What’s next for Chris Weidman after ending three-fight skid on Long Island?

Chris Weidman was highly-motivated going into his headlining fight against Kelvin Gastelum at last night’s (Sat., July 22, 2017) UFC on FOX 25 event in Uniondale, New York. That’s because “All American” felt he was being counted out before the fight even began.

But, you can hardly blame naysayers — or the bookies who had Chris as the underdog — for not having the utmost confidence in the former Middleweight champion, as he hadn’t won a fight in two years, losing his previous three bouts all via stoppage.

That’s all in the past, though, as Chris put it on Gastelum from the onset, taking him down at will, using his size advantage to his benefit by tossing Kelvin around and keeping him down when he saw fit (video highlights here). Now that’s he’s back in the win column, Chris can rest easy and go into his next fight with less pressure.

Speaking of which, as much as Weidman won’t want to hear this, he is not in line for a shot at the title. Not even close. He needs to string together some more wins — at least one more — against a top-level Middleweight before he can try to reclaim his title. I get it, who doesn’t want a title shot? But to think you deserve one after ending your three-fight skid, too me, is just baffling.

And to Bisping.

Instead, I’d like to see Chris take on Ronaldo Souza, who is ranked higher than Chris and was also close to a shot at the strap himself before getting knocked out by Robert Whittaker. “Jacare” should be gearing up for a return to action before the year is out after undergoing surgery, and since the Middleweight title picture is much clearer thanks to Whittaker’s win at UFC 213, the time to make this fight is now.

I initially liked a rematch between Weidman and Luke Rockhold, but since Luke was booked to face off against David Branch for an upcoming UFC Fight Night event on Sept. 16 (details), that is out of the question.

For play-by-play coverage and full results for UFC on FOX 25 click here.

Chris Weidman was highly-motivated going into his headlining fight against Kelvin Gastelum at last night’s (Sat., July 22, 2017) UFC on FOX 25 event in Uniondale, New York. That’s because “All American” felt he was being counted out before the fight even began.

But, you can hardly blame naysayers — or the bookies who had Chris as the underdog — for not having the utmost confidence in the former Middleweight champion, as he hadn’t won a fight in two years, losing his previous three bouts all via stoppage.

That’s all in the past, though, as Chris put it on Gastelum from the onset, taking him down at will, using his size advantage to his benefit by tossing Kelvin around and keeping him down when he saw fit (video highlights here). Now that’s he’s back in the win column, Chris can rest easy and go into his next fight with less pressure.

Speaking of which, as much as Weidman won’t want to hear this, he is not in line for a shot at the title. Not even close. He needs to string together some more wins — at least one more — against a top-level Middleweight before he can try to reclaim his title. I get it, who doesn’t want a title shot? But to think you deserve one after ending your three-fight skid, too me, is just baffling.

And to Bisping.

Instead, I’d like to see Chris take on Ronaldo Souza, who is ranked higher than Chris and was also close to a shot at the strap himself before getting knocked out by Robert Whittaker. “Jacare” should be gearing up for a return to action before the year is out after undergoing surgery, and since the Middleweight title picture is much clearer thanks to Whittaker’s win at UFC 213, the time to make this fight is now.

I initially liked a rematch between Weidman and Luke Rockhold, but since Luke was booked to face off against David Branch for an upcoming UFC Fight Night event on Sept. 16 (details), that is out of the question.

For play-by-play coverage and full results for UFC on FOX 25 click here.