The UFC has done a strong job of giving fight fans a number of interesting bouts in 2015. Even UFC 184, which had multiple fights cancelled, was a solid showcase.
UFC 188 is set to feature Cain Velasquez’s return to the Octagon, but MMA fans should believe it only when they see it.
According to MMAjunkie, Velasquez is slated to face Fabricio Werdum in what will be a title unification bout in Mexico City on June 13.
If this fight occurs, it will be Velasquez’s first battle since UFC 166, which took place in October 2013—that’s nearly two full years since the promotion’s true heavyweight champion last fought.
Cain’s injury issues started in 2011 when he fought Junior dos Santos on what was reported as a torn meniscus. Jesse Holland of MMA Mania wrote a piece in 2012 that presented the idea that Velasquez fought Santos with a serious knee injury.
His luck would not get any better, as Velasquez was forced out of a UFC 180 fight due to another knee injury. Velasquez lamented over the recurring problem.
“I’ve been through this before, so it sucks,” he said during The MMA Hour, via MMA Fighting. “I tried everything I could do to make the fight, but I just couldn’t.”
Mixed martial arts is a dangerous sport in which injuries occur all the time. Chris Weidman and Dominick Cruz are two other examples of champions—current and former, respectively—who have had issues with recurring injuries. Fight fans should not hold their breath in hopes that Velasquez makes it to the Octagon.
With more than three months before this fight is to take place, the UFC shouldn’t be holding its breath, either. Mexico City is a major market that the organization wants to break into. In order to ensure that this fight card will still be exciting to that demographic, it has added another bout with two Hispanic fighters as the co-main event.
Damon Martin of Fox Sports reported that Eddie Alvarez and Gilbert Melendez have been tabbed as the co-main event of the evening.
These two highly regarded lightweights have long wanted to get their hands on each other. According to Marc Raimondi of MMA Fighting, they were linked in superfight talks years earlier.
Melendez is a Mexican-American, while Alvarez is of Puerto Rican descent. If Velasquez falls off the card, the UFC will still be able to present a fight to capture the attention of Mexican fight fans.
UFC 188 is supposed to be Velasquez’s big return to the Octagon. By that time, he will have been out of action for nearly two years, but given his recurring injury problem, the promotion and MMA fans may want to curb their enthusiasm.
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