Written by Tristen Critchfield at Sherdog.com
New York native Chris Weidman has long been one of the prominent figures behind the UFC’s push to legalize MMA in the Empire State.
With that dream now a reality, the former middleweight champion has some business to handle on the opposite coast. Weidman is scheduled to rematch Luke Rockhold in the UFC 199 headliner at the Forum in Los Angeles on June 4. Weidman lost the 185-pound strap to the American Kickboxing Academy product via fourth-round technical knockout at UFC 194 on Dec. 12.
While Weidman is a virtual lock to be on the UFC’s first card at Madison Square Garden, the moment would be that much sweeter if gold was wrapped around his waist during his walk to the Octagon.
“The vision gets even stronger now. I had to get my belt back, but now just the fact that I’m going to get to defend my belt in Madison Square Garden in front of all of New York is crazy to even start to think about,” Weidman said during a recent conference call. “It definitely gets me more excited.”
Rockhold, of course, had a decidedly different perspective on Tuesday’s monumental news:
Glad to see NY on the menu now. Unfortunate about the timing.
Better for Chris I don’t beat him down in his home state.
Regardless of how UFC 199 plays out, the MMA bill passing in New York was a long time coming for Weidman, who like everyone else with an interest in the sport watched with disappointment as it died before reaching the Assembly floor year after year.
“Speaking for myself I’ve been fighting for seven years, and I’ve been missing out on opportunities to fight in front of my family, friends, fans here in New York. Every year you’re just hopeful and it finally happened, so it’s a dream come true for me,” he said. “It’s a dream come true for all these New York fans that don’t have to worry about buying these tickets to Las Vegas to watch New York fighters get in there or take long car rides to New Jersey.”
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