UFC 131 Results Video: Cain Velasquez Could Be Back in October or November

Nick Caron

Jun 12, 2011

At UFC 131, the UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez finally found out who he will be fighting when he gets back in the cage after his surgery rehab. It will be Junior “Cigano” dos Santos, who defeated Shane Carwin in tonight’s main event.

Velasquez was in attendance and participated in a short interview with MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani where he spoke about what he saw in the first challenger for his title.

“He’s really good with his standup, he’s hard to take down, he has really good movement,” Velasquez said. “His whole standup, his boxing, is one of the best in the whole division, so I’m excited.”

Though he was impressed by dos Santos, he also had some kind words about the man who fell short in the bout, former interim champion Shane Carwin.

“I think [Carwin] needed to shoot a little more, but he’s a tough guy,” Velasquez critiqued. “He’s much improved from what we saw with Brock. He’s conditioning was up a little bit. He looked good out there, he’s a tough guy.”

With the roll that dos Santos is on, though, oddsmakers have already begun putting Velasquez as an underdog in the future fight between the two men. That won’t bother the champion, though, as he seems to have found some holes in Cigano’s game plan. He explained the type of fighter who he believes can cause dos Santos some problems.

“Someone who will keep him down longer and just throw a lot more punches and kicks, rather than just punches. I think we need to see that with him.”

Earlier in the week, UFC President Dana White revealed that Velasquez’s rehab was going a little slower than they had expected, but the champion doesn’t really feel like it’s quite that bad.

“I’m feeling really good,” he said. “They’re saying maybe October, November; so I’m looking to do that.”

“It all depends on how fast I can get back. I want to get back as soon as possible.”