Issue 106

October 2013

Chris Weidman shocked the world when he ended the 10-defense title reign of Anderson Silva, the man labeled the greatest MMA fighter of all time. Getting that victory was the sole reason the new UFC 185lb king started his career, and he’s confident he can repeat the feat – in even bigger fashion.

You ain’t seen nothing yet. That’s the overriding message from new UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman ahead of December’s highly anticipated rematch with Anderson Silva.

It’s been a rollercoaster couple of weeks for the new UFC 185lb belt holder, but in a world-exclusive interview with Fighters Only on the shores of Waikoloa Beach in Hawaii, the 29-year-old Weidman insists his championship reign has just begun, and December’s return with Silva is simply part of the plan.

Beating Anderson not once but twice, it seems, was always a prerequisite in Weidman’s mind to becoming the undisputed middleweight champion of the world, and so he’s more than happy to oblige – only this time his confidence, and expectation of his own performance, is going to be even higher.

It’s clear Weidman, 10-0, has briskly grown comfortable shouldering the pressure of being the world number one. And with his initial four-year plan now played out, he’s more determined than ever to go on and become one of the greatest of all time himself.

‘The Spider' catcher

The arrival of the new champion at the beachside breakfast bar in Hawaii is announced long before he steps through the door, as a cavalcade of well-wishers trip over themselves to shake the hands that destroyed a legend. When he finally makes it to his seat, it seems the enormity of his achievement at UFC 162 in July has finally hit home during this family vacation in the sun.

“It has sunk in now, how big this thing is,” says Weidman, who’s on the big island for a family wedding. “Getting out of the public eye and getting away from the media has helped. I was swamped for the first few weeks with interviews, but coming away, it’s given me the chance to stop and sit back and take this thing in.

“It’s been a crazy couple of weeks for sure, probably the craziest time of my entire life. I guess I expected it to be like this, and it’s definitely what I wanted, but it definitely went over what I was expecting. 

“Just getting noticed everywhere I go now, that’s still weird, especially for me. No matter where I’ve been, I’ve been noticed and spotted, and it’s been fun. It’s extra responsibility though too. I’m desperately trying not to eat like crazy, because I don’t want everybody to see that I’m fat. I don’t want people looking and thinking, ‘Is that the champ? How fat is that guy? I can’t believe he makes 185,’” he chuckles.

When Weidman first took up MMA towards the end of 2008 (debuting in ‘09), on the back of a standout All-American college wrestling career, Anderson Silva was well into his reign as UFC champion. From day one, Weidman was focused on unseating the pound-for-pound king. 

Whilst Silva may have had eight to 10 weeks to prepare for the fight, Weidman effectively had four years. So it’s hardly surprising his confidence never deserted him once the cage door closed in Las Vegas. Weidman was programmed to block the aura of Anderson’s legacy.

“You always have doubts, but I was very confident,” he acknowledges. “So many people build Anderson up and he’s almost thought of as this mythical creature, that he could beat six guys at once, and he could knock me out any time he wants to. People really have these crazy thoughts about him, they actually think he’s, like, beyond great. 

“But to me he’s only ever just been another human guy, and one that I think I’m better than. So all these people who were thinking I was going to get killed, I smiled at them, because I knew I was going to win.”

Designed to one day defeat Anderson and become champion, it seems that UFC gold was the last thing on Weidman’s mind in Las Vegas. But once Dana White wrapped it around his waist, the new champ realized just how much it meant to him.

“All I was focused on was Anderson for the fight, but winning the belt means just as much to me as defeating him. I’ve been visualizing beating Anderson Silva since the beginning, but in doing so I’ve also been visualizing being champion from the beginning too. Both were huge goals of mine and, hey, I’ve done it.”

Psychological edge

Some media are still reporting Anderson actually beat himself on July 6th. That the former champion underestimated Weidman and his hubris left the door wide open for the New York native to exploit. But not falling into ‘The Spider’s trap, like a succession of other more experienced challengers had done, was a significant part of Weidman’s pre-fight preparation.

Submission coach John Danaher reveals: “We trained for Anderson’s goading an awful lot during the camp. We knew he would do that: drop his hands and talk to Chris, and so we constantly worked on that. We told Chris not to take it personally, it’s part of Anderson’s game and he uses it to play with people psychologically. We constantly stressed throughout his eight-week camp to not take it personally, it’s just what you have to expect out there. 

“Chris knew he had to focus on the task at hand, focus on the techniques, on the physical elements of the fight, and not the psychology. And he kept calm, kept his composure, and started with a beautiful fake takedown which led to the strike and ultimately got what he wanted.”

Danaher adds: “People don’t quite realize how short a space of time Chris has actually been fighting for as, although he’s been fighting for four years, for almost two years of that he’s been out with injury. Really, 90% of what he has achieved has been done in two years – a very, very short period of time.”

