In the days following his smashing of Cain Velasquez to become the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion, Fabricio Werdum expressed interest in a rematch with the former titleholder.
Vai Cavalo put on one of the most impressive performances of his career, as he out-struck the American Kickboxing Academy product en route to finishing Velasquez via guillotine choke in the third round of their tilt at UFC 188.
Velasquez's signature brand of cardio and high-paced output was zapped by Mexico City's high elevation, and Werdum seemed willing to prove he'd best the California native once again inside the Octagon.
While Werdum is still open to facing Velasquez, in a recent interview with MMA Fighting's Guilherme Cruz, the Kings MMA representative suggested he's aiming for a much bigger lineup than just the man he recently dethroned.
The 37-year-old grappling machine is now taking aim at a series of rematches with fighters he has suffered setbacks against on previous occasions. The newly crowned heavyweight king wants to redeem himself by avenging losses against Andrei Arlovski and Junior Dos Santos, starting with a matchup against The Pit Bull for his first official title defense attempt.
The resurgent striker scored a unanimous-decision victory over Werdum at UFC 70 back in 2007, and his current five-fight winning streak has him within striking distance of a shot at the heavyweight title.
It's a bout Werdum welcomes with open arms, and he believes things would go much differently a second time around:
I would like to fight Arlovski because it was a close fight, a split decision, an ugly fight that nobody liked, and I think I won. Arlovski next might be a good idea. After that, ‘Cigano’. But I take step by step. The next step is Arlovski, and then ‘Cigano’. I fought ‘Minotauro’ again, did well and won, and now it’s the rematch with Arlovski. ‘Cigano’ would be cool. But I got to focus on Arlovski first because he’s a former UFC champion and this fight will sell well.
While the next official challenger for the Brazilian wrecking machine has yet to be named by the UFC, it's clear he wants to face Arlovski next. And in his mind, once he gets through the Jackson/Winkeljohn-trained fighter, then he will turn his focus toward avenging a loss that played a major factor in his career trajectory.
Seven years ago, Werdum was inching closer to a shot at the UFC title when he faced up-and-coming powerhouse Dos Santos at UFC 90.
Cigano was an unknown back in 2008, but after his blistering first-round knockout over Werdum that night in Chicago, it set him on a course for much bigger things in the heavyweight fold. On the flip side of the equation, the loss to JDS led to Werdum being released from his UFC contract, and he would spend the better part of the next four years battling his way back to the biggest stage in MMA.
The loss to Dos Santos is one that has never sat well with Werdum, and he's looking forward to stepping back into the Octagon with the former champion:
I want to rematch ‘Cigano’ in Brazil, at the Arena do Gremio in Porto Alegre. It would be a dream come true. Fighting in my hometown, where I was born and raised. The people from Porto Alegre love fights, especially now that they have one of them in the UFC. I’m sure that we would have 40, 50 thousand people at the Arena for this fight. We would break the UFC record.
I want this rematch with ‘Cigano’ because I was not a professional the first time we fought. Not taking anything away from him. He went there and knocked me out, and then he won the UFC title. He deserved it. But I learned a lot with it. That loss changed my entire career. It was either become a professional or stop fighting. That was when I decided to become a professional fighter.
With the heavyweight champion laying out potential names for his redemption tour, one fighter whom he doesn't appear interested in facing at the current time is Stipe Miocic. The Cleveland-based contender is coming off the biggest win of his career over recent interim title challenger Mark Hunt and has been campaigning for a shot at Werdum's belt.
Nevertheless, Werdum's focus is locked on facing opponents who will make the biggest fights from a revenue standpoint, and Miocic is certainly behind Arlovski and Dos Santos in that particular category.
Yet when the final decisions are made, he will step in to defend his belt against the fighter the promotion deems the official No. 1 contender. Werdum knows every potential opponent brings a threat to his title reign in the Octagon, but he has no intention of relinquishing his championship gold anytime soon:
I can’t say who is more dangerous. At this level, every fight is tough. They are all dangerous. The heavyweight division is dangerous because one punch can end everything. Everybody is dangerous. ‘Cigano’ has heavy hands, Arlovski showed that too against Travis Browne, and Miocic is doing well, too. Anyone can finish anyone.
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
