WEC 39 headliners Mike Thomas Brown and Leonard Garcia trade predictions before their March 1 title bout

WEC 39: "Brown vs. Garcia," is set to take place from the American Bank Center in Corpus Christi, Texas, on March 1 and will air live on the Versus network beginning at 9:30 p.m. ET on fight night.

WEC featherweight champion Mike Thomas Brown will defend his 145-pound title for the first time against Leonard Garcia since capturing the crown from superstar Urijah Faber in November 2008. Garcia — a disciple of MMA trainer extraordinaire Greg Jackson — has earned his status as the number one contender after winning his first two fights for the promotion with first round knockouts.

Fortunately for us, we don’t have to wait until next Sunday for the battle to begin.

Headlining this week's episode of MMAmania.com’s exclusive presentation of Pro MMA Radio, both Brown and Garcia stopped by the show to give us their take on Sunday's title fight. And "Bad Boy" wasn't wasting any time.

"As far as wrestling, everyone knows wrestling was one of my weaker points, Roger (Huerta) sneezed on me (at UFC 69) and took me down. I've come a long way since that fight and wrestling's been one of my points I've been working on. I don't want this to be a boring fight, where Mike just takes me down and holds position and lays there. I want it to be an explosive fight. That's what I've been working for and I hope Mike's ready for that. Actually, I hope he's not. I hope he's been out there training with BJ Penn (and taking five days off)."

Brown wasn't amused by the Team Jackson protege. There is a strong rivalry between Greg Jackson's camp and Brown's American Top Team (ATT), perhaps the two best training camps in all of mixed martial arts.

"[ATT has] incredible depth. We have so many good guys. At a normal gym you only have three or four tough guys and if one gets sick or is away then you run out of partners. Here you have so many that when a couple of them go down you still have five top guys there to train you. That's what makes us so good. We're here to help each other."

A lot of fans didn't get a chance to see that depth because of the manner in which Brown finished WEC featherweight kingpin Urijah Faber last November. A win that Leonard Garcia sees as doing more harm than good.

"Him knocking out Urijah could be the best thing for me. Now he thinks he's a big puncher. I have a reach on him, a lot more speed, my footwork is better ... he's kind of slow. Mike's a big strong tank and he can do damage when ever he does bulldoze you over so I have to take the aerial attack and come up over him and take shots from different angles. I'm a better striker and he's a better wrestler so it's classic 'striker vs. grappler' but I work good off my back so don't think once he takes me down 'Damn, he got him'."

Garcia's opinion on the striking of Brown overlooks the self-described technique of the former Bodog Fight warrior who cautions not to choose style over substance.

"I'm not slow, I'm methodical. I keep my hands up, I'm not wild, I take my time and I look for big shots. I don't throw combinations. That's my game, that's how I fight. I hit really hard. I'm definitely one of the big punchers at American Top Team. My jiu-jitsu is good, I train with [guys like] Marcelo Garcia and I definitely have better wrestling. I finish people from the top."

One thing Garcia agrees with Brown on is the way the fight ends. It seems both fighters predict a finish and based on their respective records, it's hard to argue against that prediction.

"This fight doesn't go five rounds. I can't call which round it's gonna end, Mike has a good chin and so do I. This is what I hope: I hope Mike stands with me and makes it interesting for the fans. He says he's the hardest hitter at 145, I say okay, let's find out March 1."

Brown concurs, but thinks it might be wrapped up a little sooner than Garcia does.

"I don't see this going the distance. We both hit hard. Anybody can get dropped at anytime but neither of us have been knocked out. I imagine it ending before the third round."

Whenever it ends, no question it's going to be an exciting fight -- one with major title implications with so many talented fighters waiting in the wings.

Don't miss it.

For the complete audio replay of their appearance click here.