From the way these two talk, they definitely feel like they are standing in a room alone with their opponent, as opposed to the upper echelon of the UFC heavyweight division, and rightfully so.
All the heavyweights in the modern era have suffered brutal losses to Cain Velasquez or Junior Dos Santos over the past few years. When people talk about these two fighting for the third time, the subject of them fighting four or even five times is not uncommon to hear voiced in the same breath as well.
Whether JDS takes his belt back or Velasquez holds on to it after their UFC 166 trilogy wrap up, it’s difficult seeing any of the men in their division doing anything other than getting trounced by either of them.
The most recent UFC Primetime special featured a strong focus on the psyche of these men and their perspective on their first two matches together, and predictions on the upcoming rubber match.
It’s interesting watching both heavyweight monsters watch their previous two fights. In one hand, they have to watch themselves lose, and in the other, they get to see themselves win against the same man. Considering JDS was beat up for 25 minutes while Cain only suffered for 64 seconds the first time, JDS’s frustrations are palpable while he watches Joe Rogan compliment Cain throughout the 5 round beating he put on the Brazilian in their second match.
“During the fight they are saying so much crap,” says JDS in the UFC primetime special while watching his second fight to Rogan and Jon Anik as they rave about Cain’s ability to shut him down. “In the first fight I didn’t fight the real Cain Velasquez, no I fought the real Cain Velasquez. The thing was after one minute, he was on the ground taking punches in the face. I don’t think Cain Velasquez is able to do what he did last time. He got the belt right now but I really think I am the number one. I believe I’m the better fighter, cause I finish fights, and I’m gonna finish him again.”
That one minute was only the first of 26 in Cain’s mind. He of course looks at their second tilt at UFC 155 last December as the one that holds all the weight going in to their third bout.
“The first JDS fight I didn’t do the game plan,” said Cain Velasquez. “I waited around too long on the outside. I remember going down and I was like, ‘man I can you know recover from here.’ But you have to be ready right away. You don’t get a second chance out there you know. I didn’t do what I was supposed to do, and that was it. It sucked losing the belt you know. Not being champion anymore. I just took the positive from it. Ok next time I can’t wait around.”
Where Velasquez looks at the chronological history of their fights and believes the second match up was simply an evolution past JDS’s ability to simply knock him out, the number one contender doesn’t appreciate this perspective. “Cain Velasquez gave his best to finish the fight and couldn’t and I finished him in one minute,” said JDS.
He even believes that though he lost to Cain, he won the moral battle of not allowing his opponent to put him away. This is something he has against the current champ. “This is the fight that I want. Cain Velasquez hit me for five rounds and couldn’t knock me out. He hits like a girl. I’m coming for this fight to win and I’m going to prove this on October 19th,” said JDS.
Cain is simply putting everything aside and focusing on what he believes creates the winning formula, regardless of who stands across from him in the cage, or what they believe they are capable of from past exploits. “I went right away forward and took the fight to him and that’s just my style of fighting,” said Cain. “Going forward, a lot of pressure, that’s when I do my best. I’m going out there to win at all costs… I lost it before. I know what it feels like. I don’t want to go back there.”
JDS leaves us with this last bit of logic before he attempts at rewriting history in the UFC’s badest division. “I take very serious my fights, and I train hard. This fight against Cain Velasquez, that’s the fight that I want. I’m going to go there just to prove him, you know, who got lucky. I got lucky in the first fight or he got lucky because I was over training in the second one. I’m gonna do everything to get my arm raised in the end of the fight.”
During the Primetime special, both JDS and Cain work hard on their wrestling and striking, since they clearly know that this one will be determined by who winds up being more well-rounded competitor on that night. Cain will take JDS down and grind him up if he can since it worked before and JDS will out box Cain if given the opportunity, since it also has worked for him before.
Both men have lost to the other’s game plan, and won with the same tools that got them here in the first place. Whoever wins on October 19th at UFC 166, he will transcend to a dominant 2-1 lead over his opponent. This is for all the marbles in the heavyweight division, not a points battle, but a truly violent affair.