Vera Prepares for His Biggest Challenge -- Literally

It's not often that a guy who is 6 feet 2 and 226 pounds feels small. But when heavyweight Brandon Vera steps into a cage and looks across at 6-8, 261-pound Tim Sylvia, that's how Vera expects to feel.

"Man, we call those big problems," Vera said. "We call those six-foot-eight problems."

Yet the Norfolk native, who has trained some in Camp Springs, has brushed off suggestions that he should move down a class. His fight against Sylvia tonight in Ultimate Fighting Championship 77 at US Bank Arena in Cincinnati will be his chance to prove he can handle anyone the cage.

"I'm the smallest heavyweight in the division," Vera said. "Tim's definitely the biggest heavyweight in the division. It's going to be an interesting fight, man."

Making the bout even more intriguing is the new opening at the top of the heavyweight class. Current champion Randy Couture abruptly resigned from the UFC last week. According to Couture's official Web site, "it was a matter of respect and Randy felt the need to move on." With Couture's departure, the winner of tonight's heavyweight bout would likely compete with Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira for the belt.

Vera, who UFC President Dana White recently called a "rising star" is returning to the cage following a rift between he, his management and the UFC, which kept the 30-year-old out of competition for nearly a year. His last bout was last November in UFC 65, when he beat Frank Mir by technical knockout.

"Being away so long sucked," Vera said. "I didn't like it. But I've been training the whole time. It's not like I pulled a retirement for a year and hung out and kicked it."

In addition to his daily routine of training with his wife, Kerry, one of the kickboxers on the second season of Oxygen's "Fight Girls," Vera traveled to Thailand and the Philippines to train. His manager even brought in some 6-8 training partners for Vera to get used to.

"I'm glad my coach is into all that," Vera said. "because my heart and my head would've been like, 'No we'll just use our regular sparring partners.' "

-- Ryan Mink