The Versus-televised event also features a lightweight co-main event between former IFL standout Chris Horodecki and Anthony Njokuani and a featured bout between bantamweight contenders Joseph Benavidez and Rani Yahya.

“Four of our top lightweights are going to be competing on Dec. 19, each with his sights set on securing a coveted shot at the world title,” WEC GM Reed Harris said in a release announcing the card. “Cerrone vs. Ratcliff has the potential to be an explosive standup war. We can expect much of the same from Njokuani and Horodecki as well. This is the perfect holiday gift for fans.”

“On Dec. 19, we are showcasing two of the world’s most dynamic bantamweights,” Harris continued. “Benavidez-Yahya has the potential to steal the show. We are really excited to bring this card to The Palms.”

Tickets, priced from $50 to $175, go on sale to the general public this Saturday, October 31 at 12 pm PT and are available online at Ticketmaster.com.

Stay tuned to MMAFrenzy.com for the latest WEC 45 news and WEC 45 rumors.

Though he came out on the losing end of a unanimous decision to Ben Henderson for the interim title earlier this month in the WEC 43 headliner, Cerrone (10-2) was impressive both on the ground and on his feet in the bout. “Cowboy’s” only other career loss came in January, as Cerrone dropped a controversial decision to lightweight champ Jamie Varner, who remains on the horizon as a likely future opponent.

Ratcliff (7-1) has gone 3-1 in 4 bouts with the WEC since mid-2007, including a unanimous decision victory over Phil Cardella in August at WEC 42.

The matchup is the first rumored for WEC 45, which is expected to take place at The Joint at The Hard Rock.

For the latest WEC 45 rumors check out the MMAFrenzy.com MMA rumors section.

Province was the lone fighter to test positive on the card, with Miguel Torres, Brian Bowles, Dominick Cruz, Takeya Mizugaki, Leonard Garcia, Shane Roller, Ed Ratcliff and Diego Nunes all passing their screenings for drugs of abuse and performance enhancing drugs.

Methasterone, a “designer steroid” sold in over-the-counter dietary supplements, was added to the World Anti-Doping Agency’s list of banned substances in 2005.

Province (6-1) suffered a unanimous decision loss to Diego Nunes in his WEC debut last December at WEC 37, before rebounding with a unanimous decision win over Paixao earlier this month.

Stay tuned to MMAFrenzy.com for the latest WEC news and WEC rumors.

Bowles ($18,000), Leonard Garcia ($24,000), Shane Roller ($20,000), and Rani Yahya ($16,000) were also among the top earners for the card, according to the official fighter salaries released by the Nevada State Athletic Commission on Monday.

The disclosed payroll for the Versus-televised event was$234,500.

In addition to the salaries listed below, which are simply the figures the WEC is required to report to the NSAC and exclude some taxes, fees, and payments such as sponsorships and bonuses, Bowles, Yahya, Dominick Cruz, and Joseph Benavidez each took home an extra $10,000 “Fight Night” bonus for their performances at the event.

“Knockout of the Night” went to Bowles for his first-round KO of Torres, “Submission of the Night” went to Yahya for his north-south choke submission of John Hosman on the WEC 42 prelims, and “Fight of the Night” was awarded to Cruz and Benavidez for their back-and-forth bantamweight scrap, which was won by Cruz via unanimous decision.

The official fighter salaries for WEC 42 were:

• Brian Bowles* ($18,000 – includes $9,000 win bonus) def. Miguel Torres ($25,000)
• Dominick Cruz* ($14,000 – $7,000 win bonus) def. Joseph Benavidez ($12,500)
• Danny Castillo ($14,000 – $7,000 win bonus) def. Ricardo Lamas ($4,000)
• Takeya Mizugaki ($12,000 – $6,000 win bonus) def. Jeff Curran ($8,000)
• Leonard Garcia ($24,000 – $12,000 win bonus) def. Jameel Massouh ($3,000)
• Cole Province ($6,000 – $3,000 win bonus) def. Fredson Paixao ($2,000)
• Shane Roller ($20,000 – $10,000 win bonus) def. Marcus Hicks ($8,000)
• Ed Ratcliff ($14,000 – $7,000 win bonus) def. Phil Cardella ($3,000)
• Rani Yahya* ($16,000 – $8,000 win bonus) def. John Hosman ($3,000)
• Diego Nunes ($8,000 – $4,000 win bonus) def. Rafael Dias ($4,000)
• L.C. Davis ($10,000 – $5,000 win bonus) def. Javier Vazquez ($6,000)

* Bowles, Yahya, Cruz, and Benavidez each received an additional $10,000 “Fight Night” bonus.

