Dos Santos: Werdum didn't fight 'the same Velasquez I fought'

When Junior dos Santos watched Fabricio Werdum run roughshod over Cain Velasquez at UFC 188 in June, he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

In three bouts of his own against Velasquez, dos Santos holds a 1-2 record, scoring a quick knockout victory in their first encounter, before being thoroughly and violently taken to the woodshed in the rematch and the subsequent rubber match.

Dos Santos has some history with Werdum as well. Making his Octagon debut at UFC 90, "Cigano" shocked the heavily favored Werdum, needing a mere 1:21 to completely dismantle "Vai Cavalo" with punches.

During a recent fan Q-and-A, dos Santos expressed surprise at how easily Werdum demolished Velasquez in June.

"Man, I think Werdum did well in their last fight but in my opinion he didn't fight the same guy I fought, the same Velasquez I fought," dos Santos said, according to MMAFighting.com's David St. Martin.

Typically a cardio beast, Velasquez seemed to gas almost immediately in the high elevation of Mexico City, while Werdum, who held a six-week training in Mexico, seemed far more acclimated to the thinning air south of the border.

"Velasquez got exhausted in the first round," Dos Santos said. "That was completely a big surprise for me. He was exhausted in the first round! That's unbelievable for somebody like him who fought 10 rounds with me, very hard. In the fifth round, the last round he was jumping like a kid so yeah, that was strange."

Although dos Santos expects a well-conditioned Velasquez to triumph over Werdum in the rematch, it's likely in his best interest for Werdum to hold onto the belt. It's far more likely he earns a second bout with Werdum than a fourth one with Velasquez. Of course, none of this matters if he can't beat Alistair Overeem at UFC on FOX 17.

"Maybe Werdum is next," Dos Santos said. "I don't know. If he keeps the belt and I win my fight, it can happen."