Chris Weidman is still interested in a rematch with Luke Rockhold.
Chris Weidman believes it’s inevitable that he will cross paths with Luke Rockhold again, especially now that both fighters have moved up to the light heavyweight division.
Weidman, 35, lost his middleweight title to Luke Rockhold back in 2015 and ‘All American’ has been itching for a rematch ever since. In fact, the pair were scheduled to lock horns at UFC 230, last November, but the bout fell through after Rockhold was forced to pull out due to injury. Weidman went on to accept a replacement fight against Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ Souza and found himself on the receiving end of a vicious third-round KO. Despite losing, Weidman walked away with a $50, 000 Fight of the Night bonus.
Weidman announced after the Jacare loss that he would be moving up to light heavyweight and, speaking to TMZ in a recent interview, the former middleweight titleholder said a rematch with Rockhold is ‘definitely on the agenda’ at that weight class.
“That’s definitely on the agenda,” Weidman said (transcript via Farah Hannoun of MMA Junkie). “I don’t know if that would be my first fight or not, but I think your first loss definitely hurts the most. To have the opportunity to get that one back is definitely something I want to do.”
Weidman’s ultimate goal, however, is to challenge pound-for-pound phenom Jon Jones for the light heavyweight title.
“I’ve got to fight some other guys first, but at some point, that’s the goal. When I was at 185, the goal was to hold the belt at 185 for as long as I could, then go up to 205 and win the belt over there.
“It didn’t work according to my plan perfectly. But now I’m at 205, and I definitely think I have the tools to beat (Jones).”
As of now, Weidman is currently without an opponent but expect the UFC to announce his light heavyweight debut in the coming weeks.