Pictured: Brian Bowles

Bowles rocked Torres early in round and also scored a takedown in the frame, but appeared to be in trouble as Torres landed a series of punches that forced him to backpedal. But Torres’ aggressiveness left an opening for Bowles, who connected with a right hook that dropped Torres to the canvas, where Bowles was able to quickly finish off the champ with a barrage of punches.

Bowles remains undefeated, improving his record to 8-0 following the surprising first-round knockout, while Torres falls to 37-2 after having his 17-fight win streak that dated back to early-2004 snapped.

In the WEC 42 co-main event, bantamweight contenders Dominick Cruz and Joseph Benavidez engaged in an entertaining bout that saw Cruz pick up a unanimous decision victory to improve his record to 14-1 and extend his win streak to 5-straight.

Danny Castillo came from behind to score a second-round knockout of Ricardo Lamas on the WEC 42 main card, while Takeya Mizugaki picked up a questionable decision victory over Jeff Curran and Leonard Garcia topped Jameel Massouh at the Versus-televised event.

Rani Yahya earned the only stoppage on the six-bout WEC 42 preliminary card, submitting late-replacement John Hosman with a north-south choke in the opening-round of their matchup. In other prelim action, Shane Roller topped Marcus Hicks in a back-and-forth bout, LC Davis edged fellow Affliction-import Javier Vazquez, and Ed Ratcliff, Diego Nunes, and Cole Provice also picked up decision victories.

The complete results for WEC 42 were:

• Brian Bowles def. Miguel Torres (c) via KO (punches) — Round 1, 3:57
  WEC Bantamweight Championship
• Dominick Cruz def. Joseph Benavidez via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
• Danny Castillo def. Ricardo Lamas via TKO (strikes) — Round 2, 4:15
• Takeya Mizugaki def. Jeff Curran via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Leonard Garcia def. Jameel Massouh via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Cole Province def. Fredson Paixao via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Shane Roller def. Marcus Hicks via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Ed Ratcliff def. Phil Cardella via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Rani Yahya def. John Hosman via submission (north-south choke) — Round 1, 2:08
• Diego Nunes def. Rafael Dias via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• L.C. Davis def. Javier Vazquez via split decision (30-27, 28-29, 29-28)

Follow along below for live results from the 11-bout card, which is currently in progress:

• Brian Bowles def. Miguel Torres (c) via KO (punches) — Round 1, 3:57
  WEC Bantamweight Championship
• Dominick Cruz def. Joseph Benavidez via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
• Danny Castillo def. Ricardo Lamas via TKO (strikes) — Round 2, 4:15
• Takeya Mizugaki def. Jeff Curran via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Leonard Garcia def. Jameel Massouh via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Cole Province def. Fredson Paixao via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Shane Roller def. Marcus Hicks via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Ed Ratcliff def. Phil Cardella via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Rani Yahya def. John Hosman via submission (north-south choke) — Round 1, 2:08
• Diego Nunes def. Rafael Dias via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• L.C. Davis def. Javier Vazquez via split decision (30-27, 28-29, 29-28)

• WEC Bantamweight Championship
• Dominick Cruz def. Joseph Benavidez via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
• Danny Castillo def. Ricardo Lamas via TKO (strikes) — Round 2, 4:15
• Takeya Mizugaki def. Jeff Curran via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Leonard Garcia def. Jameel Massouh via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Cole Province def. Fredson Paixao via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Ed Ratcliff def. Phil Cardella via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Ed Ratcliff def. Phil Cardella via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Rani Yahya def. John Hosman via submission (north-south choke) — Round 1, 2:08
• Diego Nunes def. Rafael Dias via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• L.C. Davis def. Javier Vazquez via split decision (30-27, 28-29, 29-28)

Pictured: Miguel Torres and Brian Bowles

Both fighters weighed in at 134-pounds, one-pound under the 135-pound division limit, at the official weigh-ins, which were held at Body English at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. Tomorrow’s event takes place at The Joint at the Hard Rock and airs live on Versus.

The rest of the 11-bout card also successfully made weight with the exception of lightweight Marcus Hicks, who weighed in at 159-pounds for his preliminary bout against Shane Roller. Roller will receive 15-percent of Hicks’ contracted purse and the fight will go on as scheduled.

