Velasquez could lose his belt if he doesn't fight by March, says Dana White

Velasquez (photo) is expected to return to action in March. Photo: Disclosure/UFC

The current UFC heavyweight champion, Cain Velazquez, he could lose his belt if he is not able to defend it in the next four months. This is what the president of the North American organization, Dana White, stated, who gave a deadline for the fighter to recover from his injuries and be able to return to active duty.

Velasquez last defended his belt in October 2013, when he tapped junior gypsy by technical knockout at UFC 166. Since then, the American of Mexican descent has suffered injuries to his left shoulder and right knee, the latter of which removed him from the UFC 180 card, which will be this Saturday (15).

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Velasquez is expected to return to fighting in March. If the deadline is not met, White revealed that the owner of the interim belt, which will be defined between Fabricio Werdum e Mark Hunt, will be promoted to the rank of linear champion.

“This next fight in Mexico will be for the interim belt. So, if Cain is unable to compete, the winner of this fight will be seen as the champion”, said White, in an interview with the official UFC website. “We’re heading in that direction now.”

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White stated that Velasquez's replacement at UFC 180, Mark Hunt, will be fully capable of performing competitively despite the short preparation time – the New Zealander was notified of the fight on October 13th.

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“A lot of people are saying that Hunt only had three weeks to train for this fight. Well, he trained for a five-round fight on September 20th and we offered him the fight on October 13th. He was in good shape. He went home and took a few weeks off, and I think this is the perfect fight for Mark Hunt. The only problem is [Mexico City's] altitude, but he's been here for three weeks. Some guys reach the altitude and it doesn’t take that long to get used to it”, said the manager.