Fans will finally get to see a fight that was originally scheduled to take place at UFC 180 last November.
Two fighters, the returning Cain Velasquez and interim champion Fabricio Werdum will face off this coming Sunday in a heavyweight title unification match in UFC 188 at the Mexico City Arena in Mexico City.
Both fighters bring to the Octagon contrasting styles which should make the match pretty interesting.
On one side is Velasquez, who will be making his return after being out for almost 19 months due to injuries (torn labrum and torn meniscus).
Velasquez incurred the torn labrum injury after his match with Junior dos Santos at UFC 166. He would have returned in November but a torn meniscus forced Velasquez to withdraw from his UFC 180 match against Werdum.
This time however, Velasquez seems utterly confident and healthy that he will come out on top and reclaim his spot as champion. In fact the mind games seem to have already kicked off as well when Werdum said on an episode of a UFC show that he is “an American who thinks he’s Mexican.”
Velasquez took exception to those remarks and things seem to getting a bit hot between the two when Velasquez refused to shake Werdum’s hands when they crossed paths at breakfast a couple of days ago.
“He’s the interim champ,” Velasquez said. “He didn’t get the real belt, obviously. I’m happy to show everyone who the real champ is.”
Meanwhile, Werdum captured the crown when he scored a second round technical knockout over Mark Hunt at UFC 180. Prior to that, Werdum has shown what he can do overall. He also has to his credit wins over other fighters which include Travis Browne, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Roy Nelson.
Regardless of what Werdum has accomplished thus far, such has not fazed Velasquez. In fact he says the he knows how to counter and deal with Werdum heading into Sunday – apply a lot of pressure, punches and kicks.
Considering that list of things he has to do to gain the advantage over Werdum, question arises on his actual conditioning. Is he prepared for the challenge that Werdum brings?
Werdum is expected to make full use of his grapples and kicks, something that Velasquez carries as well. But as far as durability is concerned, one has to wonder if Velasquez can truly keep up with the interim champion.
A fit and healthy Velasquez is seen as the odds on pick to win this one. If not for his injuries and long layoff, there is no question that Velasquez would be a hands-down favorite.
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