Are you happy with the Fabricio Werdum vs. Cain Velasquez rematch at UFC 207 or would you rather either of them faced someone else instead first?
ROBERT VALLEJOS, MMATorch contributor
Not only am I happy that this fight is happening, but I think that this is a very necessary fight. As long as this fight is absolutely a title eliminator, it really helps sort out the clutter that these two create at the top of the Heavyweight Division. Both men have a legitimate claim to face Stipe Miocic for the Heavyweight Title, but it is very difficult to truly place one above the other. This can do just that.
MICHAEL GROCKE, MMATorch contributor
FRANK HYDEN, MMATorch contributor
I think it’s a good fight. Matching two of the best in the division makes sense. There’s not exactly an overflow of contenders in the division, so this makes for a good number one contendership fight. I know that sounds crazy given that both guys are only coming off wins over Travis Browne after losses before that, but this is the Heavyweight Division, where you’re almost never out of the title picture. With Velasquez, it’s more about can he stay healthy than anything else. So this is a good test and it allows him to avenge his loss to Werdum. And as for Werdum, this is a chance to prove that his loss to UFC Heavyweight Champion Stipe Miocic was an aberration. A strong performance here definitely puts him in a good spot and on his way to another title shot.
MATTHEW PETERSON, MMATorch contributor
The idea of an immediate rematch right after UFC 188 was a bad idea. Cain looked like a shot fighter in that fight and had no leg to stand on for a rematch. Now both men are coming off of huge beatdowns of Travis Browne and a rematch between them could serve as a solid no. 1 contender match. Cain shouldn’t have any cardio issues like he did at altitude and seems to be taking his training more seriously than ever. So yeah, bring that rematch. I bet it could be a Fight of the Year contender.
WADE KELLER, MMATorch editor
This is the right fight to make. I am more of a fan of rematches than most because I just don’t think necessarily that a single fight between two fighters always tells the full story. Sometimes it does, but often I’m left wondering how the losing fighter would adjust to what caused his loss, or whether there was an X-factor, such as an injury, a bad ref call, a slip, a single bad decision that turned the fight, or altitude. The Heavyweight Division isn’t stacked enough where I feel like we’re cheating an up-and-comer or an established star from having a first-time match against one of these two that is more relevant to the standings than what we’ll learn from these two having a rematch. I like the backstory, I like the ramifications on the title, and I like that it takes away an arbitrary decision of who gets to face Stipe next. The fact that Stipe wanted time off makes this even more of a logical fight at this time. It’s also a chance to have a back-up co-headline fight in case one of the other two main events is lost due to injury. UFC needs to make sure they are three fights deep on big ticket PPV events in case the main event drops off (like with UFC 206).
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