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Fabricio Werdum confounds Cain Velasquez to win heavyweight title at UFC 188

Swollen-shut eye doesn’t keep Eddie Alvarez from victory over Gilbert Melendez

Sat, Jun 13, 2015 (10:46 p.m.)

A parched and wounded Cain Velasquez desperately grasped at a water bottle after the second round of his heavyweight championship unification bout with Fabricio Werdum Saturday night.

When Velasquez went to pour a sip in his mouth, he missed. Water splashed down his torso and left his mouth dry.

Velasquez failed to find his usual precision all night at UFC 188 in Mexico City where he couldn’t overcome a two-year layoff and a Werdum onslaught. The 37-year-old Werdum, as high as a 5-to-1 underdog, shocked Velasquez with a submission victory at 2:13 of the third round.

“My dream here was to fight and win in front of everyone,” said Velasquez, whose parents are Mexican emigrants. “I didn’t do that tonight, so I’m sorry. It’s more motivation for me to keep getting better, come back and win that belt again.”

Werdum, in his second tenure with the UFC, turned his interim belt into the lineal championship. His victory kept a streak of no heavyweight champion ever defending the belt more than twice intact.

The finishing sequence came when Velasquez powered forward for a takedown. Werdum, a world-champion in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, wrapped his arms around Velasquez’s neck before even hitting the mat and forced a tapout within seconds.

“I knew he was going to go for a takedown on my legs,” the Brazilian Werdum said on the pay-per-view postfight interview. “I just waited for the moment.”

Velasquez battered Werdum with punches, and successfully took him down in the first round. But Werdum had his moments too, leaving Velasquez with a busted right eye.

Werdum teed off in the second, nearly finishing Velasquez with several significant strikes.

“I had a good strategy,” Werdum said. “I just had a dream. I got it today.”

Werdum’s coronation completed a remarkable recovery. Fans perceived him as little more than a journeyman five years ago before he shocked all-time great Fedor Emelianenko with a first-round submission in a Strikeforce fight.

The heart he showed in his comeback over the long-term was similar to the grit displayed by Eddie Alvarez in Saturday’s co-main event. The former Bellator lightweight champion upset former Strikeforce champion Gilbert Melendez with a split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29) in a bout years in the making.

Melendez dominated the first round, leaving Alvarez’s right eye swollen shut after an elbow. But Alvarez never panicked, and converted takedowns in the second and third rounds to persevere.

“At the end of the first round when I got a takedown, I felt like man he’s not strong here,” Alvarez said. “It’s a big part of MMA, checking a guy’s whole arsenal….I just found that chink late in the first and had to go after it because of my eye.”

The best were saved for last at UFC 188, as the crowd became restless during a mediocre start to the main card. Tecia Torres defeated Angela Hill by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) in forgettable women’s strawweight action at the open of the pay-per-view.

Mexican native Yair Rodriguez nudged past Charles Rosa via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29) in the next fight. A middleweight contest between Kelvin Gastelum and Nate Marquardt was wholly uncompetitive, as the latter’s corner stopped the fight at the end of the second round. Gastelum officially won a second-round TKO after bashing Marquardt with punches for 10 straight minutes.

That set the stage for the headlining bouts, where a pair of underdogs overcame all odds and hardships in their way.

“That’s what it’s all about — fighting through something like this,” Alvarez said.

Find full results from the preliminary card below.

• Henry Cejudo edged Chico Camus via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) in a flyweight bout that many felt was closer than the scores indicated.

• Efrain Escudero submitted Drew Dober with a standing guillotine choke 54 seconds into the first round of their lightweight fight.

• Patrick Williams finished Alejandro Perez 23 seconds into their featherweight bout, pulling off a rapid standing guillotine choke.

• Johnny Case blew out Francisco Trevino, winning every round on all three judges’ scorecards for a unanimous-decision win in a lightweight bout.

• Cathal Pendred upset Augosto Montano with a unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) in a welterweight bout.

• Gabriel Benitez defeated Clay Collard by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) in a featherweight bout.

Case Keefer can be reached at 702-948-2790 or [email protected]. Follow Case on Twitter at twitter.com/casekeefer.

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