Chris Weidman dismisses Marvin Vettori callout: ‘You aren’t that good’

Chris Weidman | Thomas Lakes, MMA Fighting Suffice to say, if it’s up to Chris Weidman, he won’t be fighting Marvin Vettori anytime soon.
Weidman returned to the win column this past weekend with a decision win over Omari Akhmedov and while it wasn’t exactly a performance that evoked memories of the former UFC middleweight champion’s prime, it was the first victory in over three years for “The All American.”
Shortly after his win, Weidman, 36, was challenged by up-and-coming middleweight Marvin Vettori:
“Weidman looked horrible tonight,” Vettori wrote. “He’s a former champion, let me whip his boring ass next. Guarantee you he will hide like all the other guys. Me against Chris Weidman needs to happen.”
“I swear I’ll have Weidman begging me for air by the second [round],” he added in a subsequent tweet. “Let’s book this!”
In both tweets, Vettori, 26, tagged the UFC and matchmaker Mick Maynard. Weidman is currently not featured in the UFC’s official contenders’ rankings, though Akhmedov was ranked No. 11 ahead of their fight. Vettori is also not in the top-15, but he appears poised to make the leap after winning his last three fights.
On Friday, Vettori sent Weidman a reminder via social media to respond to his callout, which Weidman did with vigor:
“Yo dork, hop off my nuts and get a win over someone in the top-15 for [the] first time in your life!” Weidman wrote. “I have been beating guys in the top-15 for 10 years straight. Relevant? There’s a reason you are calling me out.
“I’ll fight again when I’m ready too. And by the way, you aren’t that good.”
Vettori responded by pointing out the rough stretch that Weidman is currently in, as well as the difficulties he’s faced landing a top-15 opponent.
“How can I beat anybody in the top-15 if nobody accepts fighting me?” Vettori wrote. “You have gone 2-5 in your last seven being KO’d in every single one of those five [losses]. I want my first former champ on my record. Don’t tell me that after one weak win you are already [picking] and choosing opponents.”
Immediately following his fight against Akhmedov, Weidman declared that he was targeting fights with “top-tier guys” at 185 pounds. It remains to be seen if Vettori fits into that category.




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