Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos are primed for a third showdown after a pair of impressive performances at UFC 160.
“[The rubber match is] a no brainer,” UFC President Dana White said at the post-fight press conference.
“If there was ever a trilogy, that’s it right there. If you look at the way that both fights went, Junior destroys him in the first fight, Cain destroys him in the second fight, I can’t wait to see the third fight.”
On Saturday night, Velasquez successfully defended the UFC heavyweight title for the first time of his career with a blistering 81-second TKO win over Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva. Dos Santos’ performance was just as impressive, as he tore through Mark Hunt’s titanium chin with a spinning heel kick knockout.
With Velasquez and dos Santos III likely slated for later this year, the MMA community will once again split down the middle in favor of these two heavyweight juggernauts.
Who wins the rubber match?
From this perspective, Velasquez has all the tools to not only defeat dos Santos again, but after the fight, some may dare to call him the greatest heavyweight in UFC history.
Velasquez is a rare breed of heavyweights with tremendous speed and well-rounded abilities, but what truly sets him apart from everyone else is his sustained work rate. His coaches at American Kickboxing Academy have even credited him for outworking lightweights in the gym.
People who step into the cage with Velasquez don’t just get beaten. They get broken down and destroyed by continuous pressure and an unrelenting attack.
Dos Santos looked solid in the early moments of his December 2012 rematch with Velasquez. He was able to contend in the standup exchanges and thwart every takedown attempt. Eventually, the frantic pace started to get to him, and Velasquez began finding openings to land on the feet and secure takedowns.
Dos Santos has a puncher’s chance in the rubber match, which was all he needed the first time they fought. It’s tough envisioning him fending off takedowns and hanging at Velasquez’s pace for a full 25 minutes.
While the differences aren’t far off, Velasquez is just a better, all-around fighter than dos Santos, and he will surely prove it when the two meet again.
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