RONIN FIGHTER ALESSIO LOOKS FOR A HOME WITH WEC WELTERWEIGHT TITLE

By Brian O’Hara

World Extreme Cagefighting holds its second event this Saturday at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, a new beginning for the recently acquired outfit now under the direction of Zuffa LLC., the promoters of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

And while the WEC looks to stake a larger claim in a quickly flooding market, Canadian John Alessio is eyeing himself a more permanent home to cap a nine-year journey through the sport. WEC 26’s main event between Alessio (18-9-0) and Carlos Condit (19-4-0) will crown the organization’s welterweight champion.

A fixture of U.S. circuit for years, it isn’t commonly known that Alessio was born and raised in British Columbia, Canada.

“That’s where I got started” says Alessio. “I had my first four or five fights up in Canada, but at that point in time there really weren’t any full, well-rounded gyms with great training partners in the area.”

Facing a crucial turning point in his career, Alessio decided to move from B.C. to America in 1999 to pursue his dream of becoming a world champion. “I had to make a decision to move somewhere that I could get the right training, so I had to leave."

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