UFC 147: Is Fabricio Werdum a Serious Title Threat at Heavyweight?

UFC 147 wasn't a big hit in many homes, as the fight card was filled with mysterious names that the average fan was unfamiliar with. In addition, the main card saw just one finish, as four of the five bouts made their way to the judges' scorecards for a decision.

The only bout that didn't?

A heavyweight clash between Fabricio Werdum and Mike Russow.

Once again, it was Werdum who proved the critics wrong, as he finished the rising star in Russow via punches at the mid-point of Round 1. An overweight Russow really had no chance heading into this bout, as he was about to take on the man who single-handedly dethroned the world's greatest legend in Fedor Emelianenko.

Since defeating Emelianenko, Werdum has fallen short in competition just one time to current suspended UFC heavyweight, Alistair Overeem.

However, it wasn't until UFC 143 when we recognized that Werdum's career was far from over, as he manhandled an extremely tough Roy Nelson en route to a unanimous decision victory.

Werdum was able to use his vicious clinch and control Nelson via knees and strikes, much like he did against Russow last evening. In addition, if Werdum can submit a world-class martial artist in Emelianenko, there's no telling who he can't submit.

At 34 years of age, Werdum is only getting better. In fact, Werdum has reached the stage of title contention.

Werdum's skill set is a danger for any opponent, including Dos Santos. It's likely Werdum will square off once more before earning the chance at his highly-desired UFC gold. And, when that time comes, watch out.

In my opinion, Werdum is the No. 3 heavyweight in the world right now.

For additional information, follow Garrett Derr on Twitter.