Weidman vs. Belfort

This is the official discussion thread for Weidman vs. Belfort. Let's see what you've got.

Weidman will win in the third periode

I have Weidman weathering the storm then taking down and submitting a fading Belfort in the third round.

I can see that happening, 







I also can see weidman waking up on the stool.

It's hard to say on Weidman. He definately good but I don't know how good he is or if he was just a really bad match up for Silva at the tail end of his career. He's got better wrestling than Belfort that's for sure

A lot will depend on if Belfort can get the TRT exempt in Las Vegas. Otherwise we could see a deflated Overeem-esque Belfort.

this fight happens on my birthday so i cant wait i fight its a great fight and razor close 1st two rounds i think vitor will be the better man but if he cannot get the finish chris will finish him !! i cant see anyway this fight lets the fans down so hyped

Weidmann vs. Vitor and Hendricks vs. Lawler should deliver fireworks!

This one is impossible to call.  Vitor has looked unbeatable, but Weidman just beat the greatest twice.  Flip a ******' coin. 

I agree. This is a tough one to pick. Vitor has been looking amazing, but Weidman was able to do something Vitor couldn't do. When I have to pick a close title fight, I usually go with the champ. Probably gonna do that here.

* Edited at 02.05.2014, 12:56 PM ET *

Vitor Belfort = Uriah Faber in title fights......

I wouldn't be that generous. Urijah isn't a cheater.

Vitor does have something Urijah never had, and looks like he may never have,: a UFC belt. 

Even if it was on a technicality and Randy took the title back immediately. Vitor can still say he was a UFC champion and Urijah cannot.

Vitor also has a 33+% loss ratio, Urijah will never have one of those!

Belfort is currently an exceptional case. Comparing a fighters past to the fighter in the present is usually a good indicator (providing he's not too old) but not with Belfort currently, eventhough he is 36. The TRT has improved his performance a lot. More so than other fighters on TRT. He's not the same fighter that he was before 2013. Now we can fall into the hype of that too. That's a pitfall but it still points towards Belfort being different. It will be interesting to see if he gets the TRT exemption in Las Vegas. If he does he's worth a single bet as if he's the underdog

If the fight is not in Brazil, then his chances go down a lot.

@amp Urijah's WEC FW belt with 5 defenses > Vitor's UFC LHW belt with no defenses.

Correct, but still no UFC belt. Not saying one's career is better than the other's. Just saying. Vitor had a UFC belt. Urijah never has. 

This will be Vitor's last chance to get a belt I feel. 

This fight - any Belfort fight, really - is hard to predict because Vitor is such an unique fighter in the sense that he made an art out of brawling, and behind those wild punches there is hard work, fine technique and good game-plans. I don't think there is anyone else that fights like him with the success that he fights with. I mean, how do you analyze a fighter against whom typical counter-striking techniques simply don't work, and whose ADCC super-heavyweight bronze medal leads us to think that his jiu-jitsu is incredible, even though he never uses it successfully? A fighter who closes the holes his rabid offense opens up through sheer speed?

Of one thing, however, I am sure. Belfort hasn't morphed into some kind of monster in the last year. The truth is that his case is very similar to Urijah Faber's: both fighters are right now veterans who are better than they ever were before, but I don't think they have made the necessary improvements in their game to become established champions. You see, Belfort was always fast, strong and precise. He is now faster, stronger and more  precise than he has ever been in his lifetime, but the flaws that were there before are still there. Weidman is a smart dude with great reach, and I am betting that he will exploit those flaws, drag him into deep water, and drown him. I will keep my money away from this fight, since Vitor can end any fight if his opponent makes a mistake, but great wrestling/BJJ in a smart fighter who likes to walk forward is pretty much everything you need to beat Vitor.

WeidMan will take him down and ground and pound him

It'll be fun to see how many people change their picks now that TRT is banned in Nevada.