Looks like Chris Weidman got tired of waiting around for Anderson Silva to make up his mind.
Despite campaigning for a 185-pound title fight, the "All American" will instead throw hands against rough-and-tumble middleweight Tim Boetsch at the promotion's upcoming UFC 155 year-end pay-per-view (PPV) extravaganza scheduled for Dec. 29, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
From UFC.com:
"I think I'm the number-one contender in the division but with Anderson not fighting for the rest of 2012, I want to stay busy and keep getting better. I think I'm the best middleweight in the world and I'm going to prove it against another top contender."
Weidman put the 185-pound division on blast by slicing his way through former division contender Mark Munoz at the UFC on FUEL TV 4 event last July. The domination of "The Filipino Wrecking Machine" improved his record to 9-0 overall with six finishes.
But don't expect "The Barbarian" to just roll over.
Since dropping to middleweight, Boetsch (16-4) has rattled off four consecutive wins, including his bookie-busting upset over Hector Lombard at the UFC 149: "Faber vs. Barao" PPV earlier this year. Prior to that, the New England nightmare beat the brakes off former division number one contender Yushin Okami.
He's as tough as they come.
UFC 155 is expected to be headlined by a heavyweight title fight that pits reigning division champion Junior dos Santos against Cain Velasquez in a rematch from their UFC on FOX bout in late 2011. Matt Mitrione is also expected to compete against Philip De Fries.
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