Former UFC Middleweight Champion Chris Weidman is back in action at UFC 230, facing another Jacare Souza.
Kelvin Gastelum, a man that Weidman beat prior to his hand injury, is getting the next shot at the UFC Middleweight Title and its something that pissed the former champion off.
“I was definitely pissed off because…speaking to the UFC and the match makers…my management, I was led to believe that I had a chance of getting a title shot against (Robert) Whittaker. Then when I was at UFC International Fight Week, Mick Maynard called me because he is a good guy and he let me know that I wasn’t going to be able to get it. It was based on my injury and not knowing when I was going to be able to come back and my time table, obviously I was trying to argue that I’d be able to come back and they wouldn’t have to worry about anything. They made the decision that they’d have Kelvin and Whittaker fight on the Ultimate Fighter show, at that time though…it was supposed to be a fight that was set way earlier…probably around the same time that I’m going to be fighting Luke….when it was set up for that fight to happen. Then Whittaker got injured and now we don’t know…I don’t think there is a date set for their fight yet, I was a little bothered. I’m not entitled to think that I deserve it and I don’t wanna be that guy, I went out there and finished Kelvin Gastleum in my last fight, but he went out and won two more fights after that when I was injured. He went out and beat (Michael) Bisping pretty much right after my fight and Jacare by split decision, he did his thing…he was more active…I was out. So, its all good,” says Weidman in an exclusive interview with Fightful’s James Lynch.
Weidman sits at #3 in the UFC Middleweight Division rankings, so a victory over Souza could put the former champ back in title contention
UFC 230 takes place on Saturday, November 3 from Madison Square Garden in New York, New York with Daniel Cormier and Derrick Lewis headlining. Fightful is providing live coverage of the event, with a post-show podcast to follow.
