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This Sunday will feature a battle of titans as the UFC brings us UFC 166: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos 3 from the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, the third match between Cain Velasquez and Junior Dos Santos for the UFC heavyweight championship. Follow The Roar from 1.00pm AEDT for live updates.
Background
Velasquez and Dos Santos first met in 2011 on the main event of the UFC’s FOX debut, UFC on FOX: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos.
Velasquez had wrested the UFC heavyweight title from Brock Lesnar a year prior, while Dos Santos earned his title shot with wins over Roy Nelson and Shane Carwin. Both combatants entered the fight undefeated.
Dos Santos made short work of Velasquez in that first fight, needing only 64 seconds to knock out the champion and win the title.
Dos Santos went on to defend the title once against Frank Mir via a second-round TKO at UFC 146.
In the co-main event of that card, Velasquez defeated Antonio ‘Bigfoot’ Silva via TKO in Round 1.
The pair squared off once again at UFC 155 on December 29, 2012.
This time around Velasquez dominated the fight from bell to bell, battering Dos Santos en route to a unanimous decision victory.
It was revealed after the fight that Dos Santos had over-trained and as a result suffered from rhabdomyolysis, a condition where broken down muscle tissues are released into the blood stream which can lead to kidney failure.
Since their rematch, the two have once again each earned a victory on the same card.
Velasquez had a rematch with Silva that played out much like their first fight and Dos Santos scored a spectacular knockout over Mark Hunt, both at UFC 160.
This Sunday, both fighters and the fans will find out who will emerge victorious in this epic heavyweight trilogy.
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