Travis Browne vs. Fabricio Werdum official for UFC on FOX 11 main event
NEW YORK – It was probably the main event, then maybe not. But now it’s official.
A heavyweight bout between Travis Browne (15-1-1 MMA, 6-1-1 UFC) and Fabricio Werdum (17-5-1 MMA, 5-2 UFC) will headline UFC on FOX 11. UFC President Dana White announced the news following a media event at Madison Square Garden in New York for Saturday’s UFC 169 event, which takes place in nearby Newark, N.J.
After announcing the fight, White told MMAjunkie the bout might not wind up being the main event – if the UFC could get a title fight booked to headline the card. But with that apparently not happening, the Browne-Werdum bout takes the top spot.
UFC on FOX 11, the second UFC on FOX event of 2014, is set for April 19 at Amway Center in Orlando. The event’s main card airs on FOX following prelims on FOX Sports 1 and UFC Fight Pass.
The winner between Browne and Werdum is expected to be the next challenger for Cain Velasquez’s UFC heavyweight title.
Browne was recently voted MMAjunkie’s Breakthrough Fighter of the Year after going 3-0 in 2013 and winning three “Knockout of the Night†bonuses. At UFC 168 this past month, he stopped former champ Josh Barnett in the first round. The 31-year-old Hawaiian’s only career loss came to Antonio Silva in 2012, though he tore his hamstring early in the fight.
Werdum also is on a three-fight winning streak, and he’s won six out of his past seven. That stretch included a solid run for Strikeforce before returning to the UFC. The 36-year-old Brazilian hasn’t fought since June 2013, when tapped out Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC on FUEL TV 10.
UFC on FOX 11 also will include a bout between the first two UFC women’s bantamweight title challengers as Miesha Tate (13-5 MMA, 0-2 UFC) meets Liz Carmouche (9-4 MMA, 1-2 UFC).
