Donald Cerrone (9-1) is in talks to face James Krause at WEC 41 after an undisclosed injury forced Rich "Cleat" Crunkilton to withdraw from the June 7 event slated for the Arco Arena in Sacramento, Calif., according to a report on MMAWeekly.com.
"Cowboy" dropped a hard-fought split decision to Jamie Varner back in January at WEC 38. The match ended in odd fashion when the champ was struck with an illegal kick midway through the fifth and final round. Because "C-4″ was unable to continue, the fight went to the scorecards and Cerrone lost by the slimmest of margins.
Featured on season two of the reality series "Tapout," Cerrone is a very popular fighter. He provides some serious problems for his opponents, too. He’s long, athletic and extremely well rounded. Despite having an extensive background in Muay Thai, he finishes most of his foes by submission.
Krause makes his WEC debut after compiling a perfect record primarily on Missouri's local scene. His most recent appearance was a submission win over Steve Schneider at Titan Fighting Championships back in December of 2008.
Like Cerrone, Krause has eight of his nine wins come by way of submission. Krause may be coming into this bout as an unknown, but a win over one of the WEC's top lightweights like Cowboy would certainly vault him into the public eye.
Easier said than done.
WEC 41 will feature a rematch between Mike Thomas Brown and Urijah "The California Kid" Faber in a featherweight championship bout with Brown’s title on the line. Cerrone’s teammate from the Greg Jackson camp, Leonard "Bad Boy" Garcia, is also expected to be in action in Sacramento on June 7.
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