White: Nogueira-Velasquez ‘Makes Sense’

Going by the numbers, Saturday’s heavyweight headliner between Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Cain Velasquez at UFC 110 in Sydney, Australia might not seem like a fair fight. The 27-year-old Velasquez has only seven professional bouts on his docket, which is roughly the number of watershed fights Nogueira’s had in his 38-bout career.

Still, UFC President Dana White was confident in the bout’s timing when he spoke at the event’s pre-fight press conference Thursday in Sydney.

“(Velasquez’s) had a progression to get to this point,” said White. “I think that he’s faced good competition and won handily. I think he looks better every time he fights. I think he’s completely well rounded and one of the top heavyweight in the world, so facing a guy like Nogueira at this point in his career makes sense for him, in my opinion.”

Nogueira, 34, had no qualms with the assignment either. The former Pride and UFC interim champion, who said he is in the best shape of his life, spoke of Velasquez as a “great challenge.”

“I know he pushes the fight very much,” said Nogueira. “Watching his last fights, he pushes a lot. It was a good challenge for me to fight this kind of new talent. He’s very solid…I had to improve my wrestling, my boxing, a lot of things to fight this guy.”

Likewise, Velasquez, who’s ended six of his seven bouts with first- and second-round strikes, said he modified his preparations for the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt.

“I brought in a lot of jiu-jitsu guys, black belts, and just kind of watched film on him, and put myself in really bad positions when I was rolling in my jiu-jitsu and just got really comfortable in there and really know the ins and outs of that style,” he said.

Saturday’s bout at the Acer Arena will have title implications, though if they are immediate will be decided on March 27, when Frank Mir and Shane Carwin meet for the promotion’s interim heavyweight title. With champion Brock Lesnar returning this summer from an intestinal infection that required surgery, White said Saturday’s winner could hop the line if injury prevents Mir or Carwin from advancing first.

The relatively reserved Velasquez said he hasn’t been affected by statements that he might be jumping into the deep end of the pool too soon.

“I know what my job is – that’s to train hard in the gym and get better and go out and win fights,” said Velasquez. “That’s my job, so I don’t listen to what people say.”