Mike Russow was quickly battered and finished by a surging Fabricio Werdum at UFC 147, with the Brazilian more than willing to show off his improved striking skills.
Werdum used heavyweight Russow as a stepping stone to claw his way toward title contention, but he will likely need another fight in the process.
Meanwhile, Russow entered the UFC Octagon in hostile territory. He was was punished and clearly overmatched against the Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner.
He lost to a heavyweight fighter really close to competing for the UFC heavyweight title, so it’s hard to see where he truly stands in the division.
Still, there was a lot more expected from him, and he simply couldn’t come close to delivering. It’s hard to figure out what to do with Russow now, as he clearly shouldn’t have anything to do with a fighter in the top 10 or 15.
The UFC could match him up with the winner (or loser) from the Ben Rothwell vs. Travis Browne fight at UFC on Fox 4 in early August.
If the UFC wants him to fight for his UFC career, perhaps a fight against Mark Hunt or Brendan Schaub can be arranged.
Of course, Pat Barry is always looking to try and kick someone’s legs off in a fight, and Lavar Johnson just lost to Stefan Struve and might make for an interesting matchup.
It’s truly hard to tell what the UFC will do with Russow, as he isn’t anywhere near the top 15 heavyweights in MMA.
They should give him another fight—he did decide to accept a fight with Werdum in Brazil—but they don’t have a reason to keep him around if he loses one more fight.
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