Sunday 30 June 2013

Chris Weidman and His Dubious Train of Hype



With UFC 162 fast approaching the organisation is trying to sell Chris Weidman as an unbeaten phenom, a perfect storm to blow away the most dominant champion in the history of the sport. While it sounds very exciting, the reality is quite different. Numerous fans have expressed negative opinions on Weidman as a contender to the Middleweight title. Today we will examine the legitimacy of Chris Weidman as a number one contender.

Chris Weidman is being advertised as a young talent with a whole glorified career ahead of him. With only 9 professional fights on his record it may appear to be true, however in reality he is already 29 years old. In the MMA of today, a fighter in his late twenties is usually only a couple of years away of reaching the hay day of his career. Compared to a 23 year old welterweight Rory MacDonald who at the moment arguably does not get half of the hype Weidman is getting, he should be a seasoned veteran in the fast evolving environment of today’s mixed martial arts. However, Chris is not a veteran, he has a decent 9-0 record with 5 UFC victories, but at the moment his career leaves an impression that the contender has not been tested at the highest levels of the competition.