The official weigh-in results for WEC 42 were:

MAIN CARD

• 135: Miguel Torres (c) (134) vs. Brian Bowles (134)
  WEC Bantamweight Championship
• 135: Joseph Benavidez (135) vs. Dominick Cruz (135)
• 155: Danny Castillo (156) vs. Ricardo Lamas (155)
• 135: Jeff Curran (136) vs. Takeya Mizugaki (135)

PRELIMINARY CARD

• 145: Leonard Garcia (145) vs. Jameel Massouh (146)
• 145: Fredson Paixao (145) vs. Cole Province (146)
• 155: Marcus Hicks (159)* vs. Shane Roller (156)^
• 155: Phil Cardella (155) vs. Ed Ratcliff (155)
• 135: John Hosman (135) vs. Rani Yayha (136)
• 145: Rafael Dias (145) vs. Diego Nunes (145)
• 145: L.C. Davis (145) vs. Javier Vazquez (146)

* Hicks weighed in at 159-pounds on his only attempt and will lose 15-percent of his purse to Roller, with the fight going on as scheduled.
^ Roller weighed in at 157-pounds on his first try, but reached an acceptable 156-pounds without his fight shorts on a second attempt.

Remember: Fighters are granted a one-pound allowance for non-championship bouts.

[Weigh-in results via MMAjunkie]

Pictured: Miguel Torres

Joining a headlining matchup between bantamweight champ Miguel Torres and challenger Brian Bowles on the Versus-televised main card are Joseph Benavidez vs. Dominick Cruz, Danny Castillo vs. Ricardo Lamas, Jeff Curran vs. Takeya Mizugaki.

The now-complete WEC 42 fight card features:

MAIN CARD

• Miguel Torres (c) vs. Brian Bowles
  WEC Bantamweight Championship
• Joseph Benavidez vs. Dominick Cruz
• Danny Castillo vs. Ricardo Lamas
• Jeff Curran vs. Takeya Mizugaki

PRELIMINARY CARD

• Leonard Garcia vs. Jameel Massouh
• Fredson Paixao vs. Cole Province
• Marcus Hicks and Shane Roller
• Phil Cardella vs. Ed Ratcliff
• Kenji Osawa vs. Rani Yahya
• Rafael Dias vs. Diego Nunes

[Pictured: Miguel Torres]

• TJ Grant, who was rumored to be fighting Martin Kampmann at The Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale before Kampmann declined the bout, will instead face Rory Markham at the June 20th event.
• Nick Thompson vs. Tim Kennedy, Dennis Hallman vs. Cedric Marks, and Cory Devela vs. Luke Rockhold have been added to the June 19th Strikeforce Challengers event.
• Jared Hamman has withdrawn from his June 6th Strikeforce bout against Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante after suffering an injury in training and has been replaced by Mike Kyle.
• KJ Noons says he’s in negotiations to resume his MMA career with Strikeforce.
• Weigh-ins for Strikeforce: Lawler vs. Shields on June 6 in St. Louis will take place on Friday, June 5, at Al Hrabosky’s Ballpark Saloon at 3pm CT.
• Bantamweight Noah Thomas, a lightweight cast member on The Ultimate Fighter 5, has signed with the WEC and will replace Eddie Wineland against Frank Gomez at WEC 41 on June 7 in Sacrament, California.
• Ronnys Torres will make his UFC debut at UFC Fight Night 19 in September.
• Middleweight tournament participants Yosmany Cabezas, Jared Hess, Hector Lombard, and Damien Stelly made weight on Thursday at weigh-ins for Bellator week 9 in Monroe, Louisiana.
• Phil Cardella vs. Ed Ratcliff has been added to the lineup for WEC 42 on August 9th in Las Vegas.
• Dana White’s “special announcement” on Thursday was confirmation of UFC Undisputed 2010, the follow-up to the recently-released and highly-anticipated UFC Undisputed 2009 video game for the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.
• Tickets for the UFC Fan Expo on July 10th and 11th in Las Vegas are now on sale.
• The UFC won’t return to Chicago in 2009, but could hold an event in Indianapolis in 2010.

[Pictured: TJ Grant]

Jeff Curran

Injuries have forced two lineup changes for WEC 38 as featherweight Rolando Perez has been tapped to replace Fredson Paixao on the evening’s main card against Jose Aldo and lightweight Ben Henderson will meet Anthony Njokuani in place of Ed Ratcliff on the unaired preliminary card.

WEC 38 “Varner vs. Cerrone” takes place this Sunday at the San Diego Sports Arena in San Diego, California. The event, which airs live on Versus, features lightweight title-holder Jamie Varner against Donald Cerrone and a rematch between top featherweights Urijah Faber and Jens Pulver

*****

In other WEC news, several upcoming bouts have been reported in recent days:

– Lightweights Bart Palaszewski and Richard Crunkilton will square off at WEC 39 on March 1st in Corpus Christi, Texas. Two title bouts will headline WEC 39 as welterweight champion Carlos Condit battles Brock Larson and featherweight champ Mike Brown defends his title for the first time against Leonard Garcia.

– Bantamweight contenders Jeff Curran and Joseph Benavidez will clash at WEC 40, which is slated to take place on April 5th in Chicago. The event will also feature bantamweight title-holder Miguel Torres against challenger Brian Bowles.