Cain Velasquez's next fight will not be going as planned, as the reigning UFC heavyweight champion suffered an injury during training, forcing him to pull out of the bout. Mixed Martial Arts veteran Mark Hunt, however, steps in as his replacement on the main event spot, as he now faces Fabricio Werdum for an interim title fight.
Cain Velasquez's next fight is originally scheduled for UFC 180 on November 15th. But in an unfortunate turn of events, the champion injured his knee during training, hence the changes. In a report by MMA Fighting, Velasquez expressed his utter frustration about what happened through an official statement.
"I'm so unbelievably disappointed that this happened," Velasquez said. "To say I was looking forward to fighting in Mexico for the first time is an understatement. I wanted to fight on that card so bad. Looks like it wasn't meant to be and it's not going to happen."
"I'm going to get my [right] knee fixed and get back to training as soon as I can," he continued. "I'm sorry to the fans in Mexico who were expecting this fight, and I hope to be able to come down and still be a part of this historic event."
Cain Velasquez's next fight opponent Fabricio Werdum will now be facing former PRIDE FC fighter and K-1 Kickboxing champion Mark Hunt for the interim heavyweight title. "Super Samoan", who is coming off a highlight reel knockout victory over top contender Roy Nelson last month, is not wasting any time, given what he considers as a golden opportunity.
"I feel blessed to have this opportunity to fight for another world title," Hunt stated. "This is something that doesn't happen often to people. First K1 and now UFC - how can I say no, even though it's on short notice?"
"I'm dropping everything and flying to Mexico tomorrow so I can best prepare myself for this fight," he added. "I have to get into shape and acclimatize to that environment, which is really important."
