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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
"He's on a Jon Jones-type run right now in the 185-pound division. The thing is with Jon Jones is that he went four years taking out all the best 205-pounders in the world. Weidman is beating straight killers right now... It takes time [for popularity to grow]. You look at Anderson Silva and how long it took for him to even resonate. He really blew up after he beat Vitor, so maybe Vitor is the launching pad for all these guys."
-UFC President Dana White comments on Middleweight Champ Chris Weidman post-UFC 187 in the latest edition of UFC.com's The Download.
Penick's Analysis: It's a legitimate comparison to make given who each of them went through in their respective first several title fights. Jones rolled through "Shogun" Rua - who at the time was making his first title defense - and in the next year would add former Champions Rampage Jackson, Lyoto Machida, and Rashad Evans to his victims list. Weidman going through Anderson Silva twice, taking out Lyoto Machida, and then Vitor Belfort is a similar, though I don't think quite as impressive run as the beginning of Jones' title reign. Still, Weidman's on a hell of a run, and if he gets through guys like Luke Rockhold and Jacare Souza as well in the next year, the comparison will be even more apt.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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