WORLD EXTREME CAGEFIGHTING® ANNOUNCES BANTAMWEIGHT CLASH BETWEEN TWO OF THE WORLD’S BEST

-- World Extreme Cagefighting

For Immediate Release:

June 1, 2009

WEC® PRESENTS: TORRES VS. BOWLES

From The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada - Sunday, August 9;

First Bout at 3 p.m. PT

Fight to Air Live on VERSUS at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT

Tickets Go On Sale Thursday, June 4, at 10 a.m. PT

Las Vegas, NV (USA) – On Sunday, August 9, World Extreme Cagefighting® returns to the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada with a bout that will determine the best bantamweight fighter in the world. Live from The Joint at Hard Rock, WEC bantamweight champion Miguel Angel Torres (36-1) defends his crown against the undefeated Brian Bowles (7-0).

“This is one of the most compelling fights we’ve ever put together,” WEC General Manager Reed Harris said. “Miguel’s track record speaks for itself. He is arguably the best fighter in the sport. Brian understands this, but definitely thinks he has what it takes to beat the champion. Brian Bowles thinks he has Torres’ number.”

Tickets for Torres vs. Bowles go on sale Saturday, June 6 at 10 a.m. PT and will be priced at $40, $55, $85, $100, $125, $175, and $225. A special Internet ticket pre-sale will be available to WEC newsletter subscribers on Thursday, June 4 starting at 10 a.m. PT. To access this presale, users must register for the WEC newsletter through wec.tv. Tickets may be purchased by calling Ticketmaster Charge-By-Phone at 1-800-745-3000 or by visiting the Hard Rock Box Office. Tickets also are available online through www.wec.tv or www.ticketmaster.com.

Torres vs. Bowles will be televised nationally live on VERSUS beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT. All of the network’s live WEC events are presented in HD and Spanish language SAP where available. For more information and how to find VERSUS in your local viewing area, visit http://www.versus.com/findversus.

Considered by many to be the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, East Chicago, Indiana’s Miguel Angel Torres looks to extend his WEC winning streak to six straight bouts. In his last outing in April, Torres scored a unanimous decision victory over dangerous Japanese striker Takeya Mizugaki in a “Fight of the Year” candidate. With five straight wins inside the WEC cage – four of which have come by stoppage – Torres has set his sights on becoming the most dominant champion in history.

“I want to be the best in the world,” Torres said. “To me, being the best pound-for-pound doesn’t matter because I want to be the best in my weight class. That’s important. I’ve trained a long time to be the champion that I am. Now that I’m here, I got that title and I have to maintain it. There will always be guys like Brian that are young and hungry and coming for the belt. They’re all gunning for me so I can’t be lazy and think I’m the man. All these young guys are coming for me so I have to stay motivated.”

Athens, GA native Brian Bowles gets his long-awaited crack at the bantamweight title after four straight WEC victories. Originally slated to fight Torres in April, the 28-year-old was sidelined with a back injury and saw his title aspirations become temporarily derailed. Now completely healed and as motivated as ever, Bowles has his sights set on ending Torres’ reign and starting a championship legacy of his own. With wins over Charlie Valencia, Marcos Galvao, Damacio Page, and Will Ribeiro in his WEC run, Bowles wants to become just the second person to ever defeat Torres.

“I honestly think I can beat him,” said Bowles, who trains at the same Athens gym that launched the career of former UFC light heavyweight champion Forrest Griffin. “I think it will be as good a fight as the Mizugaki bout, maybe even better. In the end, I want to be the man and I want to be on top. I want everybody to look at me and want to be in my shoes. To do that, I have to beat Miguel.”

With the Torres-Bowles title fight now set, it is clear that come August 9, the world will learn which fighter is truly the sport’s best bantamweight. Will the cerebral Torres continue one of the most impressive title reigns in all of MMA? Or, will the soft-spoken Bowles loudly announce his arrival by defeating a man many consider unbeatable?

“After my last fight with Mizugaki, my confidence is huge,” Torres said. “It’s bolstered 10 times more because I know that I’m not going get knocked out. I know that I’m not going to get hurt. I know that I can go five rounds hard and I’m not going to get tired. The guys that have to fight me know that Miguel Torres is not going to get tired and he’s going to bring a fast pace. I hope Brian is ready for that.”

Bowles sounded motivated by Torres’ statement.

“Everybody I’ve fought has had more experience than me,” Bowles said. “Obviously, mentally, he feels he has the advantage and it will help him. But for me, whether you have 30 or 40 fights, I don’t care. I think it will come down to how I fight that night. I think it’s going to be a tough fight, but I know I can beat him.”

Remaining bouts for WEC: Torres vs. Bowles will be announced at a later date. For more information about current WEC fight news, visit wec.tv.

About World Extreme Cagefighting®

The WEC brand is recognized as one of the premier mixed martial arts organizations in the United States. WEC, founded in 2001, is the sister organization of the Ultimate Fighting Championship® and today features the most prominent light weight fighters in the world. 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.WEC programming is also available on Fox Sports en Espanol. In addition to its U.S distribution, WEC programming is shown on the TSN network in Canada and Cadena Tres in Mexico. For more information and current WEC fight news, visit 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 celebrates real competition across all platforms (VERSUS.com, VERSUS on Demand and VERSUS HD). Now in more than 75 million homes, the network is the national cable home of the National Hockey League (NHL), the Stanley Cup Playoffs and the IndyCar® Series as well as best-in-class events such as The Tour de France, the Professional Bull Riders (PBR), World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) and Professional Boxing. The network also offers collegiate sports featuring nationally-ranked teams from top conferences such as the Pac-10, Big 12, Mountain West and Ivy League. VERSUS features the best field sports programming on television and is a destination for sports fans, athletes and sportsmen to find exclusive, competitive events and original programs, such as Sports Soup and The Contender 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 The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino

Designed by the renowned Montreal-based architectural design firm Scéno Plus, the new Joint at Hard Rock has a capacity of 4,000, offers seven premiere VIP hospitality suites, and features an innovative sound and lighting system. To maximize fan’s enjoyment with a genuine experience, the new Joint is double its previous size, yet maintains the same atmosphere of the original venue. Introduced to concert-goers in April, the new Joint has opened to rave reviews thanks to its focus on creating the ultimate viewing experience.