Middleweight fighter Alan Belcher (16-6) had his dreams of seeking a UFC title stopped by an eye injury this past summer. Belcher suffered a detached retina while training in Brazil for a bout with Demina Maia for Septembers UFC Fight Night: Maia vs. Belcher, which was renamed UFC Fight Night: Marquardt vs. Palhares when he was forced out.
After a successful surgery to his eye, Belcher is looking to make his comeback and wants to avenge a previous loss to Yushin Okami when he steps back into the octagon.
“Okami has all the tools and abilities to win but he has failed to fight to his full potential. If he ever breaks out of his shell and quits being overly cautious he will be a beast. Nate is always a dangerous opponent with athletic explosive striking and a lot of grappling experience. This well rounded fighter will give anyone in the division trouble but sometimes he’s a little wild and out of control and Okami could capitalize on this. My pick is Marquardt; however, I wouldn’t mind seeing Okami take the win so we could set up a rematch with him and me for my comeback fight.”
No date has been set for his return but Okami will fight this Saturday in the main event of UFC 122 against Alan Belcher. The winner should earn the #1 contender position for the UFC middleweight division and face Anderson Silva in the coming year.
HT: UFC.com