Fabricio Werdum believes he’ll secure first round finish in potential rematch with Fedor Emelianenko

MMA veteran Fabricio Werdum is confident that he’ll beat Fedor Emelianenko in the first round if they do have a rematch.

Even at the age of 43, there’s a whole lot of intrigue surrounding Werdum and what the future may hold for him. The Brazilian sensation is coming off the back of a huge submission victory over Alexander Gustafsson, and while he may be leaving the UFC, that doesn’t mean his future isn’t going to contain some exciting match-ups.

During a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Werdum made it clear that he’s interested in trying to beat Fedor for a second time – over a decade on from their first meeting.

“I respected Fedor for a long time,” Werdum said. “I never said bad things about him, never in my life. I respect him a lot. But I believe the rematch with him, it’s history for the sport. When I beat him in 2010, I shocked the world, and maybe I shock the world again.

“I believe I finish him in the first round again. I’ll finish him quickly again, cause I’m very confident. When I have the training and my mind is OK, I go in there and this is my life. I love fighting. I love to fight every time. Respect first, but I believe I beat him in the first round again.”

Quotes courtesy of MMA Fighting

Another man that Werdum fancies his chances against, interestingly enough, is UFC light heavyweight king Jon Jones.

“You know he’s a big guy, and Jon Jones should have zero problems to go to the heavyweight division,” Werdum said. “For sure not. Because he’s a heavyweight for a long-time. He’s a heavyweight. For sure, it’s not happening now, but maybe, I love the idea, one day against Jon Jones. And it’s not like I prep for him, I’m just confident. 100 percent I finish Jon Jones. I finish Jon Jones too. 100 percent. I’m confident, that’s it. I’m training. Good training, my mind’s okay. I finish him and anyone. 100 percent I believe that.”

Werdum has always been viewed as something of a controversial presence in the heavyweight division, but when you look through his body of work over the years, there’s no way of denying that he is one of the greatest to ever compete in that weight class in mixed martial arts.