...OH, ONE MORE THING - PLEASE BOOKMARK US & VISIT DAILY!
By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
"I'm the type of guy that loves big opportunities. I like when the cards are against me, and people think that I have no chance. I believe in myself, so when that [UFC 151] fight came out that it was in jeopardy, I called my manager and asked if there was a possibility that I could get the fight because I think I could take it. He was like, 'Really?' and I was like, 'Yeah.' He said give me a couple days, and I told him I was ready to go.
So, he called Joe Silva, and he was like, 'Are you kidding me?' I think Joe liked the fact that I did that. So he said he wasn't going to tell Dana and them unless I called my coaches to make sure it was all 100%. I called Matt and told him that I wanted to this. They were all on board, so I called back my manager, and he tells Joe Silva, and he thought it was awesome, so he called Dana White, but then they ended up throwing the fight out, and then the whole card out. I was all ready to go [laughs]. I ran straight to the gym and started working out."
-Chris Weidman talks to Steph Daniels at BloodyElbow.com about his offer to step in against Jon Jones last year at the doomed UFC 151 card.
Penick's Analysis: This has to be said for Weidman: he sure doesn't shy away from a fight. He stepped up against Demian Maia on ten day's notice last year, he was willing to fight the dominant champion in the weight class above him on short notice, and he's actively worked his way into a fight against one of the greatest fighters the sport has seen in Anderson Silva. Though he's lost some people with incessant talking into the fight, the fact of the matter is he's gutsy as all hell, and clearly confident in his ability to hang with the best fighters in the world. That's admirable, and we'll see him get his chance to prove what he already believes on July 6.
(Attention MMATorch app users: Make sure to upgrade to the latest edition of the MMATorch app on your iPhone, iPad, or Android device!)
Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
STAFF COLUMNISTS: Shawn Ennis - Jason Amadi
Frank Hyden - Rich Hansen
Chris Park - Matt Pelkey
Interested in joining MMATorch's writing team? Send idea for a theme to your column (for Specialist section) or area of interest (i.e. TV Reporter) along with a sample of writing to mmatorch@gmail.com.
