Javier Mendez: No One Can Stop The Pressure Of Cain
Just days away from UFC 188, which is set to go down this Saturday (June 13, 2015) from Mexico City, Mexico, there are many questions surrounding heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez as he finally returns for the first time since October 2013 to meet interim heavyweight champ Fabricio Werdum.
Having dealt with a plethora of injuries over the last year and a half, it’s unknown what Velasquez will look like once he steps into the cage, but his head coach, Javier Mendez, owner of the famed American Kickboxing Academy (AKA), is confident in his star pupil nonetheless.
Appearing on a recent edition of the MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Mendez said that if Velasquez has the desire to win, there is nobody that he can’t beat:
“The thing with Cain, is that he’s very quiet. He doesn’t tell you how he feels, you got to bring it out of him. I’ve had little chats with him about it, telling him, ‘It’s got to burn you up wanting to get back in there.’ And he says, ‘Yeah, it does.’ He is not vocal about it, but it definitely hurts him. He wants to be out there fighting because he loves to compete. He loves to win. So, as long as the desire to compete and win is in him, that guy is going to beat up everybody.”
As far as the champion’s opponent, Mendez originally gave Werdum zero chance to beat Velasquez, but took that back, giving the Brazilian little chance. “Vai Cavalo” most recently competed at UFC 180 where he won the interim belt against Mark Hunt, but Hunt actually had him hurt early on. With no disrespect to the legendary Hunt, Mendez noted Velasquez and Hunt are on two different levels skill wise, and that nobody can stop the relentless pressure of the champion:
“Well, by saying zero chance, it’s not really an actual statement. A true statement is to say he has little chance. The bottom line is, when I reviewed the Mark Hunt fight, Mark Hunt was beating him in the stand up. First round, thrashing him somewhat on the ground. He didn’t submit Mark Hunt. Is Mark Hunt some great jiu-jitsu God? No. So why was Mark Hunt able to do what he was able to do with him? Because Mark Hunt is a tough fighter. And Cain is above that, as far as the grappling area. And the arsenal that Cain has is by far higher than just about anybody in the division. On top of the fact that nobody can deal with the pressure that Cain puts on everybody. Nobody can. Even when I have him go light five rounds, they can’t handle it. The guys, after two rounds, are huffing and puffing like ‘Son of a bitch, get this guy off of me.’ And we’re talking light, we’re not talking all out. So how are you going to deal with that in a real fight? Here is this guy who is going to to continue, that’s his game. And I’ve told him, we are going to continue to pressure until we can find someone that can stop it. Until then, we’re not changing. Right now, there is nobody out there that can stop that pressure.”
When it comes down to it, Mendez may have a point. When healthy, Velasquez has looked dominant. His mix of well-rounded skills, inhumane like cardio, and smothering pace has led many to believe that no one can stop him. However, coming off such a long layoff and facing a new, improved, and dangerous version of Werdum is a definitely no easy task.
Will Velasquez return to his normal form?
