meets or exceeds last year’s output, it will steal the show. 

And in the “Henderson vs. Bisping” slot, we have the man that beat the man (man = Faber), Mike Brown, biding his time against a more-than-formidable foe in former TUF 5 finalist Manny Gamburyan.

Brown is biding his time, because he wants a shot at getting his belt back, but he will have to walk through the judo prowess of the Armenian energizer bunny monikered “The Anvil.” 

Rounding out the evening will be a lightweight bout featuring hard hitting Anthony Njokuani vs. powerful wrestler Shane Roller and a bantamweight rematch between Antonio Banuelos and Scott Jorgensen. The winners of these fights may be in line for title shots. 

I even want to swoon over the sick undercard because, well, most people won’t really care. But they should, if they take pleasure in entertaining fights (Be sure to check out the aired part of the preliminary card on SPIKE TV though).

So, is WEC 48 the most stacked card in MMA history? Not if you exclusively watch the UFC it isn’t. 

But if you realize what the WEC is putting on the line, star wise, here in their first PPV, it certainly could be.

If "stacked" means quite possibly the most pound-for-pound talent ever gathered together, and out of that probably some of the most entertaining fights you’ll see this year, then yes, this is more stacked than UFC 100 (and any other fight card since Royce Gracie chocked out Gerard Gordeau at UFC 1).

And if you buy the PPV and are not intoxicated after what you see, then maybe certain art just ain’t for you.

History reveals The Mona Lisa wasn't marveled or revered until years after DiVinci's last brush stroke.