The UFC on FOX 13 event scheduled for December 13th in Phoenix, Arizona will be headlined by the return of former UFC Heavyweight Champion Junior Dos Santos as he faces up and coming Stipe Miocic. Dos Santos will have been away from the octagon for 14 months, but is commonly considered the number two guy in the division behind the champion, so Miocic is in a step up fight after winning 3 in a row.
This match was originally scheduled to happen back at the end of May, but Dos Santos was pulled due to an injury. Miocic instead faced Fabio Maldonado in a squash match. Maldonado, always game, lasted 35 seconds. Yes Miocic needed to fight, but putting a surging Heavyweight against a blown up Light Heavyweight who has been outclassed at that weight class was a formula for a bad match. Miocic had gotten 2 UD victories prior to the Maldonado fight, over Gabriel Gonzaga and Roy Nelson, so Dos Santos could be a defining fight for the big Croat.
Dos Santos just wants to keep winning. Since a 4th match with Cain Velasquez is so unappealing, Dos Santos is looking to stay relevant and near the top should Velasquez falter. Velasquez faces Fabricio Werdum in mid-November, but is expected to retain his belt.
This is a tall order for Miocic, who is likely to come in as a slight underdog for this fight. Miocic had success early, and also against Maldonado as he finished fights with his fists. Against Nelson and Gonzaga, his two best wins, he had to slog it out for the full 15 minutes, and that is what he will likely have to do against Dos Santos. Though he used the Nelson and Gonzaga to flash an improved gas tank, against Dos Santos he faces a faster opponent with a higher work rate, and one who is a lot more precise with his punches.
Dos Santos needed a match for his return and this is not an easy one, but it is one that he is favored in. The question is why this match? What happens to Miocic if Dos Santos wins? Miocic goes back to the pack, and Dos Santos likely faces Werdum next? It might have been more effective to have Dos Santos face off against a veteran like Josh Barnett, and maybe test Miocic by having him face Travis Brown? Anyway, Miocic must win, if not he can write off a title shot in 2015, and that is a long time in UFC years.
