Belt unification between Werdum and Velasquez should take place at UFC 188, in June

Werdum (left) and Velasquez (right) were supposed to face each other last year, but the fight was postponed. Photo: Reproduction

It was already guaranteed that Fabricio Werdum would face Cain Velazquez for the unification of the heavyweight belt in 2015 in Mexico, but the long-awaited duel has just been given a probable date. Ultimate president Dana White revealed that the most famous octagon on the planet will land on Mexican soil twice this year, the first of which will be on June 13th, with UFC 188, an event in which Werdum and Velaquez will face each other.

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In an interview with the Mexican newspaper “La Afición”, White said that “there is no plan B” for the event and that the organization's project is to finally take the North American of Mexican descent to an event in his parents' homeland. Also according to Dana, the recovery of Velasquez, who remains injured, has progressed well and the expectation is that the linear champion will be released to perform at the event in June.

In addition to UFC 188, in June, the director also revealed that another event will take place in the country in November. Without revealing whether the card is another pay-per-view (numbered events) or an event from the series Fight Night, Dana left open the possibility of counting on another North American with a strong connection with the Mexican public: the TUF 17 champion Kelvin Gastelum. According to White, the undefeated Gastelum has a good chance of challenging for the welterweight title later this year if he wins Tyron woodley at UFC 183, on January 31st.

In November last year, the biggest MMA event on the planet made its first visit to Mexico. The main fight of UFC 180 would be the heavyweight title fight between Cain Velazquez e Fabricio Werdum. However, the champion was injured weeks before the event, and was replaced by Mark Hunt, who fought for the interim belt against Werdum. The Brazilian won by technical knockout and won the title. In addition, the card also marked the finals of the first season of the reality show The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America.

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