Author: Matt Juul

Saturday night showed casual MMA fans once again why heavyweights rule the Octagon.

In a quick, yet still impressive main event battle, UFC champ Cain Velasquez easily dispatched of challenger Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, finishing the Brazilian just over a minute into the first round.

The night’s co-main event turned out to be a memorable performance for former title holder Junior dos Santos, who got back into the win column in a big way with his finish over Mark Hunt. The ex-champ dominated the New Zealand native for two rounds before landing a spinning wheel kick to end Hunt’s night in the third frame.

While there were a number of great fights on Saturday night’s card, there’s just something about heavyweights that always seem to excite fans—both hardcore and casual.

The dos Santos-Hunt bout was a prime example of how brutal and powerful the giants of the sport can be. As if their size and strength wasn’t impressive enough, the fact that someone of dos Santos’ size can land such an unorthodox technique like that is an even scarier thought.

From the night’s headlining fight, casual fans saw one of the sport’s elite champions easily defend his title in a fast and dominant performance.

With his explosive takedowns, crisp combinations and heavy strikes, Velasquez showed the MMA world what the cream of the heavyweight crop is supposed to look like.

The night’s two biggest winners are now set to face off for a third time in what’s sure to be an exciting and hyped up rematch.

Amidst an ever-growing and dangerous division, both Velasquez and dos Santos proved to fans that they are the heavyweights to beat in the UFC.

 

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Cain Velasquez once again proved why he’s the best heavyweight in MMA with his quick finish of Antonio Silva at UFC 160 Saturday night in Las Vegas.

While it wasn’t a barnburner for the UFC champ, the first-round TKO of “Bigfoot” does rank high on Velasquez’s list of victories.

In terms of dominance, I’d say that the heavyweight king’s rematch with Junior dos Santos and his championship-winning fight with Brock Lesnar are his two most impressive performances.

In those two bouts, Velasquez absolutely dominated “Cigano” and Lesnar, showcasing both his heavy hands and his ability to wear out some of the best in the division.

However, I’d definitely rank Saturday night’s victory in the top five.

What makes the champ’s win over Silva so noteworthy is because of how fast Velasquez was able to take out the giant.

In their first meeting, it took the champ just under four minutes into the first round to defeat Silva while their second matchup on Saturday barely went past the first minute.

While their first fight was certainly bloodier, I’d argue that the champ’s second win over “Bigfoot” showed off more of Velasquez’s devastating explosiveness. The heavyweight king absolutely manhandled Silva. The champ dominate by throwing him around with relative ease and pressuring him with strikes for the entire bout.

The win, the fastest in the champ’s career, was a solid showcasing of his technical prowess and elite athletic ability.

Velasquez’s victory may have been just another day in the office for the champ; however, it will definitely be a performance that people will remember.

 

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It was a quick night for UFC champ Cain Velasquez, who easily defended his title against Antonio Silva at Saturday’s UFC 160.

The heavyweight king once again put a beating on “Bigfoot,” finishing the Brazilian just one minute and 21 seconds into the opening frame.

Velasquez looks to be back to form following his lone career loss to Junior dos Santos in 2011, rattling off three straight dominant performances en route to his current title reign. And unless someone is lucky enough to land another wild haymaker like “Cigano” did, I doubt that the belt will be changing hands anytime soon.

In every one of his fights other than his first battle with dos Santos, Velasquez has completely controlled his opponents in a way that no other previous heavyweight champ has. 

One obvious key to Velasquez’s success has been his explosiveness, both with his hands and his takedowns. Other than teammate Daniel Cormier, who the champ vows to never face, there really aren’t any fighters in the division who possess the same combination of high level wrestling and powerful striking.

Velasquez’s explosive offense is the reason why he was able to overwhelm and take out “Bigfoot” in both their battles.

Another factor to Velasquez’s success has been his ability to wear down his opponents.

Whether it’s up against the fence or on the mats, the champ has been able to grind down his foes by wearing them out with his constant pressure.

A great example of this is Velasquez’s second bout with dos Santos, where he not only won his title back, but also became the first fighter in UFC history to post triple digits in significant strikes landed and double digits in takedowns landed in a single fight.

By possessing both KO power and the ability to wear people down for five rounds, I just don’t see any current heavyweight matching up well with the champ.

If you factor out Cormier, the only top contenders that remain are dos Santos, Alistair Overeem and possibly Roy Nelson.

While all three have the heavy hands and skill to land a devastating finishing blow, Velasquez just has better all-around MMA skills.

Until the heavyweight division can find someone who can match the champ both athletically and technically, I don’t see Velasquez losing the title anytime soon.

 

Be sure to like Matt on Facebook and follow @MattchidaMMA.

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