The much awaited rematch between Fabricio Werdum and Cain Velasquez may have to wait after UFC president Dana White announced that the said tiff originally scheduled for December will be moved to March of 2016.
The sudden announcement came last Saturday after Andre Arlovski's match with Frank Mir. Apparently, White was asked on the possibility of seeing Arlovski get a title shot. Arlovski is coming off a unanimous decision win over Mir at UFC 191 over the weekend.
"Unfortunately, this heavyweight division is tied up right now," he said. "We'll see how this thing plays out and go from there," says White via Fox Sports.
With the move of the anticipated fight, other heavyweights could be stepping in on non-title matches.
The delay for the much awaited rematch comes as a disappointment since there were a lot of anxious UFC fans eager to see if Velasquez could return from a surprising loss to Werdum.
To recall, the setting of the fight at the Mexico City Arena was seen as a key factor for both fighters. Werdum had been in the area training for 34 days while Velasquez came in only two weeks prior to fight night.
The altitude apparently took its toll on Velasquez who eventually lost by submission to Werdum in the third round.
The delay could work well for both fighters, giving both ample time to heal their injuries and be better prepared.
Of the two, it was Velasquez who has been known to be injury-prone, so the surprise bit about Werdum requesting for a change in date is a first.
Despite his previous loss, Velasquez is heading into the rematch as a favorite over the reigning champion. Velasquez was a four-to-one favorite prior to the first match in June, despite the fact that the American mixed martial artist has been out of action for about 602 days.
