He seems to have no interest in it. He doesn't have many fights left. He's booked for Bonnar, and if he wins that and things go well in December, it looks like he'll fight GSP. So Weidman appears to be out in the cold. Will he ever get a shot against Silva? :think :hat
Most likely, if Weidman keeps winning. Silva has showed interest in fighting for many years to come. I still don't think that the GSP fight will actually happen, even if he beats Condit.
Weidman isn't ready yet. Even though I think he could beat Silva now. Lawlor, Maia, Munoz is good, but add a Belcher, Bisping or Boetsch to the list and that's four quality wins in a row. That's title shot worthy and builds momentum for Weidman, and more interest for the fans.
Weidman has wins over two guys who were recognized as MW contenders and ranked in the top ten. That's better than most of the rest of the field in the Middleweight division. Bisping, Belcher and Stann have never beaten any ranked opponents at MW, yet they're considered to be top ten fighters. Belfort got his title shot after beating Terry Martin and Matt Lindland at 85. Considering that Silva's had title defenses against the likes of Lutter, Leites and Cote, I don't see what Weidman has left to prove before getting a shot.
Three of the consensus worst challengers ever. Weidman deserves more than that. He deserves to go into the fought with Silva a bugger star than he is now, and Silva deserves to face challengers who are deserving from now on. Let's see the 185lbers around the top fight each other. As it stands, Weidman is down to fight Boetsch and that's a perfect final eliminator IMO. Munoz is pure dog**** as a fighter, although Weidman wasting him was undoubtedly impressive.
Id' like to see Weidman beat a bigger name fighter first, but he's more deserving than many of the 185 guys out there right now.
"Does Anderson Silva see something in JJ" is the question. Who knows right now, before Silva v Bonnar, JJ v Belfort, GSP v CC, Weidman v Boetsch, and Bisping v Stann??
Weidman had huge fragments taken out his elbow not too long ago, and Boetsch has about a year or two window to make a MW title run. Once you get into the top 5 in The UFC, it can be anyone's night. The jump in weight tells me Anderson Silva won't wait or sacrifice for GSP.
I think a better question is: Will Weidman ever prove to be worthy of a title shot before Silva retires? The burden of proof is on Weidman, not Silva.
What else does he have to do? Look at Silva's last three opponents. Sonnen got his first title shot by beating Marquadt, Okami and Dan Miller. Okami got his shot by beating Marquadt, Munoz and Lucio Linhares. Belfort got his shot after beating Terry Martin, Lindland and Franklin (at a catchweight). The notion that Weidman needs to distinguish himself to challenge for Silva's title is laughable. Weidman's record is par for the course when it comes to the guys that Silva has been defending his belt against during his entire reign.
I don't think Anderson is making a permanent move to 205. I think he is taking what he feels to be a winnable fight on short notice, and is taking the opportunity to headline a card in Brazil.
I think this is a fight they may be trying to build up to ? Silva is obviously the most dominant Champion in the history of the UFC and possibly all of MMA and Weidman looks like a guy who could very well take this divison over when Silva either A leaves or B retires. Weidman is looking better and more well rounded with each passing fight and looked like a killer vs Munoz basically destroying him in every department of the game. Fact is though hes only had what 4 UFC fights ? I just see this as something they wanna build. If Bisping beats Stann and Anderson doesnt fight GSP ive been expecting Bisping to get a title shot, just a feeling ive had for awhile. In that time I could see Weidman destroying Boetsch adding that name to his resume but the UFC trying to make a bigger star out of him by maybe matching him up with Rich Franklin (if he gets past Cung Le). Rich is still a pretty darn good fighter especially if hes coming in on a win streak, he is the former Champ and hes still a guy who sells tickets and headlines fights.
