Fabricio Werdum thinks win over Roy Nelson will put him on cusp of contendership
Posted by Joe Rice
The last time fans saw Fabricio Werdum inside the Octagon he was a win away from fighting for the UFC heavyweight title before running into a then-unknown Brazilian by the name of Junior dos Santos. Werdum is poised to make his return to the infamous eight-sided structure this weekend at UFC 143 where he’ll face Roy Nelson on the PPV portion of the card.
While Werdum knows he won’t be earning a title-shot by beating “Big Country”, he does feel as though a convincing victory over someone with Nelson’s credentials could propel him into a bout for top contendership given the general shakiness of the heavyweight division.
The 34-year old offered his assessment in a recent interview with the UFC where cameras stopped by his camp at Kings MMA.
“I expect a great fight with Roy Nelson to keep on my path to the road for the belt,” began Werdum before talk turned towards his goals. “I can visualize my next three fights. I think I’ll fight now against Nelson, then one more fight, and then I’ll get a title-shot. I see a rematch against ‘Cigano’ (Dos Santos). It would be the peak of my career to be able to fight a guy who knocked me out. The champion, undefeated in the UFC.”
Before that can take place Dos Santos will have to defeat Alistair Overeem this summer while Werdum has to also hold up his end of the bargain against Nelson, a 16-6 grappler with knockout power and success against some respectable foes such as Stefan Struve, Brendan Schaub, and Mirko Filipovic.
PPV action starts at 10:00 PM EST on Saturday night with prelims on Facebook/FX at 7:00 PM EST.
Check out the interview with Werdum below:
PHOTO CREDIT – AFFLICTION
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MMATraining Take: Werdum may be on to something since the UFC needs heavyweight contenders, especially with Brock Lesnar retiring, and Werdum’s only real competition in that regard is Cain Velasquez.
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February 2nd, 2012 at 7:01 pm
[...] Fabricio Werdum first entered MMA he was known purely as a grappler based on his well-documented success in BJJ. [...]
February 3rd, 2012 at 1:31 pm
[...] of each man entering their Saturday scrap, as well as those related to fellow main card competitors Fabricio Werdum-Roy Nelson and Josh Koscheck-Mike Pierce, in a Countdown special attached to the event. The video has now been [...]
February 3rd, 2012 at 9:47 pm
[...] Roy Nelson and Fabricio Werdum each weighed 246 pounds, easily making the heavyweight limit for their co-main event bout. The weight was the lowest of Nelson’s MMA career. Also, welterweights Josh Koscheck and Mike Pierce each came in at 170 on the dot. Their moment on the stage was highlighted by Pierce wearing a blonde wig and the two being separated after things got heated during the face off. [...]
February 5th, 2012 at 1:53 am
[...] evening was expectedly exciting yet surprisingly topped by Fabricio Werdum’s decision win over Roy Nelson instead of the main event between Nick Diaz-Carlos Condit. Werdum [...]