Two years or four, regardless, Weidman took the fight to Silva from the opening bell and in the first round his fearless approach was evident as he threw caution to the wind and went for back-to-back submission holds. From cageside, the kneebar into heel hook looked close, but Weidman admits that whilst he was committed to the attempts, Silva’s defenses were up to the challenge.

He recalls: “He kind of gave me the opening to go for the kneebar, so I went for it, and it was on tight for a split second, but he turned out of it pretty good. He was pretty slippery and hard to hold onto. He’s got good defense. I went for it and committed to it, and I tried to figure-four the opposite leg so he couldn’t roll out, but he still found a way to roll out of it and did a good job. 

“It was on for a split second and I don’t regret going for it, because I’d only regret something if I didn’t go for it, so I was happy that I was confident enough to try that.” 

Coach Danaher, positively beaming when recalling the incident, adds: “Chris went for a beautiful rolling kneebar into a heel hook. It didn’t quite go the way we wanted, he didn’t quite get the tightness for the finish, but I was very happy he had the confidence to go for that. 

“He went for that relatively early in the round remember, and many fighters in his position would have probably just held onto top position and ground out the round, win the round. But that’s not how Chris operates. He thinks, ‘F**k it, I’m going in. I’m going to finish it in this round.’ That just showed how much confidence and the real verve he had to go for that submission. Next time I’m sure it will be technically a little tighter and he’ll get it.”

What grappler?

Indeed, so many writers and fans believed the key to success for Weidman in the fight would be to play to his obvious strengths. To follow the script almost played to perfection by Chael Sonnen at UFC 117 in 2010, and put Anderson on his back to pound out a grappling-heavy points decision.

However, Weidman insists he’s not Chael Sonnen, and he believes his stand-up is more than capable of dealing with anybody inside the Octagon – including Silva. “That whole Chael Sonnen thing, where everybody before the fight was saying, ‘Oh you better do the same thing Chael did because you’re a better wrestler with better submissions,’ but I’m not Chael Sonnen,” he states.

“The second I try to be Chael Sonnen is the second I’m going to lose. I’m not the kind of guy to throw three punches and take a shot, throw three punches and take a shot, over and over again. I’m not that guy. I’m confident on my feet and I’m not afraid of getting hit. 

“If I see a takedown in there then I’ll go for it, but I’m certainly not going to force it. I’m not scared on my feet against anybody, and I think I’ve proven that now more than ever.”

He adds: “It wasn’t false confidence that I had for the first fight. I knew I could stand with him. It was confidence I deserved to have. So now in the next fight I’m confident it will go the same way. I’m going to punch him in the face as soon as I can, and if there are opportunities for the takedown, then I’ll hit the takedown and work for a submission. 

“Whatever I feel in there, in the moment, is what I do. I’ve never had a game plan for any of my fights and couldn’t think of anything worse than having to do this or that and fight to a pre-arranged plan, or fall back on a plan B. I just go after my opponents, stay aggressive and go for it. My coaches have confidence in me, and I have full confidence in them, so I just go after it.”

The rematch

With such a significant victory still fresh in his mind, you could be forgiven for thinking Weidman is desperate for the rematch. That it can’t come soon enough. But, in fact, he’s happy to sit back and enjoy being champion. 

The rematch was never a doubt in his mind, and so he was preparing for it long before he was awarded the title belt. “There’s no rush for the rematch. I’m glad to have gotten the time to come here on vacation with my family and be able to enjoy this a little bit. I’ll be back in the gym soon enough, and the rematch will swing around real fast, that’s for sure.”

Immediately after the fight at UFC 162 Anderson insisted, both inside the Octagon and at the post-fight press conference, that he had no desire to fight Weidman again. The rematch simply didn’t appeal to him. But Weidman admits he paid little attention to the words coming out of the Brazilian’s mouth on July 6th. He knew his first defense would be Anderson, seemingly long before Silva did.

“I knew he wasn’t thinking straight after the fight so I never really listened to what he was saying,” Weidman states. “I knew the rematch was always going to happen. Number one, he’d just gotten knocked out so he wasn’t thinking clearly, and number two, he’d just lost for the first time in, like, seven years, so, losing fights isn’t something that’s very real to him. He’s in there answering questions but in that situation you really can’t listen too much to what’s being said.

“To be honest, I don’t remember much of what he said in the Octagon or even at the press conference, but I knew there was always going to be a rematch. Anderson has been on top forever, so he had no other option than to take the rematch or quit.

“He has to fight me to get himself back on track, and I knew he wasn’t going to retire, so, yeah, his only option is to have the rematch. Once he took a couple of days and started thinking straight again, it was inevitable we were going to agree to a second fight. And I know he’ll come back stronger, better and more determined to beat me, but I’ll be ready for that.”

However, Weidman’s head coach, Ray Longo, disagrees Anderson will manage to return improved. The veteran trainer questions whether, at 38, Anderson will be able to bounce back from such a chilling knockout.

