Video: WEC 48 could be the best card of the year so far. Or not. But you don’t want to miss it either way. So get your popcorn ready

After a couple of lame UFC cards, a Strikeforce bust and a Bellator that bored, I’m afraid to get my hopes up too high for Saturday’s WEC 48. It’s got such a stacked main card, it’s hard not to. And with UFC president Dana White taking over the captain’s chair and running the show for the promotion’s first pay-per-view card (and Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg taking over the commentating duties), you know that parent company Zuffa is taking the need to deliver very seriously.

The main event features featherweight champ and human highlight reel Jose Aldo, he of the infamous flying double-knee, versus former champ (and famous chin) Urijah Faber, who once went five rounds with a broken right hand and dislocated left thumb and still pressed the action with elbows and flying knees. And while WEC 48 is in Faber’s hometown of Sacramento, Aldo’s the real story in this match-up, a kid from the slums of Brazil with lightning in his fists and feet. He’s  has knocked out his last six opponents and hasn’t lost in five years. He’s also a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, not that anyone’s seen that part of his game yet.

Then there’s a rematch between lightweight champ Ben “Bendo” Henderson and Donald Cerrone, who put on the most exciting, edge-of-your-seat five-round fight of 2009. A little deeper on the main card finds former featherweight champ Mike Brown, who gave up the crown to Aldo, taking on Manny Gamburyan, Anthony Njokuani against Shane Roller and Antonio Banuelos meets Scott Jorgensen.

So there’s a lot to get excited about – if you let yourself.