Roundtables
ROUNDTABLE: If Cain Velasquez defeats "Bigfoot" Silva at UFC 146, should he be the No. 1 contender?
May 25, 2012 - 5:00:03 PM ROUNDTABLE: If Cain Velasquez defeats "Bigfoot" Silva at UFC 146, should he be the No. 1 contender?

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Should Cain Velasquez be the No. 1 contender if he defeats Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva on Saturday, or is there another fighter who may have a better claim to the shot?

RICH HANSEN, MMATORCH COLUMNIST

Yes. I would have liked to see a healthy Cain Velasquez replace Alistair Overeem, but I never had a problem with Mir getting the slot, either. Ok, I would have preferred Overeem not shoot up, but that's another discussion for another day. Back to the main point. Velasquez is the next guy in line, and there's really no debating that point. I said a couple days ago that I rank Cormier ahead of Cain (by the slimmest of margins), but he's in Strikeforce, and Cormier's nowhere near a big enough draw to warrant an immediate title shot in his UFC debut (nor are Luke Rockhold, Tim Kennedy, Feijao, Gegard Mousasi, Tyron Woodley, or Nate Marquardt in case you're asking. Nick Diaz and Alistair were big enough names, but after both of those immediate title shots blew up in, ahem, smoke, it's going to be a long damn time before a Strikeforce fighter comes into the UFC with a title shot debut). 

If Cain loses to Bigfoot, that tells me two things. 1.) There is no God and the universe is in fact completely random (although I already have my suspicions, don't tell my priest) and 2.) Cain's not the phenom we all believe he is (which also tells me there is no God, because then we all need to bow down to Jason Amadi, and we can't have that).


FRANK HYDEN, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR

I think Daniel Cormier has a better claim to the belt than Velasquez does. Even if Velasquez beats Silva, he would be only one fight removed from getting beat down by Junior dos Santos. I would be much more interested in a fresh matchup. I wouldn't complain too much if Velasquez gets the next title shot, though, because the division is pretty weak and no one else in the UFC has a better claim than Velasquez.


ANWAR PEREZ, MMATORCH COLUMNIST

I wouldn't argue that Cain Velasquez shouldn't be the number one contender, but now with Daniel Cormier coming into the UFC, a fight between the two would make for a compelling number one contender. The timing may be terrible as some waiting would be involved, but I would say if Velasquez comes out unscathed, and so does the winner of the title fight, then a fight for the title around October sounds good.


ERIC HOBAUGH, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR

I think that if Cain Velasquez wins against Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva then he is the number one contender. No other fighter can make that claim, except for Alistair Overeem. Velasquez’s first fight with Junior dos Santos was extremely short and he had maybe the worst game plan ever. If he gets another shot at dos Santos he will use his superior grappling and have a much better chance to win. A rematch for Valasquez and dos Santos will sell very well and I think it is the next heavyweight title fight we will see.


CHRIS PARK, MMATORCH UK SPECIALIST

If (well we already know it's not an if) it is not Daniel Cormier then I am more than happy to see Velasquez get the nod. Something wasn't right in that first fight and if JDS is still champion come Sunday morning, then I'd be glad to see that rematch.

With that said I would also be happy to see Velasquez take on Mir - should he capture the belt. After all it was Velasquez left without a dance partner when Mir was bumped up the card, so reschedule that one, just with much higher stakes. @MMATorchUK


BRAD WALKER, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR

Unless Overeem shows up with a clean urine sample every single day for the next nine months, Cain absolutely should be the #1 contender if he topples Bigfoot. If he doesn't however, Fabricio Werdum will be looking quite good as the next logical choice.



ALEX WILLIAMS, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR

Cain Velasquez should be the number one contender if he defeats "Bigfoot" Silva. No one else has a better claim.


DAN MOORE, MMATORCH UK CONTRIBUTOR

Had the circumstances been different, most of us would have happily accepted Daniel Cormier as the next opponent for JDS or Mir. With Lesnar back wrestling grown men in underpants, Cormier and Carwin both being injured, that leaves only Fabricio Werdum as an alternative championship contender along with the winner of Velasquez vs. Silva. Seeing as JDS has already beaten Carwin, Velasquez and Werdum that doesn't leave the UFC with a lot of options right now. Of those three, Velasquez, providing he wins on Saturday night, is probably the most deserving of a rematch. I really do hope it was just injuries, that affected his performance last November, because I truly believe Velasquez will be a UFC champion again.


JASON AMADI, MMATORCH COLUMNIST
 
The UFC's heavyweight division is without question better than it's ever been, but a lot of that is due to the UFC absorbing a lot of Strikeforce's talent. Unfortunately though, the final Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem is currently unlicensed and the winner of the Strikeforce Heavyweight World Grand Prix is still contractually obligated to Showtime for one last Strikeforce appearance.
 
With those two off the table, the UFC is unable to make any of the big money heavyweight fights people want to see right now. Cain Velasquez vs. Junior dos Santos had tons of buzz last year due to the style matchup and the quick nature of their fight on Fox kind of preserved some of that. The Mir-Velasquez matchup also intrigued people when it was announced, so really if Cain gets any sort of win over "Bigfoot" Silva this Saturday, he's probably looking at a title opportunity.