The UFC’s plans for the heavyweight division are still up in the air, however there are signs that the UFC 188 event scheduled for June 13 may mark the UFC’s return to Mexico City. Dana White and company are tentatively setting a main event of Cain Velasquez vs Fabricio Werdum to unify the world heavyweight title.
Right now, the books have even put up a preliminary line for June, and it sees Velasquez at (-475), with the comeback on Werdum sitting at (+325). The over/under for the five round title fight is at 2.5 rounds, with the over at (-185) and the under at (+145).
UFC President Dana White had stated that if Velasquez was not ready by the March timeframe, that he was going to strip him of the belt. The bottom line is that below Werdum and Velasquez, there is a big drop off in terms of fighters who are ready for the title picture. The match should be announced well before the March timeframe, giving White an out on his prior statement.
Werdum vs Velasquez was scheduled for the UFC’s Mexico City debut last November, but Velasquez pulled out due to injury, and Werdum wound up winning an interim version of the UFC Heavyweight belt when he defeated Mark Hunt. This sets up a”unification’ bout in June.
The odds have not changed much since the injury postponed the November fight. Velasquez has not competed in close to a year and a half, and that has become an alarming pattern with him, but when he is ready he has been a dominant force. Werdum also has been good, but he is not expected to be able to maintain the pace that Velasquez keeps.
With such a long lead time for the fight, the chance exists that Velasquez could be injured again, and that would almost certainly result in a loss of his title. If Werdum were to be hurt, the UFC really has no one ready to step into the title picture, so who could face Velasquez if that were to be the case is anybody’s guess. Let’s hope both men stay healthy.
Here is an interview with champion Cain Velasquez, as he attended the UFC’s debut in Mexico City to watch Fabricio Werdum vs Mark Hunt:
