Werdum (photo) secured his fourth consecutive victory in Ultimate. Photo: Josh Hedges/UFC
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Much has been said about the risks that standing up play could bring to Fabricio Werdum in the fight against Travis Browne, at UFC on FOX 11, this Saturday (19) in Orlando (USA). But the Brazilian made a point of demonstrating how much his striking had improved and even though he spent most of his time away from the ground, where the jiu-jitsu specialist feels more comfortable, he completely dominated Browne and took victory in a unanimous decision from the judges. With the triumph, Werdum guaranteed himself as the next challenger for the heavyweight belt, in a fight against the champion Cain Velazquez.
The fight
In the first round, Werdum started being pressured by Browne and suffered traumatic blows, which left him in a complicated position. When he managed to reverse the fight on the ground, however, “Vai Cavalo” reversed his rival's advantage, balanced the fight in striking and managed to hit his rival, who appeared with his guard down and provoking the Brazilian.
VIDEO: Remember the trajectory of Fabrício Werdum
In the second half, Werdum managed to attract the Hawaiian to a short distance and timed it correctly to take down Browne. On the ground, the multi-time jiu-jitsu champion made good transitions and maintained pressure on his opponent for most of the round. When the fight returned to standing, the Brazilian was threatened, but connected the best blows until the end of the round.
BUT: Edson Barboza is surprised and ends up submitted by Cerrone
Werdum returned for the third round determined to end the confrontation and intensified his attacks on Browne. Showing himself calm and controlling the distance, Fabrício saw opportunities to connect more aesthetic blows, such as a flying knee to the Hawaiian's face and a spin that touched his rival's forehead.
READ TOO: Caio Monstro and Thiago Pitbull shine on the UFC on FOX 11 preliminary card
Faced with a visibly more tired Browne, Werdum continued to control the pace of the fight in the fourth round and exposed himself less in the final. In the final five minutes, Fabrício stuck to his strategy and dominated the fight. At the end of the five rounds, “Vai Cavalo” was declared the winner by unanimous decision of the judges, with scores of 49-46, 50-45 and 50-45.
Check out all the results from UFC on FOX 11 below:
MAIN CARD:
Heavy weight (up to 120 kg): Fabricio Werdum beat Travis Browne by unanimous decision of the judges;
Women's bantamweight (up to 61,2 kg): Miesha Tate beat Liz Carmouche by unanimous decision of the judges;
Light weights (up to 70,3 kg): Donald Cerrone finished Edson Barboza with a rear naked choke in R1;
Medium weights (up to 84 kg): Yoel romero won Brad Tavares by unanimous decision of the judges.
PRELIMINARY CARD
Light weight (up to 70,3 kg): Khabib Nurmagomedov won Rafael dos Anjos by unanimous decision of the judges;
Welterweight (up to 77 kg): Thiago Pitbull beat Seth Baczynski by unanimous decision of the judges;
Light weight (up to 70,3 kg): Jorge masvidal beat Pat Healy by unanimous decision of the judges;
Featherweight (up to 66 kg): Alex White beat Estevan Payan by technical knockout in R1;
Average weight (up to 84 kg): Gaius Monster beat Luke Zachrich by TKO in R1;
Welterweight (up to 77 kg): Jordan Mein won Hernani Perpétuo by split decision of the judges;
Bantamweight (up to 57 kg): Dustin Ortiz beat Ray Borg by split decision;
Featherweight (up to 66 kg): Mirsad Bektic beat Chas Skelly by majority decision of the judges;
Heavy weight (up to 120 kg): Derrick Lewis beat Jack May by technical knockout in R1.
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