A Wrestling Fan's Guide To UFC 180 And Bellator 131

With the UFC ravaged by injuries, UFC 180 hopes to be a turning point for the company. Although Heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez was injured and removed from the promotion's important debut in Mexico, the card still holds major implications as Mark Hunt stepped in to replace him and will now contend for the interim UFC Heavyweight championship.

Hunt is one of the most unique stories in MMA. An overweight kickboxer, the New Zealand native "Super Samoan" was an overnight success in Japan's PRIDE FC after he defeated legends Mirko Cro Cop and Wanderlei Silva back-to-back on his way to five consecutive victories. Shortly after his string of wins his ground game was exposed, and Hunt would lose six straight fights, with five of those being due to variations of the double wristlock (kimura, americana).

In 2009, the UFC made an effort to buy Mark Hunt out of his contract and simply grant him his release. Hunt, who is now 40, declined the lucrative offer and instead opted to fight in the UFC. After a small sputter Hunt has turned into one of MMA's biggest cinderella stories, having lost just once in his past seven fights.

Across the cage from Hunt stands Brazilian Fabricio Werdum, known as the first man to topple the iconic Fedor Emelianenko. Werdum has lost once in his past 8 fights, and was previously exposed by power punchers Alistair Overeem and Junior dos Santos before significantly improving his standup game.

Hunt has the ability to knock any man on the planet out with one punch, but Fabricio Werdum has the ability to submit any UFC fighter from a bevy of positions. Despite Hunt's formerly weak ground game, he's also developed excellent takedown defense, just as Werdum has grown in the striking department.