It sounds like
Fabricio Werdum's inactivity isn't sitting well with the UFC.
According to Ariel Helwani's report Wednesday night on FOX Sports Live, UFC president
Dana White would like to see the heavyweight No. 1 contender pressed into action sooner than later. With UFC heavyweight champion
Cain Velasquez said to be shelved for much of 2014 after undergoing shoulder surgery Tuesday, UFC brass would like Werdum paired with the winner of
Josh Barnett vs. Travis Browne later this month at
UFC 168.
Barnett returns after a vicious first-round stoppage over
Frank Mir at
UFC 164 in August, while Browne scored an equally brutal KO over former
K-1 grand prix champion
Alistair Overeem the same month at
UFC Fight Night 26. Werdum hasn't competed since early June where he submitted Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira at
UFC on FUEL TV 10, avenging an earlier loss from a 2006 bout in PRIDE.
Oddly enough, former heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos believes he could be next for either Browne or Barnett, saying earlier this week he believed that fight
would make the most sense for the division. "I don't know what's next for me, and I don't choose opponents," dos Santos said. "I'll be ready for anyone, but I believe my next opponent can be either
Josh Barnett or Travis Bowne."