The UFC recently announced that middleweight champion Chris Weidman‘s next title defense will come against Luke Rockhold sometime in September or October. The books are already posting a line for the fight, and it sees Weidman a (-155) favorite over Rockhold, who is kicking back at (+125). The over/under for this five-round bout is set at 3.5 rounds, with the over paying (+105) and the under returning at (-135).
For Weidman, this will be the fourth defense of the title he won by defeating Anderson Silva back in July of 2013. He is now a perfect 13-0 and he has looked very impressive in beating Vitor Belfort and Lyoto Machida in his last pair of fights. The Belfort fight came after a 10-month layoff due to an injury, but he came through the fight unscathed and is ready to go, possibly as the headliner for September’s UFC 191.
A lot of the same things can be said about Rockhold, who has won four fights in a row and looked impressive doing it. In his last outing in April of this year, he mauled Lyoto Machida, becoming only the second man to submit him along with ex Light Heavyweight champion Jon Jones, and he is on a streak that has seen him finish his last four fights in the first or second round. The lone blemish he has recently was a fast TKO loss to Vitor Belfort in his UFC debut, but his recent performances have overcome that black mark.
The similarities do not end with just the two being on dominant runs, as they also have similar height, reach and build as both men classify as “long” middleweights. Both also come from a wrestling background, and both have been with high-level MMA teams (Rockhold with the American Kickboxing Academy in California, and Weidman with the Serra/Longo group in New York) so they have augmented their wrestling with striking and submission prowess.
They have also been able to show the complete package of skills in the UFC, with perhaps Rockhold separating himself a bit in the submission aspect as he is coming off three high level submissions in a row. Weidman’s punching has been so good that he hasn’t really had to flash what he is capable of on the floor, but perhaps Rockhold will bring it out in this next match.
