Vitor Belfort is a fighter who apparently has a bit of trouble making decisions.
The middleweight knockout artist recently stated that he was gunning for a UFC title shot at 185 pounds, and if that fight wasn’t available he would instead take a bout at a catchweight, light heavyweight or even heavyweight.
In his opinion, however, no fight at 185 pounds made sense for him because he was already the No. 1 contender in the division—this according to Belfort.
All it took for Belfort to change his tune was a first-round submission victory for Chael Sonnen over former UFC champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua to cap off UFC Fight Night 26, which was the featured show on the first day of Fox Sports 1.
Just moments after Sonnen made Rua tap out to a guillotine choke and immediately challenged Wanderlei Silva, Belfort took to Twitter to ask for the fight instead:
Belfort has been dancing around several fights since his last knockout win over former Strikeforce champion Luke Rockhold earlier this year. When the title shot against the winner of Chris Weidman and Anderson Silva didn’t happen, Belfort’s name was then brought up by UFC president Dana White for a potential bout at light heavyweight against Rashad Evans.
The only problem is Belfort and Evans are teammates, and so neither wanted any part of that.
So then the UFC moved on to a potential bout between Belfort and former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida. It took Machida’s camp just seconds to say yes to the fight, but Belfort’s response didn’t come nearly as fast.
And then there is Saturday night, when Sonnen’s name shot back into the title discussion after a big win at UFC Fight Night 26, and Belfort decided he wanted the fight.
Well, whether Belfort’s mind is made up or not, Sonnen is more than happy to accept the challenge. Following his win over Rua, Sonnen was interviewed on Fox Sports 1, where he was told about Belfort’s challenge, and his response was in classic form.
“I’m in, if Vitor said my name first, I’m in. That’s all you have to do is say my name, you do not have to ask me twice,” Sonnen said. “I’m like Beyonce’s child—say my name, say my name.”
White said that they will wait to make a decision at a later date whether Sonnen’s next fight will be at 205 pounds or if he will indeed drop back down to middleweight, and if Belfort will actually get the fight or not.
For now with one win, Sonnen catapulted himself back into the rankings and the discussion for title shots and contender bouts, and as always he’s one of the most talked about competitors on the planet.
Damon Martin is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report
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