In 2011, the UFC kicked off their historic partnership with Fox with a heavyweight title fight between Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos.
Cain Velasquez was rapidly becoming one of the greatest heavyweight fighters ever and after a streak of six extremely impressive wins in a row, he was given a title shot against then-champion, Brock Lesnar.
Despite Velasquez’s nervousness of Lesnar’s sheer size, he went on to score a massive upset win over the UFC star, becoming the heavyweight champion.
Rapidly becoming one of the UFC’s biggest stars, Velasquez was then scheduled to make his first title defense against Junior dos Santos.
Junior dos Santos scored huge upset win to kick off UFC’s new partnership
Not only was this a huge fight because of the skill of both heavyweights, but it was the first fight to kick off the UFC’s new broadcast partnership with Fox.
The promotion’s new deal with Fox was hugely significant because it allowed the UFC to reach Fox’s mainstream viewership, resulting in a massive growth in the sport.
The UFC on Fox main event resulted in the most-watched live hour ever for MMA in the United States and averaged 5.7 million viewers. The ratings went on to peak at 8.8 million viewers in the United States.
Early into the fight, dos Santos showcased a lot of confidence in his boxing, whereas Velasquez was mixing up his attacks with leg kicks.
And then just 64 seconds into the first round, the Brazilian landed a huge overhand right on the temple of the champion, sinking him to the ground. The challenger then rushed in to land some hellacious ground-and-pound, connecting with several left and right hands, putting Velasquez to sleep.
The result came as a huge surprise to UFC commentator, Joe Rogan, who continuously screamed ‘Unbelievable’ as dos Santos ran around the cage celebrating his feat.
“That’s what we talked about, the timing. The timing and the power of Junior dos Santos,” Rogan said during the broadcast.
This kicked off a historic trilogy between dos Santos and Velasquez
After handing Velasquez his first ever loss, dos Santos went on to defend his title against Frank Mir with another dominant performance.
And then at UFC 155, dos Santos and the Mexican were booked for a rematch and Velasquez went on to exact revenge over the Brazilian, scoring a unanimous decision win.
dos Santos then worked his way back into title contention with a spectacular win over Mark Hunt, earning a trilogy fight against Velasquez at UFC 166.
Despite that, the third fight played out similarly to their second and Velasquez went on to score a third round knockout, putting a stamp on their historic rivalry.