UFC 143 Nelson vs. Werdum: Co Main Event Preview
By: Chris Palma
Once again the UFC gives us another exciting Super Bowl weekend fight card in which we will see one of two men get their first taste of UFC gold. Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit will squabble for the interim welterweight championship do to the absence of Georges St. Pierre who was sidelined earlier this year with a significant knee injury. Also featured on this card is a pivotal heavyweight match up which pairs Roy “Big Country” Nelson (16-6,3-2 UFC) against Fabricio “Vai Cavalo” Werdum (14-5-1, 2-2 UFC).
Come Saturday night Werdum will be stepping into the octagon for the first time in over 3 years. His last outing in the UFC cage saw what was at the time, possibly the biggest upset of the year when consensus #1 contender Fabricio Werdum stepped into the octagon against relative unknown Junior Dos Santos. Dos Santos flattened Werdum with a massive uppercut, knocking the jiu jitsu black belt out cold taking what would be his fist step on his way to eventually winning the UFC title. In that fight Werdum appeared notably soft around the midsection and speculation flied about whether or not he took the fight seriously.
Subsequently following the bout Werdum left the UFC, and decided to test the waters outside the UFC. He landed in Strikeforce which put together what could be talked about as one of the best heavy weight grand pris tournaments of all time. In his first round match up Werdum secured a unanimous decision victory against hulking heavyweight Antonio Silva. It was his second round match up against Fedor Emelianenko which thrust Vai Cavalo back into the spotlight. Fedor who came into the bout as the worlds number one heavyweight, and on the heels of a 10 year long win streak fell right into the jiu jitsu worlds champions trap. Appearing to stun Werdum with a powerful strike, he followed Werdum to the mat for the finish. Within seconds Fedor was tapping to a triangle choke, and the MMA world erupted.
In the following bout he attempted to bait Alistair Overeem into making the same mistake as Emelianenko, but the Dutchman was reluctant to hit the mat with Werdum. Unable to mount any significant offense on the feet, Werdum found himself on the losing end of what was a ho-hum type of fight. Since the UFC acquired Strikeforce and its stable of fighters, Werdum will now remake an entrance into the octagon against a formidable challenge in Roy Nelson.
Since knocking out Brendan Schaub and winning season 10 of The Ultimate Fighter, Big Country has seen his fair share of adversity inside the octagon. After knocking out 6-11 Stefan Struve with his trademarked overhand right, Nelson was matched up with rising star Junior Dos Santos. Although he lost a lopsided unanimous decision victory Nelson showed ungodly toughness and an absolute granite chin, taking bombs from the young Brazilian, which would have stopped almost any other fighter in the division.
His next fight saw a Roy Nelson which we have never seen. Nelson entered the cage with a depleted gas tank thanks to a bout of walking pneumonia, and once again dropped a sloppy unanimous decision victory to former UFC Heavy Weight champion Frank Mir. He last appearance in the octagon, he sent the great Mirko Filipovic into retirement, TKOing the Croatian star in the 3rd round.
PICK
Though both fighters entering the cage are BJJ black belts they both have different styles and strong areas. Werdum has an amazing all around grappling game whether on his back, or on top. Not many people in the world would last very long with Werdum once the fight hit the mat. How ever, Nelson is no slouch on the mat, as he once submitted Frank Mir in a grappling competition. However Nelson favors the top position where he can use his massive gut to smother and control his opponents.
While both are black belts, both can handle themselves on the feet, and should deliver an exciting fight to the fans. I do not think that Werdum has the tools knock out Nelson, and should Nelson be smart enough to not hit the mat with Werdum, I see Nelson winning the unanimous decision victory.
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