L. Rockhold (photo) recently won the middleweight belt. Photo: Josh Hedges/UFC
Current UFC middleweight champion, Luke Rockhold has already defined the opponent for his first belt defense: it will be Chris Weidman, precisely the last man with whom he shared the octagon. Despite the tough fight in the first meeting between them, Rockhold hopes that, this time, his life will be easier against the former champion.
See too
In December of last year, Rockhold challenged Weidman for the title. The fight was fierce until the third round, when the then champion made a mistake and practically lost the belt there. Rockhold won shortly after, in the fourth round, winning the title.
However, Rockhold stated that, that time, his preparation was not ideal. In the rematch, he hopes the situation will be different. “With good, healthy training, I will have more energy in the next fight, and I will be able to go forward with more strength and do exactly what I need to do. Weidman says it was 10% or 20%. I don't know what he has to back this up, but I faced him while on antibiotics. And for those who are taking antibiotics and fighting an infection… It's not easy. It's going to be different this time and I don't expect Weidman to last long. I'll be surprised if he makes it past the first round. He won’t get past second”, said the champion, in an interview with the “Revista Combate” program.
Next, Rockhold says he is open to taking on new fights against Vitor belfort e Ronaldo Jacare, who face each other in May, in Brazil. “I would be lying if I said I didn’t want revenge [on Belfort]. And give him what he deserves. Me and Jacaré have had an even fight in the past, and I would be open to ending that too. Both excite me. We’ll see, I’m curious to see this fight,” he added.
So far, the UFC has not defined the exact date and location of the rematch between Weidman and Rockhold. What is known is that the duel will be part of the UFC 199 schedule, in June.
Comments