(This story appears in today’s edition of USA TODAY.)

Five years ago, Travis Browne made a decision to commit his life to MMA. That plan didn’t necessarily call for a shot at the UFC’s heavyweight title, but the Hawaiian likely now stands one victory away from that opportunity.

“Five years is not that long ago,” Browne tells USA TODAY Sports and MMAjunkie. “In the beginning, I just tried to find fights. I wasn’t totally set on, ‘Oh, I’m going to fight for the UFC heavyweight championship.’ It was just seeing where this thing goes and hoping it would work out, and if it kept working out to just keep going.”

Browne, a former college basketball player, made rapid progress. He picked up nine victories in 12 months and received a UFC contract. Now 18 fights into his pro career and with only one loss, Browne (16-1-1 MMA, 7-1-1 UFC) meets Fabricio Werdum (17-5-1 MMA, 5-2 UFC) on April 19 in the UFC on FOX 11 main event in Orlando.

The winner is expected to face UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez when he recovers from a recent shoulder surgery.

“The winner will likely get the next shot at Cain Velasquez when he returns later this year,” UFC President Dana White says. “Both of these guys have been on a tear, each riding three-fight winning streaks. Werdum has some of the best submissions in the heavyweight division, and Travis has knocked out his last three opponents in the first round. This is a great fight between two of the sport’s best heavyweights.”

Browne and Werdum bring different skill sets to the cage. The massive Browne has heavy hands and proven stopping power. Werdum is widely considered the best heavyweight grappler.

Browne says he respects his opponent’s strengths but doesn’t believe that dictates his tactics.

“I would say he’s got the best MMA jiu-jitsu in the heavyweight division,” Browne says. “He submitted Fedor Emelianenko. He submitted Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. He’s a monster on the ground. But that being said, this isn’t a jiu-jitsu match. It’s a fight.

“It’s definitely something we want to be careful of, but we’re not going to limit ourselves to only keeping the fight standing.”

Browne, 31, has a string of knockouts against established talent in Josh Barnett, Alistair Overeem and Gabriel Gonzaga. Earlier this month, he was named the “Breakthrough Fighter of the Year” at the 2013 World MMA Awards, and his rally against Overeem was named the “Comeback of the Year.”

He says the reality of his rapid rise is finally setting in.

“I’d have to say after Alistair, it finally clicked, where it was like, ‘I belong here. I have the skills and capability to be the best in the world,'” Browne says. “I have confidence in that. Even after all the knockouts I had, I still kind of doubted myself, like, ‘Maybe I just caught them. Maybe I got lucky.’ But when I got through with Alistair … and came back and knocked him out, I was like, ‘You can’t show any more than that.’

“Every fight, I’m starting to believe more and more in myself. I’ll be looking to fight Cain later on this year.”

For the latest on UFC on FOX 11, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.