Fabricio Werdum and Mark Hunt will headline a packed UFC 180 card with a fight Saturday for the interim heavyweight title in Mexico City, Mexico.
Having won his last four UFC bouts, Werdum enters the event as the favorite to become a placeholder champion for the injured Cain Velasquez, who was originally supposed to defend the belt against “Vai Cavalo.”
On the other hand, Hunt can cement his improbable climb up the heavyweight ladder years after suffering six straight losses. Will the 40-year-old Samoan capitalize on his opportunity? His quest for glory is the top story entering the weekend, but it’s just one of five fights occupying the main card after six preliminary bouts.
Here are the latest predictions for each fight on the UFC 180 schedule.
When: Saturday, Nov. 15
Where: Arena Ciudad de Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
Start Time: UFC Fight Pass Prelims at 7 p.m. ET; Fox Sports 1 Prelims at 8 p.m. ET; Main Card PPV at 10 p.m. ET
Live Stream: UFC.TV , Fox Sports Go (for preliminary fights on FS1)
Werdum vs. Hunt Preview
Everyone loves an underdog story, which makes Hunt the primary rooting interest given his unlikely journey to this fight.
A quick glance at the tale of the tape reveals an uninspiring 10-8-1 record in mixed martial arts, hardly the resume of a champion. After starting his career at 5-1, he lost six consecutive battles, going over four years without a victory.
He then turned the corner, rattling off four UFC wins to earn a 5-1-1 mark since that sour patch from May 5 2006 to Feb. 26, 2011. Feel-good comebacks top the underdog checklist, and facing the top-ranked heavyweight only bolsters that narrative.
Hunt acknowledged and embraced that role heading into the biggest fight of his career, per MMAFighting.com’s Shaun Al-Shatti:
My whole career’s been an underdog’s. I’m not supposed to be here. I won the world title in K-1 as a nobody. Of course I’m the underdog. Everyone is saying it. I mean, even these circumstances brings me there, but hey, man, it makes a good story. If anyone can do it, I can do it.
Also working against Hunt, he had to slash his weight to 265 pounds. Along with dealing with Mexico City’s high altitudes, he admitted to Al-Shatti that he’s battling sluggishness due to a strict diet:
I haven’t had any carbs for three weeks, so I’m hungry. When I have some carbs, I’ll have the energy to think about my plan and my performance and my fighting. My plan ultimately is to go and hurt him. If you don’t know, this is the hurt business. And we’re pretty good at hurting people. My job is to go hurt Fabricio as much as I can, so he doesn’t put a hurt on me. I’ll make up a plan while I’m doing it
Both veterans bring a different style to the octagon. While Werdum has obtained half of his victories by submission, Hunt has yet to make an opponent tap. He has, however, procured a 70 percent knockout rate, collecting his last three victories via KO.
Sherdog.com’s Javier Vazquez cited Werdum’s takedown skills as his meal ticket to besting Hunt.
Everyone loves Hunt’s story, but he has a tall task with Werdum. If the fight hits the ground, it should be over quickly. If Werdum wants to test his standup, I would recommend against it against Hunt. He is very durable and hits very hard. The safe bet is to take Hunt down, which could prove to be challenging, as his takedown defense has gotten better.
For Werdum to emerge victorious, he must bring Hunt to the mat, no easy task considering his burly opponent’s 72.13 takedown defense percentage. Yet the grappling artist can’t afford to test Hunt’s stand-up game, as a battle of strikes bodes poorly for the 37-year-old Brazilian.
Look for Werdum to put Hunt’s redemption saga to rest with a submission, making him the temporary champion until Velasquez is ready to fight for the crown.
Prediction: Werdum via submission
Note: Fight stats courtesy of UFC.com
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