LOS ANGELES -- Josh Barnett didn't have much time to process the ever-changing UFC heavyweight title picture Monday. Champion Fabricio Werdum pulled out of the UFC 196 main event and seconds later Barnett had cameras in his face.

Barnett, a former champ himself and current contender, completely gets why Werdum didn't want to face Stipe Miocic on short notice with injuries when he was supposed to face Cain Velasquez. But "The Warmaster" still thinks Werdum should have done it.

"I understand his fear, but should he take that fight?" Barnett said at a UFC media lunch. "I think he should. I think that's where he should step up and blast this guy. Or at least he should have come up with a better excuse. But it's his life to live, not mine. The fans will judge him and think whatever they want to."

Werdum told Brazilian media members Monday that he was going to hide his injuries if Velasquez was still the opponent. But after Velasquez pulled out Sunday and Miocic replaced him, Werdum didn't feel like he'd be able to alter his game plan with the injuries to boot.

"I made this decision together with my team," he said. "We decided not to fight. Cain can't fight. I was going to hide the injury one more time, like I always did. I tried to hide it, but couldn't this time. I can't fight if I'm not 100 percent to put on a show like I always did.

"It took me a long time to get here and win this belt, be the champion, to throw everything away because I'm not 100 percent. I have to think about everything now, I can't think and act like I did when I was 20. It's not like that anymore. Everything changed. I'm 38 now, and I feel I'm at the best moment of my career, and I can't risk my career because of pride."

The UFC has not made an official announcement about Werdum's status.

Barnett, who offered to step up and face Miocic on Feb. 6 in Las Vegas, can see the situation from Werdum's perspective. It all comes down to finances.

"He does not want to risk the potential of walking into the cage and making less than he's making now," Barnett said. "He probably feels like this opportunity to make this money, this is it. He's 38, he's coming into his prime. He's had the best performances of his entire life. If he doesn't do it now, it's gone forever. He won't make that money again. These are his opportunities for his paydays, so he's fearful of losing that. Understandably so."

Barnett is supposed to face Ben Rothwell in the co-main event of UFC on FOX 18 on Saturday in Newark. He might need to change his travel plans due to all of this. Barnett would love an interim title fight against Miocic or Rothwell at UFC 196. But he won't bash Werdum to get it.

"I can completely just say something bombastic and accusatory and negative right now to give myself some fame, but I'm not gonna do that," he said. "He has to live with whatever decisions he makes and you know he's gonna be upsetting the head office. Of course."

What Barnett is unsure about was Werdum's approach. He essentially admitted he would have fought Velasquez with injuries, but won't do that for Miocic.

"I understand his reasoning, but when you say that in the public when we're supposed to be swimming in a sea of tough guys, sometimes there's aspects of the business side that you're not gonna get everybody to understand," Barnett said. ... "What does that say about Cain, too? Oh, he's willing to fight Cain all f*cked up, but not Stipe? This is where people should understand pro wrestling more. Now you just cut down your opponent. You basically said he's worth fighting injured and I can beat him. How good is he then?"

The way Barnett breaks it down is that Miocic has faster hands, more technical boxing and wrestles less than Velasquez. Velasquez, the former champ, wrestles better and is more hittable, Barnett said. Werdum beat Velasquez to win the title at UFC 188 last June.

"If you could fight Cain, you could fight Stipe," Barnett said. "If you believe you can fight Cain."

It might not be what Barnett would have done, but he can also see the choice from Werdum's point of view.

"I'm not gonna sit here and be like, 'He's a punk, he's a pussy, he's this,'" Barnett said. "I can understand where he's coming from. I can see his reasoning."