A few days after taking out Ronaldo Souza in the main event of UFC Fight Night 150 last Saturday (April 27, 2019) in Sunrise, Florida (see it), Jack Hermansson unveiled his wish list for his next opponent.
Aside from targeting former title contenders Yoel Romero and Kelvin Gastelum, in that order, “The Joker” had Chris Weidman as his third option, saying a win over the former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Middleweight champion wouldn’t be a bad thing to have on his resume.
“All American” heard him loud and clear, as he took to Twitter to accept the challenge.
I Just heard “The Joker” Hermansson mention on @arielhelwani show he would want to fight me next. Would love that fight.
— Chris Weidman (@chrisweidman) May 1, 2019
After Jack earned his fourth straight UFC win, he shot up the rankings to earn a top five position, leaping over Weidman who dropped one spot to No. 7 (see the official list here). Whether or not that has any bearing on Jack’s desire to face “All American,” remains to be seen.
Still, Jack has stated he would prefer to face Romero next, saying a victory over “Soldier of God” will get him to the big dance much quicker.
As for Chris, the former Middleweight champion is currently sidelined after undergoing neck and knee surgeries, and is eyeing a return to action later this summer. Should the promotion not book Costa vs Romero again, setting up Hermansson against Romero seems logical.
If not, then Weidman is more than ready to keep “The Joker” busy. You interested?