Longo says: “We’ve all seen it in boxing so many times – the so-called invincible champions who scare everybody to death with their skills. But those guys don’t come back when they’re the ones who get knocked out. 

“Plus, Anderson’s like 40 or 39 or whatever he is. I just don’t see him ever beating Chris Weidman. I just don’t see it happening. Chris will walk into the rematch in December even more confident than he was in the first fight. He knows what to expect now with all the mugging and showboating. I think Anderson’s fans are going to have to come to terms with the fact it’s over, and their guy is going to get bashed up once again.”

On December 28th at UFC 168, back inside the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, the world will find out exactly what Anderson Silva has left. And discover whether or not Chris Weidman truly has the number of the greatest fighter in the history of the sport.

Nothing special

In the meantime, Weidman is committed to getting even better, working even harder and plotting his own extensive reign as the UFC’s middleweight champion and, possibly, beyond. Unlike Anderson, whose natural talent and approach is thought of by so many as being gifts from the gods, Weidman admits his success is built on a foundation of nothing but relentless hard work. 

“Hard work equals confidence and that’s how you reach your goal. I was never the most athletic kid, never the most spectacular athlete, but when I started working hard that’s when I started becoming the best,” he says. “But I’m not just talking every once in a while, I’m talking about every day. You have to work hard every day. 

“When you’re feeling tired, when you’re feeling sick, when you have an injury, you’ve got to keep pushing through it every time. I’ve felt sick, I’ve been tired and I’ve been hurt, and while you have to listen to your body to some extent, you also have to learn to push through it, because there is always another guy somewhere else pushing through it, working harder.”

Spiritually too, Weidman – who lost his house in New York to Hurricane Sandy last October, remember – is switched on. “This is all part of God’s plan. Every time I’ve been in the right place spiritually I’ve had success. And I was in the right place through all of that adversity, and he made it happen, 100%.

“All I have control over is working as hard as I possibly can and that’s really it. And that’s what I do, strive to make the most of the ability that he gave me. As for the rest, well, I can’t change that. I believe all I have control over is my attitude, and if I go in there with the right attitude good things will happen. It’s all about being committed and working hard.”

But it takes a little more than hard work to defeat greatness, as Danaher explains: “I was convinced Chris could do something to shock the world and beat Anderson Silva. People don’t realize that in order to do something great you yourself have to be great. You have to have the seeds of greatness inside you to perform great actions. 

“Even though publicly Chris is fairly unknown – and that’s fair enough after really only two years in martial arts – I’ve had the opportunity as a coach, along with Ray Longo and Matt Serra, to witness what he can do in the training hall and I’ve seen what he’s done with other people that are highly placed in the sport. I’ve seen him run people over like a truck. So we were in this privileged position that we knew how good he was while the world didn’t know.”

Is this indeed the changing of the guard? Is this switch in the MMA landscape permanent? Is this truly the beginning of the Weidman era? “We’ll see. I’ll keep working as hard as I can, and see what God has in store for me,” Weidman says, looking out over the picturesque Hawaiian shoreline. 

“I’ll keep rockin’ and rollin’ and if I get to a place and the doors are shut for me, well, then the doors are shut. But I’m going to keep working hard and do the best I can. I want to be the champ for a long time. I want to eventually be thought of as one of the greatest of all time, so I’ve got to start by winning this fight on December 28th. And I want to go out there and look really, really good doing it too.” 

And with a chuckle and sip of his coconut water, he adds: “The Weidman era has begun, so jump on the bandwagon, friends, ‘cos it’s rollin’.”

Weidman on... Matt Serra

“Being a Long Island guy too, Matt is obviously someone that I looked up to. I was, like, star struck the first time I met him, and he’s just taught me so much as well. It’s really inspirational to have him so close to me, right at home in Long Island, and him doing it made it so much more real for me. I knew I could do it”

Weidman on... John Danaher

“Obviously, John is a jiu-jitsu wizard. He’s technically the best guy I’ve ever seen teach jiu-jitsu. He just breaks everything down so efficiently, and he also takes things that I’m already good at and just makes them so much better”

Weidman on... Ray Longo

“Ray is one of my best friends at this time. We’ve become really close. I spend most of my time with him and he’s my head coach. He knows me as a person, knows me as a fighter. He knows when I need to be pushed as a fighter, and when I need to be pulled back: which is the most important aspect of coaching. 

“Technically, as a striking coach, he just doesn’t get nearly enough credit. Especially as he’s coached two guys (Weidman and Matt Serra) who’ve knocked out two of the guys known as the greatest of all time (Silva and Georges St Pierre). And these are not guys who came from other camps and got good somewhere else; we all had our first sparring session with Ray Longo.

“The day I learned to throw a jab was with him, along with Matt and a bunch of other great strikers he’s taught over the years too. He deserves an extremely large amount of credit – a huge amount. I wouldn’t have been able to do what I did without him, and he gave me a huge amount of confidence to do it too.”