Cain Velasquez Vs. Junior Dos Santos: Why You Should Be Excited

Long before Dana White strapped the belt around his waist, Cain Velasquez was on a collision course with Junior Dos Santos. 

Now that the heavyweight title is involved, you've got a no-brainer on your hands. 

With lineups booked through the winter, this fight will likely not happen until spring.  But in an era when pundits pick tomorrow's Super Bowl winners before today's champions hit the line at Space Mountain, it's never too early to start throwing stuff against the wall. 

In that spirit, here are 10 reasons why this matchup should meet -- or even exceed -- the excitement generated by Velasquez and Brock Lesnar's memorable UFC 121 battle Saturday night.

1. Revenge In The Air

Photo credit: Sherdog.com

In February, Velasquez demolished Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 110.  Nogueira trains with Dos Santos. Dos Santos has said he looks up to Big Nog.  Dos Santos was calling out Velasquez (politely, but insistently) as early as March. 

Dos Santos has said it's not about revenge for him, noting that he simply wants to fight top guys and that payback is up to Nogueira.  Still, how would you feel if somebody beat the crap out of your friend and mentor?  I know how I'd feel, and I bet that people who break other people for a living might be similarly inclined.

2. A Fledgling Rivalry?

At 28 and 26, respectively, Velasquez and Dos Santos are entering their prime fighting years, and at this point, neither would seem to be a flash in the pan.

Thus, these two may be set to write the first chapter in an epic series that could bring unprecedented (read: sustained) excitement to the heavyweight division.

3. A Matter Of Styles

Both men are not only young, but they have big toolboxes.  Furthermore, their respective skill sets would seem to complement each other well.

Both men are good strikers, but Junior Dos Santos probably has the edge in that department. Note I said "probably," as Velasquez has shown he is no slouch here.  Just ask Lesnar or Nogueira.

Both men are good grapplers, but Velasquez probably has the edge in that department. Note I said "probably," as Dos Santos has been working for years with Nogueira and other jiu-jitsu masters, and is already working with wrestling guru Phil Davis and others to improve his mat game.  To this point, he's shown little in the way of ground skills during fights, but what he has shown has been solid. Just because he hasn't needed or wanted to go to the ground doesn't mean he can't do it.

Simply put, both have areas of weakness that can be exploited by the strengths of the other, but those weaknesses are not so glaring that exploitation will not come without a major display of effort and skill.

4. They're Going To Hit Each Other A Lot

If you're a fan of inside leg kicks, you may deserve an advance apology for slogging through Velasquez-Dos Santos.

Everyone else, buckle your seatbelts.

Though they are both well-rounded fighters, neither of these men will shy away from planting the feet and throwing leather.

Lesnar can punch through the grill of a Mack truck, and Shane Carwin can palm watermelons, but Dos Santos's razor-sharp technique is widely recognized as the best in the heavyweight division, and with apologies to Roberto Duran, Velasquez has hands of stone. (His strikes registered 1,000 pounds more pressure than knockout artist James Toney in a recent edition of ESPN's "Sports Science.")

There is also the matter of chins.  Roy Nelson showed that you can get to Dos Santos, though Junior still won the fight convincingly.  Velasquez showed against Cheick Kongo that his head is as hard as his hands, though he has never faced a striker quite so nasty as El Cigano.

Something's got to give.

5. No Novelties

Photo credit: Mancouch

No former professional wrestlers.  No one-trick ponies or one-hit wonders.  No grousing about how so-and-so hasn't yet proven his mettle in the fight game.

These guys have paid their dues.  They're the real deal, and the fight will be the same.  Just stone on stone and bone on bone--may the best man win. 

6. The Latino Connection

Photo credit: Exec Digital

It may not be palatable for many -- and understandably so -- but it is too evident to be ignored. 

The UFC fell all over itself marketing Velasquez to Mexican audiences.  Given that MMA has never fully taken off in Mexico, despite that country's long-established fondness for combat sports, that marketing effort will go full bore now that Cain has the strap.  

Mixed martial arts is firmly entrenched in Dos Santos' home nation of Brazil, but having two fighters of Latino origin going after one of the sport's most visible prizes can only help stoke excitement in different parts of the world.

7. No Fear

Photo credit: The Canadian Press

Remember in "Silence of the Lambs," when a legend circulates about an incident in which Hannibal Lecter horribly brutalized a nurse in his psych ward, but his pulse never rose above 85 beats per minute? 

That describes both Velasquez and Dos Santos. 

Both have demeanors so mild that you might not guess at the fury they are each capable of if you hadn't seen it with your own eyes.

To draw another somewhat fatalistic analogy (it is almost Halloween, after all), Velasquez standing squarely in front of Lesnar Saturday night reminded me a little of the student who resolutely parked himself in front of a tank during the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. (Not that I'm comparing the events themselves.)  Velasquez stood up to the bully, traded fists and shook off takedowns. To my mind, it was that display of poise and courage, and not exhaustion, that pulled the first thread in the champ's unraveling.

Dos Santos, too, remains placid in the storm, having calmly dispatched decorated veterans like Mirko Cro Cop, Garbriel Gonzaga, Fabrico Werdum, and Nelson with those aw-shucks dimples and murderous uppercuts.

8. They Come To Do Damage

Whether it's Cro Cop and his torn eyelid or Lesnar and his unpluggable gash, no opponent (that I can remember) has escaped these guys without looking like they were just hit by a garbage truck.

They don't just want to beat people.  They want to break people. 

9. They Both Want To Be Champions

Photo credit: MMABay

I suppose you could say this of any fighter, but these guys seem to mean it.

Both train with the elite of the elite -- Velasquez alongside Jon Fitch, Josh Koschek and others at American Kickboxing Academy and Dos Santos with the likes of Anderson Silva and Lyoto Machida at Blackhouse.  Both seem mindful of their public personas. Both have repeatedly expressed their desire to be all-time greats.  It's not about money, fame, or the fueling of the ego.  It's about winning as many big fights as possible.

This is a big fight.

All the more reason why this could be a long-running rivalry in the Bird-Magic mold.

10. No Brock Lesnar

Photo credit: MMABay

You may have seen an article or two on Brock Lesnar in the media lately. 

I don't know about you, but I learned a lot -- for instance, did you know he used to be a professional wrestler?  I also hear tell that he trains in the woods.  Fighters do the darnedest things!

Don't count me among those who are suddenly down on the ex-champ.  He'll get better, and he'll be back.  But as charismatic as Brock is with a microphone in front of him, I can't say I'm going to miss him when the next heavyweight title fight comes around.  It's just going to be two boring guys quietly reciting cliches, then stepping into the cage for half an hour of bloody mayhem.  And not just any bloody mayhem; bloody mayhem in its highest possible expression.

And for that, I am truly pumped.