Cain Velasquez will get back on that horse this May at UFC 146, as part of the all heavyweight main card headlined by Junior Dos Santos and Alistair Overeem. The former champion will match submission wizard Frank Mir to kick off his journey down comeback lane.
While Velasquez is sure to keep his sights on his own opponent heading in to UFC 146, he offers up some pre-fight analysis to the heavyweight title bout, around the 4:00 mark of the video.
It’s going to be a hard one to choose. In the distance, Overeem with his long kicks, and in the clinch with his knees, I think he’s dangerous there. But Dos Santos, in the punching range, nobody has been able to test him really, so it’s going to be interesting to see.
As Cain highlights, both guys find their fortes in the standup game—Dos Santos with his advanced boxing skills and Overeem with his Thai clinch and distanced striking. But he knows that that does not make the contest invulnerable to a little ground fighting.
They both have pretty good takedowns. I’ve seen Overeem do some takedowns and he has good technique, good power. And I’ve seen Dos Santos, in the later rounds, get takedowns on guys too. So it will be interesting to see who tries one first, because they both have pretty good takedowns.
While Cain uses the old side-step—the prediction move that athletes have become so skilled at—he does offer some useful analysis here. Most people expect the heavyweight title fight to be fought on the feet, and the range that it’s fought at just might determine the victor.
Furthermore, what happens if one of the combatants starts getting picked apart? Dos Santos has yet to exhibit his ground game in the UFC, but he owns a reasonably strong one. Likewise, Overeem is no stranger to finishing fights on the mat, having compiled 19 submission wins over his career. So despite the penchant of each fighter to strike, neither will feel out of their element working for position on the mat.
Velasquez also notes that he “would definitely love to fight [Dos Santos] again.”
Whether the Brazilian remains champion after UFC 146, or finds himself back in the cluster of contendership, it seems likely that he and Cain are not too far removed from a rematch.
But for now, Cain remains focused on climbing the heavyweight ladder. Regardless of who lies in wait, the first stop is Frank Mir—not an opponent to look past.
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