Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) middleweight contender, Kelvin Gastelum, was bothered when promotion matchmakers overlooked him when it came time to book an interim title fight.
A necessity after 185-pound kingpin Robert Whittaker was felled by Staph infection.
In his place, former champion Luke Rockhold and ex-division No. 1 contender Yoel Romero will collide for the substitute strap in the UFC 221 pay-per-view (PPV) main event next month in Perth, Australia.
More on that fight here.
“It does bother me a little bit that I haven’t even been considered for a shot, but it is what it is,” Gastelum told reporters at UFC 220 (via MMA Junkie). “I know this is a process, and I’m just dealing with the process.”
While Gastelum denies it, there’s a solid chance his perceived snub could be a result of turning down a “Soldier of God” fight at the UFC Fight Night 125 mixed martial arts (MMA) event in Belem, which eventually went to this guy.
Gastelum is currently ranked No. 6 in the division and only has claim to getting a crack at the crown after flattening Michael Bisping at UFC Shanghai. Prior to that, the former middleweight was stopped by Chris Weidman at UFC on FOX 25.
If you’re the UFC matchmaker, who does Gastelum fight next?