UFC
Mark Hunt eying September UFC return in Japan against Roy Nelson
May 16, 2014 - 12:10:41 PM Mark Hunt eying September UFC return in Japan against Roy Nelson

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Mark Hunt's healed up after suffering a broken hand in December, but he's not ready to fight next month in his home country of New Zealand. Instead, he's targeting a fight in Japan this September against Roy Nelson.

The UFC wanted him to fight Brendan Schaub on the UFC Fight Night card in New Zealand on June 28, but while he would have enjoyed fighting in his home country, he's more intrigued by the bout with Nelson.

"It was not good timing," Hunt said this week in an interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour. "I just had a baby and I wasn't even training. It was not a good time and my hand wasn't cleared. I said no. I had no option. I don't want to lose anymore. I want to get a title shot, so there's no point in doing that. It was bad timing, that's all.

"I'm a bit disappointed I couldn't compete there, but there's always next time. It's great that it's going back down to New Zealand, of course, but there's always next time... I'm happy that's not the fight that's happening. No disrespect to Brendan, but I want to fight some of the top guys, I mean in the top 10. Fighting Schaub would probably be going backwards, so it is what it is."

"I have said yes to that match [with Roy Nelson]," Hunt continued. "I'd love to fight in Japan against Roy. He's one of the top fighters in the world and we can battle it out somewhere down there. It'll be great. I feel Roy's a lot better opponent than Brendan Schaub is. He's a better fighter and I want to fight the better guys. I love [the idea of fighting in Japan]. I love fighting in Japan. I fought there 70 times. It's like my second house."

Hunt is excited about fighting Nelson, as he was highly impressed with Nelson's knock out of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira last month, and is really looking forward to seeing which one of them can withstand the other's power.

"That was amazing," Hunt said of the KO. "He's got a bomb in that hand, Dan Henderson power. It's crazy. The question is: can he withstand [my power]? Honestly, the thing is we're both heavyweights, anything could happen to anyone. It's lights out. It's who lands it, who gets you."

Penick's Analysis: Hunt-Nelson as a Fight Pass headliner in Japan? That could be real solid. It's a highly intriguing heavyweight fight from an entertainment standpoint, because it's almost assuredly going to end with someone knocked out. They both have ridiculous power, and though Nelson's never been KOd before, Hunt absolutely has the ability to be the first to accomplish that. Hunt can also be knocked out, so if Nelson can connect first he can pick up a big win for his second straight. Either way, they're likely to go toe to toe for however long it lasts, and it will be a ton of fun to watch.