Seeking Sole Possession

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The opportunity for which Fabricio Werdum has waited his entire MMA career has arrived.

Werdum will meet Cain Velasquez for the undisputed Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight title in the UFC 188 main event on Saturday at the Mexico City Arena in Mexico City. It represents the Brazilian’s chance to prove himself as the sport’s true No. 1 heavyweight.

In order to adapt to Mexico City’s climate and elevation, Werdum shifted his training camp from Los Angeles to Salazar, Mexico, a city located roughly 60 miles from the venue. The two-time Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Wrestling World Championships gold medalist made the move four weeks ago and took his entire team from Kings MMA with him.

“It was great to finish this camp here,” Werdum told Sherdog.com. “I’ve brought my whole team: master [Rafael] Cordeiro, [Renato] ‘Babalu’ [Sobral], [Mauricio] ‘Shogun’ [Rua], my brother and some sparring partners. We get totally isolated here in a very nice house with excellent structure. We have no TV here; we just train, run, eat and sleep. The house is located 3,000 meters above sea level, and we run every day, until we get up to 4,000 meters in the mountains. I feel like I’m in great shape for the fight, and I’ll be prepared anywhere the fight goes.”

Velasquez has not fought since he dismantled Junior dos Santos at UFC 166 in October 2013. Werdum believes the American Kickboxing Academy ace will experience some rust because of the long layoff and thinks the altitude in Mexico City could also play a factor in their unification bout.

“His last fight was in 2013,” Werdum said. “I fought twice after that, but, of course, I cannot underestimate Velasquez because of that. I got ready to face the best Cain Velasquez, and no matter where the fight goes, I’ll give him a hard time.”

In a recent interview with Brazilian television station Combate, Velasquez’s head trainer, Javier Mendez, said he believed Werdum would leave the Octagon in worse shape than dos Santos if the fight lasts all five rounds. “Vai Cavalo” responded with a sense of humor.

“In my opinion, this shows a lack of confidence,” Werdum said. “Javier never says anything in any fight; this time, he’s talking a lot. I even joked with him, saying I would love to see him in a masters challenge against my coach, Rafael Cordeiro. I also bet that Rafael would knock him out with a front kick to the belly, but Javier did not accept the challenge.”

Werdum was quick to point out that Kings MMA and the American Kickboxing Academy are the only two teams in the world with two UFC titles under their roofs.

“I bet Kings will remain with two belts,” he said, alluding to his belief that he will defeat Velasquez and bring back the undisputed heavyweight championship.

Werdum also touched on the happenings at UFC 187, where Velasquez’s teammate, Daniel Cormier, claimed the vacant light heavyweight crown with a third-round submission on Anthony Johnson and Chris Weidman retained his middleweight belt with a first-round technical knockout against Vitor Belfort.

“I think both Blackzilians fighters, Johnson and Belfort, made the same mistake,” Werdum said. “They exploded and gave all they had in the first round. They forgot they were in five-round fights. Cain can expect an opponent who’s ready to go five rounds.”

Werdum, who in Velasquez’s absence captured the interim UFC heavyweight championship with a second-round TKO against Mark Hunt on Nov. 15, recalls a time when he trained with a still-nascent Cormier. The two still share some good-natured ribbing when they see one another.

“I have a great relationship with Cormier,” he said. “He recently met with me during a Fox program and made a joke about how I shouldn’t walk around with a UFC belt that doesn’t belong to me. Then I made a joke reminding him about the time Ryan Parsons took me to train with him and I took him down three times, surprising him with an arm drag judo technique I use a lot. When I tried it a fourth time, however, he got mad at me, raised me up on his head and took me down, but he felt a tight arm lock and tapped. Actually, it happened a long time ago when ‘DC’ was just a wrestler starting to train MMA. Now, he’s a UFC champion. Of course, I have all the respect for Cormier and Cain.”

Werdum will enter the UFC 188 headliner as a +385 underdog. Even some Brazilian fans have their doubts about his chances.

“Actually, I fight better when I’m the underdog,” Werdum said. “I think with once I have wins over three legends like Fedor [Emelianenko], [Antonio Rodrigo] ‘Minotauro’ [Nogueira] and Velazquez maybe the people will start to respect me more; and I’m going to do it. I’m not being arrogant. I’m just confident in my training.”